CELEBRITIES REACH OUT TO HOMELESS AT LOS ANGELES MISSION

A Thanksgiving Meal – Served With a Message of Hope.

(Los Angeles California) --- November 26, 2003

A festive family atmosphere was seen on Skid Row in Los Angeles Wednesday, when the homeless dined on Thanksgiving favorites piping hot turkey and garlic-mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. That was the menu and the impact the Los Angeles Mission created on Fifth Street – closed down to traffic and transformed into a giant outside dining room. More than 3000 homeless men, women and children sat down to a traditional holiday dinner, in an area the Los Angeles Mission prefers to call “Hope Central.”

Celebrities (see attached list) served up the heaping plates along with 300 volunteers. To feed 5000 homeless, it took approximately: 2500 pounds of roast turkey, 250 gallons of garlic mashed potatoes, 250 cases of dinner rolls, 250 gallons of mixed vegetables and 675 pies. The ingredients are of the highest quality, cooked to perfection, and served to each guest as they sit down – hot and fresh.

“ It often starts with a meal”, says Marshall McNott, president and CEO of the Los Angeles Mission. “A meal is the point of connection, it can be where the relationship between a Mission staff member and a homeless person starts. But what that relationship leads to is hope for a brighter future.” Last year the Mission served 408,000 hot meals, provided 108,000 nights of lodging and 143,000 articles of clean clothing to the homeless and hurting of Los Angeles.

Hope is often hard to come by in Hope Central – and increasing numbers of people are coming to the Los Angeles Mission seeking services such as meals, a place to sleep, showers and clothing. The Mission has seen a 29 percent increase in service requests over the past two years, as more men, women and children in the area seek help.

McNott welcomed celebrities early Wednesday as they prepared to go out and serve up the Thanksgiving meals. He explained the variety of services the Los Angeles Mission provides, including the innovative Urban Training Institute.

“ UTI is based on the idea that every man that comes into the Los Angeles Mission, or woman into the Anne Douglas Center, is in need of respect and education. The goal of UTI is to develop a passion for freedom and life-long learning for formerly homeless men and women. The Institute provides opportunities for Christian education, academic studies and vocational training. With these tools, we see lives turned around and rebuilt,” McNott said, “The result is a restored sense of dignity and self-worth.”

For over 50 years, the Los Angeles Mission has served the people of Hope Central (known as Skid Row), providing emergency services such as shelter, food, clothing, as well as professional medical and dental services. In addition, the Los Angeles Mission also offers long-term residential rehabilitation programs including education, job training/placement, transitional housing and counseling.

Celebrities attending the 11/26/03 Los Angeles Mission Thanksgiving Event

• Jeremiah Alley – Actor
• Gray Davis - former California Governor
• Courtnee Draper – Actor
• David Dreier – U.S. Congressman
• Larry Elder – radio talk show host
• Donald Faison – Actor “Scrubs”
• Cristina Ferrare – Actor
• Mariette Hartley – Actor
• Jennifer Love Hewitt – Actor
• Aldis Hodge – Actor “American Dreams”
• Doug Jeffrey – “The Man Show”
• Devon Michael Jones – “The Sensitive Straight Guy”
• Sharon Lawrence – Actor “Little Black Book”
• Anthony Loren – Actor “Bad Boys II”
• Aaron McLain – Musician (The Marc Anthony band)
• Jayne Meadows
• Alyssa Milano – Actor “Charmed”
• Daisy O’Dell – Actor
• Marisa Petroro – “The Sensitive Straight Guy”
• Jonathan Silverman – Actor
• Antonio Villaraigosa – Los Angeles City Councilmember
• Ashley Williams – Actor “Good Morning Miami”
• Victor Williams – Actor “King of Queens”
• Jeanne Wolf – Entertainment Reporter
• Constance Zimmer – Actor “Good Morning Miami”