SPONSORED SPECIAL SECTION REDWOOD GOSPEL MISSIONS
Critical services RGM offers several programs for both men and women. Here are a few of its key initiatives: Men's Guest Services An emergency shelter for men experiencing homelessness. Additionally, there is a Transitional Savings Program, where guests can remain for six months to save money while they put their lives back together and form a plan to transition out of homelessness. Contact 707-542-4817. Men's New Life Program A 12- to 16-month faith-based residential program for men with life-controlling issues who wish to put their issues behind them and start a new life. Women's New Life Program at the Family Campus A 12- to 16-month faith-based residential program for women with life-controlling issues who wish to put their issues behind them and start a new life. Great Thanksgiving Banquet RGM has been hosting this event (held the Wednesday-before-Thanksgiving) for more than 20 years. Not only does the Sonoma County Fairgrounds banquet include a warm meal with all the turkey-day fixings, but also on offer are community resources, a coat distribution, haircuts and a chapel service. Families can register in advance to receive a turkey, pumpkin pie and food box. City Kids Festival Redwood Gospel Missions partners with local churches to hold its annual Back To School Festival, a mid-summer event at a local park featuring fun, booths and a back-pack giveaway (just in time for school)! Mobile Ministries Mobile Ministries includes: Nomadic Shelter, search and rescue efforts and Mobile Shower. Jail Ministries Redwood Gospel Missions has men's and women's jail ministries teams that are authorized to go into the county jail and facilitate chapel services, bible studies and one-on-one biblical support. Contact 707-542-4817.
From left, Kenzie High, Eric Sangervasi and RGM Executive Director Jeff Gilman at the new headquarters on Summerfield Road in Santa Rosa. [ Duncan Garrett Photography]
down in 2024. While RGM will pick up the mantle for youth advocacy from SAY, its mission is broader—its West College Avenue shelter facility, aka the Rose, has provided 40 beds for women and their families (the Rose is planned to relocate to the Dream Center) and at its guest-services shelter in Santa Rosa’s Railroad Square, the gospel mission offers 80 beds and provides meals to mostly single adult men. During the cold months, RGM operates a nightly “winter shelter” for the unhoused at a rotating network of participating churches. And, while the number of homeless youth fell this year by 24%, according to the count, that could be due to undercounting in the wake of the demise of Sonoma Advocates for Youth. The level of need is almost certainly still there. Redwood Gospel Missions always has an eye out for better ways to serve those in need. But challenges are a constant, especially for a nonprofit like Redwood Gospel Missions, which is 100% donation- based, relying on zero government funding. By owning and occupying the former SAY property, the gospel mission has an opportunity to make an impact like never before. The Summerfield Road parcel includes a 50,000-square-foot main building and a handful of smaller side buildings. (The site used to house a hospital, until Sutter Pacific Medical Foundation donated the property to SAY a decade ago.) The former Dream Center is transitioning to become RGM’s Family Campus, a 51-bed transitional residential program dedicated to supporting single parents and their children. (As the program expands, intact families will be
welcomed.) Kenzie can’t stress enough the
importance of expanding family services in breaking the cycles of homelessness and instability. “If the family is in breakdown, the family is in breakdown—not just mom or dad,” she says. “We want the kids to heal alongside them and be ministered alongside them and grow as a family.” The program structure at the Family Campus includes daily life-skills training and therapy, followed by work therapy and personal development, with evenings dedicated to family time and structured free time. Residents must also commit to behavioral guidelines, curfews and program participation. A zero-tolerance policy for drugs and alcohol is strictly enforced. Mobilizing the community While the new Family Campus represents exciting opportunities for RGM to expand services, it’s also a reminder of the critical role volunteers play in the organization. At any given time, the gospel mission might have 200 or 300 volunteers actively serving the needy, estimates Eric Sangervasi, director of partner and community ministries. Among the several initiatives his team overseas— fundraising, marketing, media, outreach events, and more—is coordinating its vast network of volunteers. As Sangervasi points out, the organization’s mission statement is to “mobilize our community to minister to the needy so that lives are transformed.” Boiling it down, “It means we are a platform to the community to live out their ministry to the poor and needy,” he says. “Redwood Gospel Missions does not
August 2025
NorthBaybiz 43
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker