A Helping Hand

THE BROTHERHOOD OF MAN –

2021 – In a soaring chapel space, a men’s choir sings two resounding songs to the beat of a band. It’s a diverse group—old, young, African American, white, some looking dapper in button-downs, others in T-shirts revealing sleeve tattoos. What joins them together is that they sing with heart, like their lives depend on it. And, in a way, they do.

The non-denominational chapel is located at the Helping Up Mission (HUM) in East Baltimore, and the choir singers are just some of the participants in HUM’s yearlong, 12-step-based, spiritual recovery program (SRP). It is the largest residential recovery program in Maryland, serving 400-plus men and women a day in their quest to overcome homelessness, alcoholism, drug addiction, and mental-health challenges.

Since its inception, the program has graduated more than 2,000 men and women. The recovery program is free to anyone committed to overcoming addiction, with the cost (like the entire annual operating budget) covered by donors.

After the choir performs, Bob Gehman, HUM’s CEO, steps to the podium and gives a heartfelt speech. He does this every Friday at the weekly chapel service, where participants are also recognized for completing the four phases of the yearlong program, as well as for special accomplishments, like earning a GED. If Gehman sounds a bit like a preacher, that’s no coincidence: He began his career as a Baptist minister before moving into fundraising, which is how he initially came to HUM.

“When I came in 1994, this was an emergency overnight shelter,” Gehman explains. “The mission was to provide hope to the homeless, but we weren’t getting anyone out of the cycle. Chemical addiction and mental health were the two main issues and we realized if we didn’t address those, we weren’t going to break the cycle.”