Goodwill Rescue Mission

Our Mission

Goodwill Rescue Mission offers help and hope to North Jersey’s urban poor and dispirited.

•	For mind and body: food, clothing, shelter, training and teaching.
•	For soul and spirit: the life-changing message of God’s love revealed in Jesus Christ.

Special Project

Hope Totes
Can you join us in this front-line ministry by collecting items to fill the totes?
Click here for more info.

I’m so Thankful to Be Free!

On Nov. 5, 2007, Tim Jeffery arrived at Goodwill Rescue Mission bound in handcuffs and shackles. He was doing five years for burglary – his third conviction.

“... Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”

— 2 Corinthians 3:17

“The judge didn’t want to give me a second chance. With my record, I didn’t deserve another chance,” shares Tim, whose whole life has been a swirl of violence and drugs. In his jail cell, Tim called out to the God of Second Chances, and before he knew it, the judge released him to our Project Emmanuel Recovery Program.

“What got me to Goodwill were my prayers,” he explains. “God answered those prayers, and what He’s done for me since I’ve been here is beyond telling. I came here in handcuffs, but that’s not how I’m leaving!”

Tim works towards his college degree at our Learning Center.

Growing up in the projects in Paterson, N.J., all Tim’s ever known is violence, not the love, compassion and forgiveness he’s found since coming to GRM. As a kid, he says, “I had to fight to defend myself at least five days a week. I’ve seen a brother throw another brother off a roof because they were arguing. I’ve seen a brother kill another brother with a baseball bat because he talked to his girlfriend.”

Kicked out of school at age 15 for fighting, Tim was addicted to crack by the time he was 17. At the height of his addiction, he spent $400 a day to get high, a habit he funded by stealing.

After his third burglary conviction, Tim was ready to change his life, so he asked the judge to send him here. Since joining our program, Tim has given his life to Christ and become a new man – one with big plans for his future.

Through our Learning Center, Tim enrolled in the University of Phoenix’s on-line program and is working toward a degree in hospitality management/travel tourism. Next, he wants to get a degree in culinary arts. His goal is to work for a hotel, then eventually open his own restaurant.

“I thank God every day for what He’s doing in my life,” Tim says. “I can’t take credit for the progress, because through all the drug years, He kept me safe. He had another purpose for me.”

Read other Stories of Hope

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