COVER STORY 29 September 2022 www.goodnewsfl.org Good News • South Florida edition Allapattah Baptist Church helped keep the mission running after the Ashes retired. Then Dr. Frank Jacobs, the church’s minister of music, and Maxine Jacobs felt God’s call to take over the leadership in 1975 after beginning as volunteers. The mission was in rough shape financially and it looked as if it might go under until God started working through the Jacobs. A classically trained tenor and recording artist, Dr. Jacobs began singing to help fundraise and bring recognition to the mission, while his wife worked diligently in the office to pay off debts and settle accounts. Then in 2004 the Jacobs decided it was time to soon retire and the Board of Directors selected the Rev. Ron Brummitt to be the CEO, serving alongside his wife Marilyn Brummitt. The Rev. Brummitt had been director of the Miami campus for 10 years and was named the president of the Miami Rescue Mission / Broward Outreach Centers in 2007. Marilyn originally worked as volunteer coordinator in 2002. Dr. Jacobs mentioned that the history of the mission being husband and wife teams is unique and may be one of its reasons for success. However, he emphasized, “The ministry of rescue is an absolute Jesus ministry. It’s what the Lord Jesus Christ was about when he was here on the earth. You see it in the Scriptures. While other people were at the temple or big religious celebrations, where was Jesus found? He was found in the dirtiest, stinkiest places in the city. He reached out to the undesirables, the ones who were outcasts of society, the leper, the adulterous woman, those who had been rejected and forgotten. That was His ministry and I think that’s the reason it has survived.” Making bold moves In conjunction with the “Big, Bold, Beautiful Centennial Celebration,” the organization is formally changing its name to The Caring Place with the various centers under that umbrella. This includes the Miami Rescue Mission, the Dr. Frank and Maxine Jacobs Center for Men, The Annex, a Community Activity Center for youth, the Jeffrey A. Tew Education Center, Community Development Offices, an Administration building with a walk-in freezer and a recording studio for their weekly radio programs, the Broward Outreach Centers, nine residential multiplexes, a thrift store and a future family center planned in Miami Gardens. Rev. Brummitt also announced, “We have made a very radical, bold decision not to take government funding in our Broward Center so we can return to our roots to be able to freely share the gospel of Jesus Christ and also to have a longer-term Regeneration Program.” The decision means walking away from $1.8 million in funding from the Broward County Board of Commissioners’ Homeless Initiative Partnership out of a total operational budget of about $20 million. Admitting this is a step of faith, Brummitt said, “Our hands are shackled when you take county funding.” He explained that they’ve been unable to operate their Miami discipleship model in Broward due to intake requirements, limitations on the number of days someone can stay and only allowing them to offer faith-based programs on a voluntary basis where there is no incentive for residents to participate in chapel and educational programs. “Mental health can help, education can help, but God is the real transformer,” said Marilyn Brummitt. She explained that when people enter the faith-based Regeneration Program in Miami from emergency beds, they know now they’re in school, have to abide by the guidelines and are going to be a part of ministry. “It’s teaching them the soft skills of getting and keeping a job,” added Rev. Brummitt. “When you have a service assignment helping in the kitchen, what’s the number one rule? Show up on time. Have a good attitude. Take instruction. Show initiative. All those things an employer is looking for besides the skill set. And it’s all the things they’ve lost because they haven’t kept a job for a number of years.” They’re also putting together a multi-church team in Broward called CREW (Christians Ready Equipped and Willing to put feet to evangelism) patterned after what they do in Miami. “We’ll take one of our vans and go out to the pockets of homelessness. We befriend them, give them water and pray with them and say, would you like to make your life different? Come on in.” Church partners The mission has partnered with hundreds of churches over the years. In fact, VOUS Church was started by lead pastors Rich & DawnCheré Wilkerson within the Miami Rescue Mission Annex. DawnCheré Wilkerson said “We had a dream in our heart to plant a church and Ron and Marilyn believed in what God was calling us to do. They generously offered our small launch team to meet weekly on Sunday nights in their Wynwood location as we prayed and planned to launch the next year in a middle school close by. Seeing up close the compassion, vision and faithfulness of the Brummits deeply inspired us during those early days and our admiration for them has only grown year by year.” Every month hundreds of leaders from VOUS meet on a Saturday morning for prayer and then disperse across Miami to serve 20-25 different organizations and outreaches. “We have been serving at MRM before our weekly services ever began. There's nothing like it. We love hearing the stories of life transformation. It's clear that people are not projects to Ron and Marilyn. Generosity is their privilege. MRM welcomes leaders from across South Florida, and it’s a powerful thing to see so many different people uniting together for one cause” said Wilkerson. Potential Church also partners with Miami Rescue Mission. “We do a promotion at Thanksgiving where we ask the congregation to “Flip Us A Bird,” encouraging them to go and get a turkey, a pie or a ham,” said Pastor Troy Gramling. “It’s a play on words and I try to cast a vision, so the congregation knows these people are valued and their circumstances don’t undermine who God’s created them to be.” Their Mission Director estimates Potential Church has contributed about 50,000 turkeys over the past 15 years, feeding over 100,000 people through Miami Rescue Mission. “We also are one of their faith partners and go down there a couple of times a month to minister, serving in their kitchen and shelter as part of what we call Mission Saturday.” Gramling said, “Sometimes we take for granted the amazing people God’s put into our community to make it operate, especially in the area of ministry. Miami Rescue Mission is an incredibly scaled ministry and to do it for that long and continue to effectively minister in so many different ways, it’s a huge benefit to our community… This is one of those things we can all come around and say this is a God thing, it’s a good thing and it makes a difference in the lives of a whole lot of people.” Considering all God has done, Rev Brummitt, said “It’s been quite a ride and I believe the best is yet to come.” Get involved If you or your church would like to get involved, The Caring Place welcomes those who would offer their time, talents or treasure. There are a number of volunteer focus groups serving women, mentoring men or prioritizing prayer. Donations of food, clothing or furniture are always welcome, and they ask that you or your church would prayerfully consider partnering with the ministry as a monthly giving partner. For more information, visit www.caringplace.org. If you would like to celebrate with them on October 15th, please get your tickets at www.caringplace.org/gala. Crowds gather for Thanksgiving dinner outside Miami Rescue Mission in 2018. Tent outreaches started in 1922 where large crowds gathered for food, clothing and a gospel message.
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