Area Relief Ministries

Our mission is to strengthen our community by providing services that alleviate suffering, promote dignity and foster hope for those in need… as an expression of the ongoing ministry of Jesus Christ. Area Relief Ministries is a long-standing community partner that cares about Jackson, TN and its people. We are committed to working with churches, organizations, and individuals across the city to make our community a stronger one. We have been helping individuals and families for more than 40 years with homeless/housing services, dental/medical, emergency assistance, and vocational training. We are tirelessly fighting against poverty and hopelessness in an effort to care for our neighbors and to make our community a better place for all to live!

In an effort to address the needs of those most in need in our community, we operate the Room in the Inn Emergency Shelter, the only homeless shelter for men in Jackson, TN. We partner with local churches, community organizations, and families to ensure that our guest receive dinner, a place to sleep, and breakfast when they wake up, for the coldest half of the year. We also provide a safe place for homeless individuals can relax, safe from the consequences of extreme temperatures and weather conditions. In our OpenARM Day Center, we provide hospitality services and case management to anyone who doesn't have housing. Our guests can get a cup of coffee, take a shower, use a clean restroom, get their laundry cleaned, store their things in a locker, relax on a comfortable sofa, watch television, use computers to look for employment opportunities, receive clothing and toiletries, get a bus pass, or speak to a case manager that will connect them to any of the resources available in the community. For chronically homeless men, those that have significant trouble finding housing and keeping it for the long term, we also operate the Turning Point Safe Haven. This is an 8-bedroom home that was created to meet the needs of homeless men with disabilities that lead to re-occurring episodes of homelessness. The gentlemen in the program are given their own room and have access to case managers that help them accomplish goals that lead them to living and thriving on their own. To address unemployment, and address one of the most common causes of homelessness, we operate the FreshSTART program. Through our partnership with Goodwill Career Solutions, we offer job skill training, with classes on topics like, interview skills and resume completion. The program also provides a computer lab for job searches, transportation to job fairs and places of employment, and assistance in obtaining necessary forms of ID. Finally, Emergency Assistance is our oldest program, which seeks to provide assistance for basic needs that cannot be met with a client’s resources. For those who are eligible, we provide funds for medication, medical & dental services, and the costs surrounding the process of finding housing. Case managers work with eligible clients to increase their resources, through employment, government benefits, or budgeting to help them find stability, so that they become self-sufficient.