EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR - RONALD MARLETTE
   email: ron@missionsolano.org

We at Mission SOLANO are so grateful for partners like you. In partnering with Mission SOLANO you have made, and are continuing to make a difference in the lives we touch. It has been said, “partnership is the ability to work together toward a common vision; the ability to direct individual accomplishment toward organized objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results…simply put, it is less of “me” and more of “we”. (Anonymous)

Together we can continue to make a difference in our community by bringing hope to a lonely and often forgotten segment of our society. Former President Lyndon B. Johnson once said, “There are no problems we cannot solve together, and very few we can solve by ourselves.”

If you have been a partner with Mission SOLANO, our prayer is that you will continue. If you are considering partnering with Mission SOLANO, there is no better time than right now. Partnership will make a difference. Partnership will help to resolve the challenges that face our community. Partnership will bring the good news of Jesus Christ to those who have lost hope. Partnership moves the hand and heart of God.

May we always see the homeless and impoverished through they eyes of Jesus. As John Yates expressed, “Jesus always views people from the perspective not just of what they were, but of what they could become.”

Together we can make a difference in our city, community and county.

Mission SOLANO and you . . . making a difference in Solano County for a brighter tomorrow.

May God bless you,

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Ron’s Bio
Ron Marlette, his wife of 20 years, Jennifer and their four children reside in Fairfield, California. Ron is a native of Fairfield and was raised here as a youth. After a long career in the "fish business", as Ron calls it, he answered the calling he had long heard and enrolled at Multnomah Bible College in Portland, Oregon. He exited Multnomah Bible College in the mid-nineties, degree in hand; the new Reverend Ronald Marlette had a vision for his home, Solano County!

In 1998, after creating a partnership with Bay Area Rescue Missions in Richmond, California, Ron began to fulfill the vision of serving the homeless and underserved population of Solano County. It was a solo journey that was partnered with his faith in God, and the journey began in a donated office (by Board Chairman LeFever) on Buck Street in Vacaville.

No longer a "solo practice," Mission SOLANO has grown to 25 paid staff, numerous dedicated volunteers, and a campus on Travis Boulevard in Fairfield. Mission SOLANO has served over
75,000 guests since its' founding in 1998, plus numerous others with distribution of food,
clothing, warmth, love and all modalities of human social needs. Mission SOLANO became autonomous in 2002. National attention has been received by Mission SOLANO and its creation of the concept of Nomadic Sheltering. With the gracious and kind support of participating local churches, our guests, the homeless of Solano County, are transported to local supporting churches by our bus for feeding and overnight shelter from the elements. These church partners are truly a blessing to us and the homeless. Nomadic Sheltering would not be possible without their devoted efforts and generosity!

The vision for the homeless in Solano County continues, and Mission SOLANO is planning a new campus in the Fairfield area to more effectively serve the homeless of Solano County. We will increase our abilities to serve about 180 guests nightly, up considerably from out present nightly capacity of 50.

Although some local government support is gratefully acknowledged, the work is dependent upon the generous donations of individuals and businesses like yours.

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The story of Ron Marlette...
as published in Billy Graham’s Decision Magazine 2000
“Where Are They Now?”

One morning the police raided my house in Fairfield, CA. They didn’t find what they were looking for, but they wrote on a card, “We’ll be back.” I realized then that I needed to change my life.

When I was 12 years old, I started drinking and using drugs to escape a painful life and family situation. When I was 14, I dropped out of high school to deal drugs. It was a way to make money and support my addiction. During the next seven years, I was drawn deeper and deeper into the lifestyle of a criminal and drug addict.

When the police raided my house, I was 21 years old. I checked myself into a drug and alcohol recovery program to escape from the crime. At that time I made the decision to stay clean and sober. But when I went back to visit my old friends, I was tempted to use drugs and alcohol again. I knew that I couldn’t hang out with that crowd anymore.

Then I ran into a friend who had invited me to attend church in the past. I had always said “no”. But this time she invited me to attend a Billy Graham Crusade meeting in Sacramento in 1983, the following evening. I said “yes”, and that evening, for the first time in my life, I heard a clear presentation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I knew that I needed Jesus to fill the void in my life; when Mr. Graham gave the invitation, I went forward to ask Jesus into my life.

The next morning I was in church and my involvement in church helped me to grow in my relationship with the Lord Jesus. I now had the Answer to life’s questions, and I wanted to tell people who are chained to their addiction that Jesus can set them free. I began a drug and alcohol support group in church.

I sensed that God was calling me to do more for Him, and after praying and receiving counsel, I went back to school to get my high school diploma. In 1984, I married Jennifer Hanks, whom I had met at church. We started a family and now have four children. During the next few years, I continued to want to help those who were suffering as I had suffered. But I desired a solid biblical foundation to do that. God opened the door for me to study at Multnomah Bible College in Portland Oregon, and our family moved to Portland in 1992. I worked with the Portland Rescue Mission, which ministers to a diverse homeless population.

In 1996, I graduated from Multnomah and shortly after that the leadership of the Bay Area Rescue Mission, in Richmond, asked me to launch a satellite mission in Solano County to serve the homeless and addicted in that county. In May 1998, Mission SOLANO began.

Since then, I have been the director of Mission SOLANO. I have met many people from my past, and I love it when they ask about my life. One of my friends asked me, “Are you still dealing Jesus?” What a compliment-dealing Jesus instead of drugs, life instead of death. Yes, I’m still dealing, shouting, living and proclaiming the simple, clear life-changing message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

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