Since 1998, the Idaho Falls Rescue Mission has been dedicated to helping homeless people by operating three shelters as a gospel rescue mission. Regardless of religion, anyone is welcome to help them in their purpose of serving those in need.
“The good news is, you know, for the $20 that you would hand to somebody that was panhandling, I can serve eight people dinner,” said Chris Aspenall, the director of development for the organization. “The person panhandling, you know, can't get that one meal out of that $20,” he said. “I can.” I can serve eight. “So we can make a dollar go much further than, contributing in other ways.”
Aspenall shared that the mission served 700 people in their shelters in 2024. They also served 48,000 meals, gave out 9,600 pieces of clothing and 1,150 hours or case management. Overall, with this and more, over 94,000 resources were handed out over this last year. Each of the three shelters has a purpose, serving men, women and families. They also do life transformation programs, one of them is a 12-week addiction recovery program.
“Every night, we serve a meal to the community and we can when we open up those doors for anyone that wants to come in,” he shared “And so I try to get down there frequently and just break bread with the folks that are there.” And that to me is just having that community conversation with, you know, with our guests and with members of our community. It's a neat experience too.
The Idaho Falls Rescue Mission relies on donations from the community and local churches. They are looking for further funding and more volunteers to help in their crusade in helping the people of Idaho falls. For more information about donations or volunteering, please visit their website.