How We Help

The Relational Phase  consists of four months split between Lancaster, Ohio and Columbus, Ohio. The men alternate weeks, spending one week working with one of our partner employers in Columbus, and then returning to Lancaster to spend the next week focused on personal growth. Here, men begin to develop their relationship with God as well as learning to trust and rely on each other. The restoration process with friends and family begins slowly and gently through weekly phone calls, letter writing and a monthly in-person visit at Family Day.

The Application Phase is the next four months of commitment and is located in Columbus, Ohio. Here, the process more closely resembles what most would consider “regular life”. Men work 35-40 hours per week and have much more freedom to make choices, while still under the authority and obeying the rules of the Refuge. Men begin receiving a small monthly stipend to save or spend as they choose. Phone calls still permitted, along with weekend home visits every two weeks.

The Launch Phase rounds out the final 4 months of a man’s 13-month commitment. The focus is on preparing men to return to society as responsible men of God, with a developed life plan and ongoing support. Men are given more autonomy than anywhere else in the ministry, while they also have more responsibility – to serve the community and the church, to pour back into the men behind them, and to set a good example for all the men in Phases 1-3. We raise up these men as leaders in the ministry, so that they can also learn to lead in their homes, churches, and communities as responsible men of God. Phone calls and bi-weekly home visits are still permitted, along with additional freedom the last month of the ministry to figure out housing and transportation needs.