MISSION
POSSIBLE
BL
Attorney Mary Bates founded a legal clinic that helps the homeless.
BY LEIGH LYONS
L
awyers may have a reputation for being cut-throat and callous, but
Mary Bates is an exception. The founder of a free legal clinic at the
Washington City Mission, Bates’ kindness and generosity is bringing
support and comfort to some of society’s most defenseless.
The Mission houses homeless people who lack adequate housing and face
many other problems that restrict them from moving forward with their
lives. When Bates became involved with the Mission seven years ago as a
volunteer, she quickly realized it wasn’t enough just to house the homeless,
but something had to be done to aid them with their supplemental problems
in order to build a solid base for them to live a healthy lifestyle.
“The Mission provides what I like to call ‘full-circle recovery,’” said Bates.
“It’s not just about providing a roof over someone’s head temporarily but the
care and insight as to why this person is homeless and formulating a plan on
how to move him or her into independent living.”
Many of the more frequent problems that the Mission’s residents encounter
happen to be legal in nature. Bates recognized the need for some type of
legal clinic associated with the Mission and dedicated herself to finding a
solution to the needs at hand. She founded the legal clinic, and now she,
along with other volunteers, spend countless hours each week aiding the
residents in their legal matters. Bates estimates that the legal clinic helps more
than 90 residents each year to work through issues that are unique to their
circumstance and present a hurdle that they could not overcome otherwise.
In one case, Bates remembers a woman at the shelter who had accrued over
$3,000 in parking