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Rescue Mission fundraiser dinner at Antones
BOARDMAN
The Rescue Mission of the Mahoning Valley received charity of its own Friday night during the organization’s annual fundraiser dinner at Antone’s Banquet Centre on Market Street.
Ticket sales for the event and donations made to the mission during the event will go toward funding the construction of a new building for the mission. The current building – on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard near downtown Youngstown – is 85 years old and is in constant need of repair, according to the Rescue Mission’s fundraising appeal.
The city deeded a 17.5-acre parcel to the mission in 2010 for the construction of a new building in the former South Side Park off Bellview Avenue. The land can accommodate the 50,000-square-foot facility that mission administrators hope to build.
Lynn Wyant, the mission’s director of development, said the organization needed about $4 million in order to begin construction. Outside economic development organizations have agreed to match the $4 million if the Rescue Mission hits its goal.
The fundraiser is expected to generate between $10,000 and $15,000.
The dinner drew 290 people, an increase from the previous year’s attendance of 240. Wyant speculated the increase in participation was likely tied to the organization’s push for the new building and because the dinner featured performances by local worship musicians Chris Drombetta and Lori Reighn Matta.
Many of the attendees were representatives of local churches.
Between songs, three individuals working with the mission told stories about how they converted to Christianity and spoke on the impact the mission has had in their lives and the lives of the individuals that they’ve ministered to at the facility.
James Echement, executive director, praised the mission’s development team for the evening’s turnout and expressed gratitude for the public’s support. He also expressed his desire to see the mission recognized more often for the work they do beyond providing shelter.
“We really are trying to break the ‘poor house’ image that is sometimes associated with the mission,” Echement said. “People who come to us are well taken care of, yes, but for those who can be trained for jobs, we have a wonderfully successful job-training and placement program with our gracious local business partners.”
The Rescue Mission is still accepting donations for the new building, and is especially looking for individuals who can commit to regular donations for the next three to five years.