(Boz doesn't read and surf the web, of course. We read to him. Otherwise how else is he going to keep up with current events?)
I find it hard to imagine what the night would be like if I didn't have my family and our home. Where would I sleep? Would I even feel safe enough to close my eyes? Where would I go when it gets cold?
Lately I've seen more homeless people on the streets. Have you? Have you wanted to do something but felt helpless? A handout on a street corner--where does that go? I wish I could say I've never suspected it went to the liquor store.
Thanks to Wired Women, Monica Hubbard's super local weekly email*, I heard about Project Housed-Pasadena. During the week of August 7-12, trained volunteers will "fan out on the streets of Pasadena to survey those [homeless] they find. From these responses, a list of the 20 most vulnerable homeless persons will be generated. Working from this list, Housing Works, a non-profit agency that serves homeless persons, will outreach to the identified homeless persons and work with them to become housed. Once housed, Housing Works and supportive service and healthcare agencies in the City of Pasadena will provide the services necessary to allow the participants to remain housed and integrate into the community."
Take a look at the website and watch the video. There are all kinds of ways you can participate. You can be trained to survey homeless people, you can give money, donate or assemble move-in kits and more.
Twenty people isn't everyone, but it's a start. A handout only changes a few minutes. Integration into the community changes a life.
*If you want to know more about Wired Women, email me and I'll get you hooked up.
13 comments:
So glad you bring attention to Project Housed. My friend from church, Jill Shook, is participating in that endeavor. I hope they succeed.
A good deed. Blessed are the mitsva doers.
Good luck to Project Housed. Community support projects are wonderful things.
Great post, Petrea. I did a homeless count in Pasadena earlier this year and found it to be a very eye-opening experience.
So many good things happening in Pasadena .
Warms my heart.
V
I like this project because it offers so many ways to get involved. Not everyone is brave enough to go out on the street and talk to the homeless people, yet some people really crave a way to do that. Either way, there's something you can do. And if you're underage, they've got a way for you to participate as well. They've got ways for businesses to participate as well as individuals. I hope everyone takes a look.
Ben, did you blog about it? If so, can you link us to your posts?
What a great project. Homelessness seems like an insurmountable problem but the video makes me believe it can be solved. Very inspiring.
I thought so, too, Susan. It seems to look at the problem on a human scale.
Project Housed gets my support - thanks for telling us about it. My homeless friend sleeps in a park during the day and stays awake at night because people try to attack him. I did ask why he doesn't go to Union Station, and the answer was, he wants to stay apart from the other homeless people, many of whom have a drinking problem. He used to sit at a table outside Vons and the staff brought him sandwiches, but a new manager banned him. It's a hard life.
Thanks for the story, Bellis. I was ready to be mad at that manager, but I won't put the blame on him/her. If customers complained or were intimidated, which is possible, the manager's hands were tied.
some are lucky enough to have friends whom they can borrow a bed from now and again. some sleep in vehicles if they are lucky. some hide out in plain sight---as with the guy who sleeps during the day, or one we knew who slept under the freeway overpass because he didn't know how to sleep inside anymore--until one day there was a tanker truck fire under the overpass and he and his "house" turned to ash.
not all the homeless are degenerate drunks or druggies. some hold down day jobs and find a place they can try to sleep at night. some are right in front of you.
I wish the project were bigger, but baby steps are better than no steps at all.
That's well said, Trish.
Kudos to those working with Project Housed! Homelessness has increased here also. Recently the local news ran a story stating that for the first time, all the homeless shelters were near capacity. A lot of non-profit agencies are working hard to help as best they can, which is hard in light of funding cuts.
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