A Place at The Table - Fort Collins Rescue Mission

For Wayne, a Thanksgiving meal became more than a full plate. After years of loss and loneliness, gathering around a table reminded him what it felt like to belong—and that he wasn’t alone.

The plate in front of Wayne was full. As he looked at each of his favorites, he was amazed and reminded of his childhood.

“I felt like a king. I haven’t eaten like that since I was a kid,” he recalled. “It was exactly like it was. I couldn’t believe it.”

Before he left, Wayne made sure to thank everyone who had helped make the meal possible—Fort Collins Rescue Mission staff who organized the banquet, First Presbyterian Church who hosted the meal and volunteers and donors who truly made it all possible.

“What a treat! It was delicious, and there were tons of it. Thanksgiving was heaven,” he said.

But the meal meant more to Wayne than the food itself.

“I had no one until I met the staff of Fort Collins Rescue Mission,” he said.

After losing his mother, father, brothers, and ultimately his wife, Wayne began drinking heavily. Eventually, he lost his job and his housing. At one point, he was sleeping in his truck or outside, unsure of what would come next.

So, when he sat down for the Thanksgiving meal with the Mission last year, he was reminded of what it felt like to be valued, cared for and loved.

“I had no one until I met the staff of Fort Collins Rescue Mission,” he said. “It was a happy time. It was like family.”

A Place to Count On

And Mission staff kept showing up for him as he struggled with his health and searched for his path out of homelessness.

When Wayne experienced a serious fall, staff helped him get medical care. When he needed clothing and hygiene items, they helped him get what he needed. And when he was having difficult days, they offered a listening ear.

Those moments motivated him to keep going.

For someone experiencing homelessness, a meal is often the first touchpoint they have with us. And that first impression matters.

So, if the plate speaks first, what does our plate say?

We were expecting you
We prepared this for you
You are worth our best effort

Wayne has experienced that care firsthand: “The food is delicious. They treat us as we should be.”

“After years of serving meals at the Mission, I have come to believe that the most important thing we provide is not food. It is consistency,” Steven Kreis, Senior Director of Food Services, said.

Consistency has been especially meaningful during a year when almost everything else has changed.

After a fire forced the closure of our shelter on Jefferson Street last August, guests and staff have moved through several temporary locations and adapted to new routines.

Paula Ordaz, Director of Fort Collins Rescue Mission, describes the past year in these words: “constant change, resilient and community.”

“After years of serving meals at the Mission, I have come to believe that the most important thing we provide is not food. It is consistency.”
Steven Kreis, Senior Director of Food Services

Even in the middle of so much change, she watched her team rally and help guests continue to move forward by maintaining or finding employment, engaging with case management and finding housing.

When Wayne sat down for the Thanksgiving meal with the Mission last year, he was reminded of what it felt like to be valued, cared for and loved.

“I had no one until I met the staff of Fort Collins Rescue Mission,” he said. “It was a happy time. It was like family.”

When Wayne sat down for the Thanksgiving meal with the Mission last year, he was reminded of what it felt like to be valued, cared for and loved.

“I had no one until I met the staff of Fort Collins Rescue Mission,” he said. “It was a happy time. It was like family.”

A Place to Gather Again

This Thanksgiving, FCRM is still in a season of transition—but a new chapter is coming.

The new Homeless Resolution Center, opening early 2027, will give guests a place to rest, share meals, build community, and receive support to help them on their path out of homelessness. After a year of constant change, it will provide something guests and staff have been missing: a home base.

“I think everyone is looking forward to finding a home again,” Paula said.

For Wayne, he is working toward housing alongside his case manager and thinking about what comes next—a life where he can work, dream and have a true community.

“The staff has really helped me. I’m trying, and they just took me in under their arm.”