We would like to introduce you to Martin, the man featured in our holiday commercial.
Martin’s first introduction to Nashville Rescue Mission was in 2011, when the company he worked for supplied propane for the annual Tracy Lawrence Turkey Fry.
In 2013, Martin began to have episodes of dizziness and vertigo, which was later diagnosed as Meniere’s disease.
As a delivery driver, Martin’s disease left him without work and eventually the money ran out, and Martin found himself at Nashville Rescue Mission.
This time, Martin wasn’t delivering propane tanks, he was staying as a guest.
After being at the Mission three weeks, Martin decided to enroll in the Mission’s Guest Volunteer Program (GVP), which allows guests to earn special privileges in exchange for helping with chores around the Mission. Martin began to call the Mission home.
“Quite honestly, when I first got here I wasn’t sure if I belonged. I thought, I don’t know these people, and I don’t feel like these people.
But I am exactly these people.”
When the commercial aired in 2015, a friend of Martin’s noticed him in the commercial and was able to contact him and offer him a safe place to live.
Shortly after leaving the Mission, Martin was diagnosed with cancer, and after a two-year battle, he went to be with the Lord in the summer of 2018.
It is our honor to continue to share Martin’s story with each of you.
You can help others like Martin have a home this holiday season—will you help provide emergency services to men, women, and children who are in desperate need?
