Team with Phoenix Rescue Mission helps the homeless community across Phoenix area
The street outreach team is prepping for what will be another busy, hot summer.
PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Arizona’s Family First Alert team of meteorologists is the first to alert you to upcoming changes in the forecast.
They are expecting our first 100-degree day of the year in the Valley this week, with several First Alert weather days because of the heat.
Arizona’s Family recently got a chance to meet the teams who help our most vulnerable populations. That includes the hope coaches with the Phoenix Rescue Mission.
The nonprofit says in the summer, it’s an all-hands-on-deck situation. Some staff members, including Rasha Lafreniere, know what it’s like to live on the streets.
“My drug addiction started when I was 15 when my mother also had fallen into drugs,” she said. “But she has 20 years sobriety. I have two.”
Rasha was homeless for about 10 years. However, she got help through the nonprofit, and now she’s part of the homeless outreach team spread across the Valley.
They offer services, including water and hygiene kits, and try to get those on the streets into shelters. They also help get the unhoused documents and other forms of ID to hopefully get into permanent housing.
Last summer, the team had two months in a row with more than 100 rescues, with more than 1,000 in 2024. For Rasha, this work is personal.
“I just know what they are going through,” she said. “And I just want to be there for them because I would appreciate somebody to have been there for me.”
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