The Bowery Mission is a

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

nonprofit that provides hot meals, overnight shelter, and faith-based residential programs for New Yorkers experiencing

homelessness Homelessness, also known as houselessness or being unhoused or unsheltered, is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. It includes living on the streets, moving between temporary accommodation with family or friends, liv ...

. Its mission statement reads: "The Bowery Mission meets essential needs and creates transformative community... so that together we overcome homelessness and poverty, and flourish through the power and love of Jesus Christ." It is one of the oldest

nonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

s in New York City, and continues to provide hot meals and chapel services three times daily at its historic 227

Bowery The Bowery () is a street and neighbourhood, neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City, New York. The street runs from Chatham Square at Park Row (Manhattan), Park Row, Worth Street, and Mott Street in the south to Cooper Square at 4th ...

campus between

Rivington Street Rivington Street is a street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which runs across the Lower East Side neighborhood, between the Bowery and Pitt Street, with a break between Chrystie and Forsyth for Sara D. Roosevelt Park. Vehicular t ...

and

Stanton Street Stanton Street is a west-to-east street in the New York City borough of Manhattan, in the neighborhood of the Lower East Side. The street begins at the Bowery in the west and runs east to a dead end past Pitt Street, adjacent to Hamilton Fis ...

in the

neighborhood of

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Since the 1990s, The Bowery Mission has expanded from a

soup kitchen A soup kitchen, food kitchen, or meal center is a place where food is offered to Hunger, hungry and homeless people, usually for no price, cost, or sometimes at a below-market price (such as coin Donation, donations). Frequently located in Low i ...

and men's shelter to providing programs and services at six campuses across the NYC metro area. It is a member of the Citygate Network and is accredited by the ECFA.

Programs

Programs for Adults

At its downtown campuses at 227 Bowery and 90 Lafayette St., The Bowery Mission provides hot meals, clothing, safe overnight shelter and other basic needs and emergency services for New Yorkers experiencing hunger and homelessness. At its uptown campuses, The Bowery Mission provides faith-based Residential Programs for adults in crisis to achieve personal goals for life and work, heal from past trauma, and overcome barriers to independent living.

Programs for Children

The Bowery Mission's programs for children, Mont Lawn Summer Camp and City Camp, provide children from low-income neighborhoods with opportunities for leadership, skill building, and personal growth. Located in East Harlem and the South Bronx, Mont Lawn City Camp offers year-round enrichment classes, tutoring, and mentoring for children and youth.

History

The Bowery Mission was founded in 1879 by the Reverend Albert Gleason Ruliffson and Ellen Dorchester Ruliffson. It was the third rescue mission established in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and the second in New York City after Water Street Mission established by

Jerry McAuley Jeremiah "Jerry" McAuley (1839 – September 18, 1884), along with his wife, Maria McAuley (née Fahy), founded the McAuley Water Street Mission (now the New York City Rescue Mission) in Lower Manhattan. Known as the "apostle for the lost," McA ...

and

Maria McAuley Maria McAuley (née Fahy; c. 1841 – September 19, 1919), later Maria Gilbert, was an American missioner who, along with her husband Jerry McAuley, founded the McAuley Water Street Mission (now the New York City Rescue Mission) to shelter the p ...

in 1872. It had long been the wish of the Jerry McAuley to open a similar mission on the East Side. He frequently talked over the subject with the Ruliffsons, and they opened the mission in a small room at 14 Bowery. Before finding its permanent home at 227 Bowery, the Mission operated in a number of locations in the Bowery neighborhood. It moved to 36 Bowery in 1880 followed by 105 Bowery in 1887. When 105 Bowery was destroyed by fire in 1898, the Mission moved to 55 Bowery and remained there until the building was scheduled to be demolished to make way for the approaches to the

Manhattan Bridge The Manhattan Bridge is a suspension bridge that crosses the East River in New York City, connecting Lower Manhattan at Canal Street with Downtown Brooklyn at the Flatbush Avenue Extension. Designed by Leon Moisseiff, the bridge has a tota ...

