ADVISORY/James Hahn to Address Homeless Men Who Have Overcome Tough Times and Have Graduated From Recovery Program at Union Rescue Mission.

News Editors/City Desks

ADVISORY...for Sunday (March 5)

--(BUSINESS WIRE)

   WHAT:             Los Angeles City Attorney James Hahn will be the                   keynote speaker at Union Rescue Mission's first                   graduation ceremony of the millennium, complete with                   caps and gowns, for 31 homeless men who have                   successfully completed a yearlong recovery program.                   Many of the graduates have overcome drug and alcohol                   addiction, illiteracy, and abuse issues and will be                   reentering mainstream society. The Mission's                   residential recovery program includes counseling,                   basic education, computer instruction, physical                   fitness, and job training.  INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITIES:           Roque Zaratd, Jr., program graduate, 36, lost his job and his          self-esteem when the bottle began to run his life. He came          close to losing his wife and two children, Thailya, age 13,          and Santiago, age 8, when he wound up in jail for accumulated          DUIs. After a month and a half in prison, Roque enrolled in          the Union Rescue Mission's residential recovery program with          the hope that he might start his life over again. This time,          it would be without the bottle. But sobriety isn't his only          success in the last 11 months. Roque, who was once &uot;afraid of          computers,&uot; can now navigate his way on the computer: he has          learned how to use programs like Excel and how to do a           job-search on the Internet. Today, not only is he reconciled          with his wife and children, he is ready to return to the          working world with two job offers in hand and hopes to          continue his education in computers. Most of all, he has          learned the importance of his role as a father to his          children, including two from a previous marriage. &uot;I know the          impact I have on my children,&uot; he says. &uot;I teach my          eight-year-old son that it's okay to hug and that it's okay          to express your emotions. I never learned that from my          father.&uot; Roque graduates with 30 other men on March 5th,          2000. His parents, wife, and two children will be attending.          Other graduates are also available for interviews.           Michael Teague, president and CEO of URM, who can discuss the          growing challenges of homelessness in Los Angeles and in the          United States.           Ken McGill, superintendent of men's ministries, URM, who can          talk about the goals and vision of the men's residential          recovery program and how the lives of countless broken men          are currently being rebuilt.  WHEN:    Sunday, March 5, 2000          3-5 p.m.  WHERE:   Union Rescue Mission Chapel, 545 S. San Pedro St.,          Los Angeles          (Secured underground parking is available.)  WHO:     Union Rescue Mission, the nation's largest and Los          Angeles' oldest mission, has helped homeless people          overcome the cycle of poverty for over 100 years. In          addition to emergency food and shelter, the Mission          has developed life-changing residential programs for          men, women, and children. In 1999, 124 men and women          graduated from Union Rescue Mission's program. For          more information, call the contacts listed above or          see URM's website at www.urm.com.