For the past ten years, Wilderness Aware Rafting has partnered with the Denver Rescue Mission to provide Colorado rafting trips to members of the Denver Rescue Mission’s New Life Program, which is why last week 40 members of the New Life Program found themselves navigating white water rapids while rafting through Brown’s Canyon on Colorado’s Arkansas River. The bumping, jostling, and sudden starts and stops that they experienced on the river were nothing compared to the the bumps, twists, and turns that many of the men and women participating in the event have experienced in their own lives.
The New Life Program provides a community-oriented environment for Denver Rescue Mission program participants to gain the skills, stability and self-esteem necessary to become productive, self-sufficient members of society. It integrates spiritual and emotional counseling, life skills, education, Bible study, and work therapy, and has become a national model for long-term rehabilitation programs.
For Wilderness Aware Rafting, the trip is a the kick-off to their summer rafting season. For New Life Program members its an opportunity to to set and achieve goals, in this case rafting down a river filled with rapids. The beautiful scenery and relaxing environment, away from their usual surroundings provides release and holistic therapy. It was also a chance to relax and have fun.
“The guides were helpful and we learned a lot, mostly how not to drown. It was nice to get out of our structured schedule for the day and do something new for a change. I took a lot of pictures, even the drive was beautiful” said program participant Abraham Wilson. “Everything about the trip was fun and the weather was great.”
For more information about the Denver Rescue Mission, or to make a donation, please visit here.
