Operating from downtown Pontiac, the county seat, Grace Centers of Hope, previously called Pontiac Rescue Mission, has served Oakland County, Michigan, since 1942. Grace Centers of Hope began as a safe place for homeless persons to sleep, and now also offers one-year substance abuse treatment, complemented by a full range of life management training, counseling, and education, plus day care for shelter children. The homeless shelter houses 150 persons nearly every night, with separate residences for men and women/children. Grace Centers of Hope accepts no government funding.3

Thirteen years ago the shelter