Our mission

Elevate Lives™ was founded in 2007 by Russell Gosselin to improve lives in an impoverished neighborhood in Colorado Springs, Colorado. While in Colorado Springs, Russ spearheaded multiple community improvement efforts, including an adjunct role as Chief Strategy/Operations Officer for Springs Rescue Mission. It was there that he led two successful grant-funded projects which created over 100 housing units for adults facing homelessness and addiction.

In 2012, Convoy of Hope, an international relief agency, heard of what Russ was doing with Elevate Lives™ and invited him to relocate to Springfield, Missouri and employ these community-changing efforts, training leaders across America.

After more than 30 years in community non-profit and church leadership, overlapping with nearly 15 years in construction and property management, in 2016 Russ Gosselin established Elevate Lives™ as a non-profit corporation in Springfield, Missouri to address poverty in a highly relational way. 

In the early years he led numerous city-wide community endeavors, collaborated with thousands of volunteers, hundreds of churches, social service agencies, and schools to empower families to succeed by fostering a stabilizing foundation in the home environment.

By fall of 2017 the first home was donated, which began Homes with a Purpose™. At that time Homes with a Purpose™ was the label for both housing and renovation, as well as the training and mentorship program. Steady growth and establishment took place, and a major federal grant was awarded to Elevate Lives in 2021 for expansion, launching the initiative further forward. 

In the development stages we carefully partnered with other ministries and organizations for training and mentorship. As Elevate Lives™ expanded, we saw the need to increase our own in-house equipping, and by mid 2021 what we now know of as Pathway out of Poverty™ became a full fledged component of Elevate Lives™.

We are excited about the incredible impact that has been made in families and increased support from local and national businesses and organizations, allowing us to partner and further instill hope in individuals and families with great promise for the future.