. In the 1880s,

Fanny Crosby Frances Jane van Alstyne (née Crosby; March 24, 1820 – February 12, 1915), more commonly known as Fanny J. Crosby, was an American mission worker, poet, lyricist, and composer. She was a prolific hymnist, writing more than 8,000 hymns and go ...

became a favorite guest at the Mission and was frequently asked to give an address. For 16 years, Crosby wrote a new hymn to be sung at The Bowery Mission anniversary celebration held in November. In 1895 the Mission was bought by Dr.

Louis Klopsch Louis Klopsch (March 7, 1852 – March 6, 1910) was a German-American journalist, publisher, and fundraiser for charitable causes. He originated red letter editions of the Bible. Early life Louis Klopsch was born in Lübben, Prussia, on March ...

, owner of the ''

Christian Herald The ''Christian Herald'' was an American weekly newspaper reporting on topics relevant to Evangelical Christianity, with an emphasis on engaging with humanitarian causes at home and abroad. It was inspired by the London-based newspaper which ceas ...

'', to save it from economic distress. It became one of many domestic charities sponsored by the publication. Klopsch became president and the Mission was formally incorporated as Bowery Mission and Young Men's Home in 1897. One prominent board member was Sarah J. Bird, a philanthropist who was known as "the Mother of the Bowery Mission" due to her long-time service to the organization from 1881 to 1914. In 1900, The Bowery Mission came under the supervision of John Greener Hallimond, originally from England. Hallimond introduced many innovative services, such as a home for women in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, a Free Labor Bureau, and the famed breadline, which began in 1902. The Free Labor Bureau, which connected laborers with farm work outside the city, was opened in 1908 in response to rampant unemployment. Transportation was provided to locations as far as 50 miles away. In 1956, The Bowery Mission was featured prominently in Lionel Rogison's award-winning docufiction film ''On The Bowery'', which forever immortalizes life in New York City's skid row. In the film, George Bolton, then superintendent of The Bowery Mission, preaches to a crowd of men in the mission's historic chapel.

227 Bowery Location

The Bowery Mission moved to its current location at 227 Bowery in 1909. On June 26, 2012, 227 Bowery was designated a

New York City landmark The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC) is the New York City agency charged with administering the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. The LPC is responsible for protecting New York City's architecturally, historically, and c ...

. 227 Bowery was originally built in 1876 for Jonas Stolts, an

undertaker A funeral director, also known as an undertaker or mortician (American English), is a professional who has licenses in funeral arranging and embalming (or preparation of the deceased) involved in the business of funeral rites. These tasks o ...

and manufacturer of coffins. It was designed by William Jose in the neo-Grec style. The building was altered in 1908–09 for the Mission's use by Marshall L. and Henry G. Emery. The Emerys remodeled the facade in a

Tudor Revival Tudor Revival architecture, also known as mock Tudor in the UK, first manifested in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture, in rea ...

style reminiscent of an English Inn and installed

stained glass window Stained glass refers to coloured glass as a material or art and architectural works created from it. Although it is traditionally made in flat panels and used as windows, the creations of modern stained glass artists also include three-dimensio ...

s by Benjamin Sellers depicting the

Parable of the Prodigal Son The Parable of the Prodigal Son (also known as the parable of the Two Brothers, Lost Son, Loving Father, or of the Forgiving Father; ) is one of the parables of Jesus in the Bible, appearing in Luke 15:11–32. In Luke 15, Jesus tells this sto ...

the second floor. The interior was remodeled into a chapel in the

Gothic Revival style Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half of the 19th century ...

