Complaint Review: Good News Ministries - Indianapolis Indiana

i was at good news from 08-09. when i had gotten accepted at a job i was informed by the men's director that i was not allowed to work for a temp agency. when i began having psych problems the same person told me that he did not want me seeing my caseworker from wishard who was helping me with my issues and trying to get me social security because of how bad my problems mentally were. i also had asthma at the time and was constantly sent to burn cardboard and wood for them. this exaberated my asthma so much i was turning purple the one day according to a friend that left good news about 3 months after i did. if the work detail supervisor had seen me sitting down fighting for air i don't think he would have done anything but tell me to go back to work burning. thankfully my friend had an inhaler on him to save my butt so i could breathe. the supervisor also had issues with me going to seek relief from my asthma by going to their medical clinic for an rescue inhaler of my own. i then had problems at times getting to see the respirtory therapist that wishard had assigned me to. my doctor and respirtory therapist had called them asking that they switch me to something easier on my lungs so i would not have such a severe asthma attack again, but this took over a month to do when it could have been solved immediatly. when i began dating a local to there girl to have someone to talk to outside of the mission i was immediatly volunteered for the camp the next time the camp director came down for supplies. this person knew my id was from a differant state due to the photocopy of my id in my file and that i did not have either the money or my birth certificate in order to get a local id card. in fact if i remember right the people that volunteered me ( work detail supervisor and assistant director of men's shelter) knew this from day one. the second day i was at the mission i was chewed out for commenting that i missed my (deceased) mother']s cooking by the work detail supervisor. this same person was able to maintain a large waist when the rest of us were losing weight like crazy. multiple times i had to do work detail on weekends because of going with my wishard caseworker. every night i was lucky if i was able to go to sleep at a decent time when certain parties who shall remain nameless talked all night quite loudly. and everyday it was the same- the flunkies would get first crack at meals and at second helpings if there were any. more than once i had a talk with the epps out of everyone who the mission listened to's hearing telling them just spend the night and turn down their offer of a place to live and explained how things were for me and several others there because we would not submit to their ideas for us. they give you extra time on dtatil if you fall asleep at all during the day even when you show them on a rx label that the med can make you drowsy or fall asleep (example - seroquel). they also make supposedly at random people urinate in a cup for them several times a month. it is always the same people unless they leave for their own reasons or are kicked out. more than once even though they knew i had no money or anyone that would get me drugs to begin with they made me urinate in a cup for them. i tell anyone that i know who is going to indianapolis to stay away from there and go to wheler or some other place that has a better enviroment than good news does

....I beleive the Bible says that - after all, "God Blessed", you should know.

I was somewhat taken aback by the response I received to something I wrote FIVE YEARS AGO. Quite apart from the spelling errors and horrendous grammar (taken from the sample I had time to read), I can tell that such a rambling diatribe was written by an individual with waaaay too much time on their hands. While you're more than likely still at the mission, dealing drugs again, or back in prison; I am gainfully employed in a stable job, have my own place free and clear....which is more than I can potentially say for you. If you did actually decide to contribute to society again, I congratulate you. If not, then that sucks for you.

While you essentially say I made my own bed, it's fair to say that you did as well - and then some. It's almost laughable getting a morality/religiousity lecture from a self-entitled holier-than-thou hypocrite whose value to society is probably equal to that of horse dung.

And before you step up on your dogma-filled soapbox again, I'm sure you must be aware of the plethora of programmes out there to help ex-felons get jobs and get their lives together again - but I suppose it's easier to freeload under the guise of being one of "the enlightened ones" while at the same time accusing everyone else of doing exactly what you do - NOTHING.

You should really find this entertaining - I'm actually thinking of converting to Buddhism and moving to Japan. After a few rounds of reincarnation, Nirvana just sounds so much more fun than heaven.

Cheers!

The alleged "rebuttal" above was written by one of the brainwashed acolytes of Good News Ministries.  I won't mention his name, but I will mention that he's a convicted meth dealer, and not only that, but he's said that if he were to ever leave the mission, he would get back into drugs.  (So much for the life-changing power of Jesus!)  This person has also stated that "Catholics are Satan worshipers," and while this may not be the official stance of Good News Ministries, it's not far off, either.  This person also likes to look at porn online (on a computer belonging to the ministry!) and when caught, as he has been several times, he blames it on the people working for him. 

Now I realize none of this has much to do with Good News Ministries, but I just want people to know what sort of hypocritical lowlifes are employed by Good News Ministries.  I haven't even mentioned the man who died at a camp owned by Good News Ministries, whose death was subsequently covered up.  Nor have I mentioned the fact that a very powerful person within Good News Ministries is in fact a child molester, and picks younger men from the mission's population to fondle in the bathroom late at night.  I also haven't mentioned how the mission's late director, Howard Rainwater, routinely opened mail addressed to mission residents, which I believe is a federal offense.  

Somehow Good News manages to skirt all sorts of laws, under the guise of being a charitable organization.  Yet so much of the charity received goes not to the residents of the mission, but to its employees and specifically its executive director, as truly reprehensible a human being as ever crawled upon the face of the earth.  Yes, I've been a resident at the Good News mission and I've seen it all firsthand, and if the likes of Howard Rainwater and Dan Evans can get into Heaven, then I want no part of it and I'll take my chances with Hell.

