For information specific to our residential program, click here.
Between 1983 and October 2015, Mercy Multiplied operated in the United States under the name Mercy Ministries of America. Our organization’s name was changed in 2015 to better reflect our expanded outreach initiatives and our commitment to “multiplying” Mercy – helping those outside of our residential homes find freedom from life-controlling issues.
In 2007, Mercy Ministries International (now Mercy Multiplied International) adopted a governance model that brought a new level of program consistency, oversight, and accountability, and positioned Mercy to expand its reach and increase its effectiveness throughout the world. Mercy is currently active in three countries — the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States. An executive director and board of directors now oversee operations in each country, and the board of Mercy Multiplied International oversees each country’s board of directors.
Nancy Alcorn is the founder of Mercy and currently serves as president of Mercy Multiplied International, which is run by a board of directors charged with maintaining the overall vision and direction of the international organization, as well as overseeing the integrity of Mercy’s operation within each individual country.
Each Mercy home is a complex organization with many employees working in positions ranging from director of counseling to nutrition manager and director of medical services. Our largest homes employ as many as five full-time counselors, as well as an extensive maintenance and support staff. Necessary qualifications vary by position and by country, but all of our professional staff have bachelor’s degrees, with many positions requiring additional degrees and certifications. Our counselors are qualified through their education, skills, experience and maturity in their relationship with God to serve each resident. All of our counselors are required to hold a master’s degree or be working toward a master’s degree from an accredited university in social work, psychology, counseling or a related field. A licensed nurse is employed at each of our locations.
Our Christian-based program curriculum, Choices That Bring Change, is the result of our three decades of ministering to girls in crisis and combines biblical principles of healing and unconditional love with best-practice clinical interventions, as outlined in our Freedom Series.
Trained counselors lead residents through the program curriculum, helping them explore issues of faith, forgiveness, family, overcoming abuse and past hurts, and general life principles. In addition to the curriculum, program resources feature internationally acclaimed teachers such as Beth Moore, Priscilla Shirer, Joyce Meyer, Dave Ramsey, Andy Stanley, and Charlotte Gambill. Residents participate in both individual and group counseling on a weekly basis.
We are not directly affiliated with any particular church, denomination or organization but are rather an inter-denominational Christian organization with staff members from a variety of Christian backgrounds and traditions. While young women are at a Mercy home, they have daily praise and worship as well as daily, life-changing classes based on principles of freedom found in God’s Word. Residents also attend a local church in the community where each home is located. View our statement of faith here.
As a Christian organization, Mercy believes that spiritual warfare is real and that prayer plays an important role in healing and spiritual growth. We do not perform or endorse exorcisms as part of our program. Our emphasis is on the power of God’s grace and unconditional love to help hurting young women overcome addictions and past hurts.
Mercy has a long-standing policy of not incurring debt in the establishment of our homes. We have established a clear model for creation of new homes that begins at the local community level to ensure that each home will have the appropriate level of ongoing financial, spiritual, and community support necessary to achieve our mission. The minimum criteria for consideration of the establishment of a new home have been formalized by Mercy Multiplied International and are available here.
Mercy recognizes that true change can only occur through a personal commitment to change. This commitment is a pre-requisite for a young woman to enter our program. We only accept applicants who clearly understand our Christian emphasis and specifically seek out our help and assistance. Furthermore, our residents are always free to leave the program at any time.
It has always been our policy to provide adequate medical care for our residents. This includes care from Mercy staff and from outside professionals who are called upon to help on a regular basis. Helping young women regain control of their lives is a central mission, and proper health care is a key element of our program.
Mercy Multiplied International has helped thousands of residents since Mercy was founded in 1983, and in a recent survey of former residents, 94 percent of respondents said Mercy “transformed their lives and restored their hope.” However, in any treatment program, some participants will inevitably have questions or concerns, which is why we have a process in place for current and former residents to air grievances without fear of retribution. Please contact info@mercymultiplied.com if you want more information about this process.
Mercy Ministries of Australia (MMAU), when in existence, was an autonomous entity distinct from our organization and solely responsible for its operations and actions. Specifically, MMAU had separate and independent funding, oversight, leadership, program design and organizational structure.
Because of a shared vision to serve hurting girls, Nancy Alcorn, our founder, permitted Darlene and Mark Zschech to leverage the “Mercy” brand when the Zschechs founded MMAU in 2001. However, MMAU was an independent charity with no oversight from Mercy operations in America. MMAU ceased operations in 2009.