. In 1928, the ''Christian Herald'' purchased the property from the Stolts family, from whom they had leased the property since 1909. In the 1970s, the Mission's front doors were painted their iconic red by Frank Grande, a former alcoholic and "Bowery Bum." One night, after being stabbed in a park, Grande came to the Mission's doors bleeding. Grande chose the color red in homage to that encounter and to "symbolize Christ's blood as the entrance to life." In 1980, the Mission acquired the

Federal-style Federal-style architecture is the name for the classical architecture built in the United States following the American Revolution between 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815, which was influenced heavily by the works of And ...

townhouse next door, 229 Bowery, and merged it with 227. The mission continues to provide meals and chapel services three times daily at this location. Chapel attendance is not required to receive a meal.

Today

Beginning in the 2000s, new efforts were made toward expansion and the Mission opened residences for adults on the Upper East Side (2005), Harlem (2012) and East Harlem (2013). In November 2017, New York City Rescue Mission became a controlled affiliate of The Bowery Mission. Under The Bowery Mission's leadership, its former campus at 90 Lafayette St. campus continues to provide emergency shelter and services with beds available on a walk-in basis. Location at 90 Lafayette St

In 2020, The Bowery Mission provided more than 429,500 meals, 104,000 nights of shelter, 67,500 emergency showers, and 27,600 articles of clothing. In 2019, The Bowery Mission and its controlled affiliates received more than $7.3 million worth of donated food, clothing, and other items. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, The Bowery Mission continued to provide shelter and housing for nearly 325 people every night.

Accountability

* The Bowery Mission is listed as a 4-star charity on

Charity Navigator Charity Navigator is a charity assessment organization that evaluates more than 230,000 charitable organizations based in the United States, operating as a 501(c)(3) organization. It provides insights into a nonprofit's financial stability, adh ...

. * The Bowery Mission is an accredited charity of the

Better Business Bureau The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is an American private, 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization founded in 1912. BBB's self-described mission is to focus on advancing marketplace trust, consisting of 92 independently incorporated local BBB organizati ...

. * The Bowery Mission is listed as a member of the

Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) is an American financial standards association representing Evangelical Christianity, Christian parachurch organization, organizations and churches, which qualify for tax-exempt, nonpro ...

(ECFA). * The Bowery Mission is listed as a Platinum member of

Guidestar Candid is an information service specializing in reporting on U.S. nonprofit companies. In 2016, its database provided information on 2.5 million organizations. It is the product of the February 2019 merger of GuideStar with Foundation Center. ...

. * The Bowery Mission is an accredited member of the Citygate Network.

Connection to Mont Lawn Camp

The Bowery Mission was one of many domestic charities formerly sponsored by the ''

'' under the leadership of

. In 1894, with money left over from a food drive, Klopsch established a children's home at Mont Lawn in

Upper Nyack, New York Upper Nyack is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village incorporated in 1872 in the Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town of Clarkstown, New York, Clarkstown, Rockland County, New York, Rockland County, New York (state), ...

, to serve children from immigrant families living on the

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Historically, it w ...

. It remained at Nyack-on-the-Hudson for 69 years before it moved to the

Pocono Mountains The Pocono Mountains, commonly referred to as the Poconos (), are a geographical, geological, and cultural region in Northeastern Pennsylvania. They overlook the Delaware River and Delaware Water Gap to the east, Lake Wallenpaupack to the nort ...

in Pennsylvania in 1961. After the Herald ceased publication in 1992, Mont Lawn Camp continued under the ownership and operation of The Bowery Mission.

References

External links

*
The Bowery Mission
on

The Bowery Mission
on

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bowery Mission, The 1879 establishments in New York (state) Christian missions in North America Bowery New York City Designated Landmarks in Manhattan Christian charities Christian charities based in the United States Non-profit organizations based in New York City Social welfare parachurch organizations City and Gospel Rescue Missions Organizations based in New York City Christian missions Lower East Side Charities based in New York City Charities based in New York (state) Christian relief organizations Homelessness charities in New York City Social welfare charities based in the United States Homeless shelters in New York City