You Sir,and I hate to use this term, are a liar. First of all you state that you were left in Indy with little money and no place to go. but then you come to Good News Mission, to fulfill a need that YOU have. So you did have someplace to go thanks to the UNcaring christains here at the rescue mission. Then you go on to say that the Director had an attitude with you before you could say a word. If you don't know that person how are you able to judge them? You then state that you went to his office to do intake. WRONG. the Mission Director doesn't do intakes. He most likely was trying to find out your story and I'd guess you lied to him and he seen this. He's been doing this job for some time and can tell when someone's trying to manipulate things. Then you have the nerve to say that you were being treated like a convicted felon. I am a convicted felon and I take offense to that statement! Your closed minded attitude is why Ex-felons have such a hard time getting back to a normal life. I came here from prison, told the truth and was treated fine. You say you were a victim of a crime, I say your sin nature and doing what you wanted to do no matter how morally wrong was what put you in that position. You say that you had a job in Bloomington and needed to get transferred to Indy. I ask you, did this transfer become nessecary because of the "CRIME" against you are were you going to do that anyway? Here's where you really make a dumb statement, when anyone checks in here the desk man reads a set of rules and ask you if you can follow them. Everyone is read those rules, no exceptions. The problem is that they don't listen, they just say yes I understand so they can come in and get what they want. when they get called on for breaking a rule they are like" I didn't know. As far as your case goes no one held a gun to your head, you could have checked into Wheeler Mission and your problem would have been solved. By the way, work detail is from 7:10am until 3:45pm with a 45min. lunch break and an Hour Bible study after lunch, which many men use as a nap time. People who aren't able to do much physical labor aren't given any. Believe me, no one around here kills themselves unless it is to run up to the kitchen for seconds. The Chapel Service is where we try to get souls saved. It's the start of a change in someone's life. If you had listened and applied those teachings alot of your problems could have been solved You try to blame the Misson for actions commited by, and I quote, "MY PSYCHOTIC GIRLFRIEND"! This is what's known as blame shifting, it's what your trying to do with your accusations about this Ministry. Good News Ministries didn't hook you up with your girlfriend and they sure didn't cause your problems with her. The only thing Good News did was give you food, shelter and clothing during your time of need. Oh, they did hold you accountable for your actions. As for not letting you have a private room to talk with a detective, the desk men aren't allowed to do that. I'm sure the Mission Director Would have done it had he been avaliable. As to the GED statement, yes Good News does help people with that, I've witnessed it first hand.So once again you mis-stated something. we can't let every person who ask for help in that area take classes. Many of the men here are inand out of this Mission, and have been for years. some use a resource like that to get out of work detail, not because they want a GED. People who are given a chance to work towards a GED are people that show a real working attitude. If they are too lazy to do the small things ask of them around here then they most likely wouldn't be a good canidate. As for your complaint about time off, you ask for time off before you had even checked in. Again I say to you if your need to settle personal problems was so imediate, why didn't You go to Wheeler Mission. At 6:00am your back on the street and free to do as you want. The cell Phone comment is stupid. Your told your not allowed to have them when you check in. From your statement, sounds like you were breaking that rule, which means that when you were ask about having a cell phone during check in you lied. No one works 9 hours a day around here unless it's the men me who love JESUS. I work whatever hours it takes to get the job done here at HIS MISSION. As to the bench commment and food expiration dates I'll enlighten you. We only have a limited amount of beds here. This is a long term housing mission so many of the men have been here for sometime. Unlike Wheeler Mission we don't make you leave at 6:00 in the morning. We do however have you WORK FOR YOUR ROOM AND BOARD. 2nd Thessalonians 3:10-11 says that "if anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. for we hear that some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not workink at all but are busy bodies". Sound familiar? It should those types come here all the time looking for a free ride and when they don't get it we become bad guys. Something else you don't know, the biggest part of the food we serve isn't donated. Men who live here, hard working men, earn that food for us. The work they do at Gleaners is credited to an account and that is used to purchase food for all the men who stay here. I for one thank them for their effort. As for the expiration dates the manufacturer puts those on their products to ensure that the consumers get top quality products. They don't mean that the product is bad after that date. I've been eating this food for over two years and I'm not dead yet or have I been sick from it. If those dates are such a big thing with you I suggest you buy your own food. But wait, that takes money,which means working and you don't want that, now do you? As to your statement about the rules here, the men who made these rules have been doing Rescue Mission work for over 30 years. The television rule has two purposes, to make sure decent programing is being watched, and to keep arguments from being started over what to watch. Common sense,right? You could use the restroom during chapel if it's an emergency. I haven't seen anyone being put out for that. If that rule wasn't in effect the disruption it would cause would be bad. Some men would sit in there during the whole chapel service. I think before you start making statements like our rules are stupid and petty, you need to work in the Rescue Mission field for a few years. That won't happen because you would have to sacrifice your life and WORK to help others. To finish up let's address the issue of you being "kicked out". You state that you were "kicked out" because your job transfer went thru. You claim your work schedule caused you to arrive back after roll call and were told if you miss one more roll call you had to leave. Here's the good part, so you "beat them to the punch" and left of your own accord. I ask you how do you get "kicked out " and leave of your own accord? If you rent an apartment for a month and choose to leave after 3 weeks does the landlord give you money back? Face the Facts, YOU wanted someone to throw a pity party for you because your girlfriend and your own bad choices ruined your life. Grow up, be a man and start taking care of your own life. Maybe you just need to be saved, I'll pray for you that some day you will understand. A TRUE SERVANT OF GOD