Peoria Rescue Ministries is changing its name to PATHWAY Ministries to better reflect and communicate its ministry and mission. For nearly 70 years Peoria Rescue Ministries has been known for providing compassionate crisis care within our community for folks experiencing homelessness, abuse, addiction, and abandonment. PATHWAY Ministries began as Peoria City Mission in 1955 when Helen Durdell and Florence Holzschuh began serving coffee and donuts along with sharing God’s love with homeless men. Today PATHWAY Ministries operates in seven different locations across the city with more than 75 staff and hundreds of volunteers and provides both residential and community services. Their mission is “to create pathways out of poverty through Jesus”.
“We’re really excited to re-introduce ourselves to Peoria and the region as PATHWAY Ministries,” remarked Dr. Ben Pflederer, President of the Board for PATHWAY Ministries. “Our new name reflects a shift in our ministry from a predominant emphasis on crisis relief, focused on food and shelter, to a greater emphasis on long-term life change.”
The ministry still provides compassionate crisis care, welcoming men and women who have no place to turn for food, shelter, and safety. In the past year alone, the ministry has served over 100,000 meals and provided more than 50,000 nights of shelter. But they offer much more than just emergency shelter. Through their Residential Programs, they provide Faith-Based education, counseling, advocacy, and work readiness training leading to long-term life change and a pathway from poverty to progress. In the past 4 years, those efforts have helped secure permanent housing for 420 folks and assisted in placing over 600 men and women in employment.
Their community services include support and advocacy for those facing the crisis of unexpected pregnancies and parenting challenges as well as counseling for folks dealing with mental, emotional, or spiritual difficulties.
“We see poverty as more than just a lack of material things,” says Jon Rocke, Executive Director of PATHWAY Ministries. “Poverty is brokenness in our relationships with God, with ourselves, with others, and with creation or work. If poverty is a whole-person issue, the journey out requires a whole-person approach. Our new name points to a change of direction – from poverty to progress and it reflects our belief that Jesus is the pathway to renew our relationships with God, Self, Others, and Creation.
Thursday marked the official launch of PATHWAY Ministries with a naming celebration attended by City, Regional, and State officials, other poverty alleviation ministries and service agencies, and members of the community.
When asked how poverty in our community can best be addressed, Rocke replied, “If we think of poverty as a problem to solve it can be overwhelming. But when we think about poverty as a person who just needs a little compassion and support to find their pathway from poverty to progress, we can make a huge difference in their life and our community. And it’s working – just check out some of the stories at our new website – pathwaypeoria.org”
Homelessness has more than doubled in the past two years in the Peoria area, in part due to the aftereffects of the pandemic. Area ministries and agencies serving those in poverty are assisting record numbers of men, women, and children in need of help.
PATHWAY Ministries is a privately funded 501(c) (3) ministry creating pathways out of poverty through Jesus with their neighbors in need. We serve men and women facing life-controlling circumstances through our Residential and Community Services.
For more information about PATHWAY Ministries contact Larry Holt, Director of Development at 309-676-6416.
