Rev. Jeff Kaiser sees the people who come to Haven of Rest Ministries struggling to regain control of their lives. Some have lost their jobs while others are battling addiction or mental illness. Others are simply trying to keep their head above water as they desperately try to care for their families.
Kaiser sees the pain in all of them, but it’s the young children who come through the doors that trouble him the most.
“I see the hopelessness in their eyes,” says Kaiser, executive director at the private social service agency for Summit, Portage, Medina, Stark, Tuscarawas, Wayne and Holmes counties.
“There’s not a lot of value on life for them. That’s a great concern for me because all of the guests that come in are very valuable and they do have a purpose. So when I see that, it just breaks my heart.”
Haven of Rest was founded in 1943 as a small storefront rescue mission and has grown to become a three-building campus with an emergency shelter and a harvest home for women and children. It also has a mission building for administration, as well as meal service.
“We have a long-term residential program, an education center, after care and a career development section in this building,” Kaiser says.
Each night, anywhere from 150 to 200 guests will come to Haven of Rest looking for a place to stay for the night. The center has about 60 full-time employees and 25 to 30 part-time workers to provide guests with meals, shelter and clothing. The center is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“When they come in, they’ll meet a supervisor and we’ll try to find out what their needs are and eventually get them to a case worker so we can get a plan set up for them,” Kaiser says.
Annually, Haven of Rest serves more than 289,000 meals to roughly 67,000 individuals.
“Last year, we had 1,900 new faces come to the mission for the very first time,” he says. “We’ve had people stay three months; some have stayed for up to a year depending on their needs because all of the needs are different.”
The tools to make a difference
Kaiser believes there are a number of factors at work that keep Haven of Rest busy helping people in need. The recession that began in 2008 forced a lot of families into dire financial straits, but that’s not the source of every problem.
“We’re dealing with a multitude of younger adults that are struggling not only with addictions, but mental health issues,” he says. “There’s generational poverty that a lot of them are struggling with. The lack of education, there is hopelessness, a feeling of being lost where there is no direction.”
Haven of Rest is doing what it can to help. The goal is to not just provide meals and shelter, but to give guests the tools to get back on their feet. Computer classes are offered to those staying on a long-term program where they can learn valuable skills.
“When they get ready to go out into the job market, we have a career development program where we help them put their resumes together,” he says. “We also do mock interviews before they go out into the market and start applying for work.”
When they do land work, Kaiser says they get time to get settled before leaving the center.
“They can actually save money here at the mission for a period of time so when they do get their — whether it’s an apartment or some other place, they have the money for the first down payment,” Kaiser says. “They can turn on their utilities and they can put food on their tables so they don’t start out with nothing in the bank account.”
Haven of Rest is a Christian-based organization and promotes the idea that change can be achieved through faith and through Christ.
“We believe that through Christ, he gives you the tools that you need to overcome barriers,” Kaiser says. “He gives you the grace and the strength to get through the hardships and temptations that come your way.”
But Kaiser adds that you don’t have to be a religious person to be helped by the center.
“All the guests that come in come from all different types of backgrounds,” he says. “They’re very familiar with our structure, but if they don’t want to grab onto that, that’s fine. We’ll minister to them, we’ll encourage them, we’ll work with them and we’ll get them plugged into agencies that can give them support.” ●
