Mission of Mercy J ames remembered his positive experiences with rescue missions, and he found out that The Lighthouse (operated by Boise Rescue Mission) was in the same town, so he decided to check it out. Mike Waltermire, who was running the Veter- ans Ministry Program at The Lighthouse when James arrived, describes his first encounter with James as “interesting.” “Here’s this 6-foot-7-inch guy who looks like someone from ZZ Top,” Mike says. “He had long gray hair and his beard went to his waistline, and he was on oxygen. He said, ‘I’m just looking for a quiet place to die—I’m tired of all the family drama.’” Mike told him that wasn’t what The Lighthouse was for, but that they should talk— especially since James was a veteran. Mike’s first suggestion was that James visit the VA. “I didn’t want to go,” James says, “but Mike told me the VA had changed over the years, and I should go. I told him I’d check it out.” Mike grabbed another veteran, Robert, who was also a mission client, to take James with him to the VA. “They came back that afternoon, and James was all excited,” Mike says. “He had benefits and already had two doctor’s visits lined up. He had no idea he qualified for all that.” At The Lighthouse, things continued to look up for James. “Mike told me I was approved to stay in the mission’s transitional housing for veterans,” James says. “He handed me a key to an apartment. All I had to do was keep my hospital appointments and volunteer at the mission.” Coming under the wing of The Lighthouse couldn’t have happened at a better time. Three days after he arrived, he had to be admitted to intensive care at Seattle Veterans Hospital because of his  WWW.CITYGATENETWORK.ORG MARCH/APRIL 2019 19