Waterfront Rescue Mission, Inc.
The trusted leader in homeless Rescue and Recovery services since 1949.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
According to the local homeless coalition, hundreds of homeless individuals are recorded each year in their point-in-time count. Each individual requires community resources beyond basic needs such as emergency room, law enforcement, and court services. The Mission’s programs turn this challenge into a solution by helping men recover, establish permanent housing with a good job, and become mentally and physically healthier. The transformation takes time, but the returns are remarkable as year after year men become taxpayers who thrive in the community. Independent researchers estimate the cost to taxpayers per homeless person per year is $31,000, and with an addiction/mental health disorder the cost can rise to $53,000. Waterfront helps homeless men overcome barriers and reclaim their futures through stabilizing services. Opportunities exist for those with long-term goals, like securing gainful employment and obtaining hous
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Retail Services
Donated material, reworking, pricing, and selling donated clothing and household goods in area bargain center stores and recycling centers operated by Waterfront Rescue Mission (WRM). Along with being a major source of funding for Waterfront Rescue Mission, the stores provide work rehabilitation services for the indigent and those suffering from substance abuse who are participating in other program services. WRM also accepts donated vehicles which also generates financial support for the ministry.
Rescue & Recovery Services
Rehabilitative services to indigent and those suffering from substance abuse. Served 206,831 meals and provided housing, clothing and household items to families in need.
Where we work
Affiliations & memberships
Better Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance - Organization 2009
Evangelical Council of Financial Accountability - Member 2000
Chamber of Commerce 1995
External reviews

Photos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of meals served or provided
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Rescue & Recovery Services
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Waterfront Rescue Mission provides 3 hot meals per day to those who are in need. 2020 Numbers reflect the need for Covid19 CDC social distancing guidelines.
Number of Nights Lodging Provided
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Rescue & Recovery Services
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
2020 Numbers reflect the need for Covid19 CDC social distancing guidelines.
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Since 1949 Waterfront Rescue Mission, located in Mobile and Pensacola, has served over 59,000 homeless individuals along the Gulf Coast, opening its doors to people from all walks of life while serving them with kindness and compassion. Waterfront works hard to address each man’s specific issues by providing personal, local solutions, which include emergency shelter and supportive services. Waterfront’s team of staff and dedicated volunteers provides first for their basic needs: food, shelter, clothing, and safety. Staff members ensure that each client is stabilized, and then encourage them to examine the causes of their homelessness, addressing their individual needs.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Waterfront proposes to help homeless men overcome barriers and reclaim their futures through stabilizing services. Opportunities exist for those with long-term goals, like securing gainful employment and obtaining housing, or for those simply needing a night of shelter.
• Overnight Shelter – Waterfront provides homeless men with a safe, warm place to sleep, a nutritious breakfast and dinner, a shower, toiletries, and clothing.
• Veterans’ Care Program – Waterfront partners with the VA to help homeless Veterans secure eligible benefits, such as pension, housing, and medical assistance. The average stay is 37 days as Veterans await housing or benefits.
• Chronically Homeless Dormitory – Waterfront provides a dorm with additional help to those who have been homeless more than a year, or those with four episodes of homelessness in the last three years, by connecting them with organizations which assist them in becoming productive individuals.
• Working Homeless Dormitory – Waterfront provides a safe, warm place to stay for the homeless who are already employed while striving to save enough money to secure their own residence.
• Work Training Program – Additional care is extended to residents who are able to work in various positions critical to the overall operation of our Men’s Shelter. This 45-day program is designed to help clients gain life- and job-readiness skills which will help them secure employment, leading them to a stable and self-supportable housing arrangement.
• Recuperation Dormitory – Due to Covid-19, the Recuperation Dormitory is being used, if needed, for an isolation area for those exhibiting flu-like symptoms.
• LifeBuilder Recovery Program – A 90 day, Christian, residential, recovery program for men designed to rebuild a man's life, hope, and purpose
• Career Development Program – on-campus classes are offered, addressing common topics and obstacles faced by homeless men
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Waterfront has established a strong network of committed and credible community partners who support our current and proposed initiatives. Primary collaborators include the following:
• Veterans Affairs assists homeless Veterans regain their benefits while they have a place to stay at Waterfront.
• Feeding the Gulf Coast collects and distributes food to those in need.
• Opening Doors of NWFL assists homeless to procure an ID card and to find housing.
• Community Health of NWFL, located on Waterfront’s campus, provides medical care and medicine to those in need, as well as provides the physicals required for staying at Waterfront.
• Community Action Program assists in funding for GED classes taught by Pensacola State College.
• Lakeview Center refers clients to Waterfront and assists Waterfront with clients needing detox.
Waterfront programs are sustained through monetary donations from individuals, organizations, and foundations, as well as revenue from our seven retail Thrift Stores. Donations of food, toiletries, and other items used at the Mission help offset expenses.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Thousands of men have graduated our recovery program since Waterfront began in 1949. In 2020, 44 men graduated our recovery program in Pensacola and Mobile. 99,200 were fed. 37,405 received a night of shelter. Thousands of articles of clothing and toiletries have been handed out. All those served have had the gospel preached to them.
Waterfront has been operating during Covid-19 with limited staffing to help ensure the Mission’s long-term financial viability. As the demand for services and capacity escalates in 2021 and beyond, Waterfront will increase expenditures in a financially-responsible manner, recognizing the communities’ dependence on Waterfront’s vital services and long-term viability. Waterfront is operated by business professionals who lead the Mission with financially-responsible, scalable, adaptive, and sound business principles.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Waterfront Rescue Mission, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 02/02/2023
Mr. Will Scott
Navy Federal Credit Union
Term: 2023 -
Chris Kelly
The Kelly Group at Morgan Stanley
Ken Bell
Gunster Law Firm
Timothy Atkins
Morgan Stanley Wealth Management
Bob Murphy
John Porter
Baptist Health Care
Eric Bostwick
University of West Florida
Lonnie Smith
Pensacola Christian College
Mark King
Todd Henderson
Bryant Bank
Ray Millett
Supreme Paper Supplies
Joy Sharp
Baptist Health Care
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
No data
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 03/22/2021GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.