H.O.M.E. Word – A blog from Project H.O.M.E.

Will O’Brien is a member of the Project H.O.M.E. community, where he serves as Special Projects Coordinator.

We received an email at the office several days ago, one that had been making the virtual circuit among liberal and progressive types. It was the text of a speech by Michael Moore, the popular filmmaker and celebrity radical. He had come to Wisconsin in the throes of the political battle over the Governor’s proposal to curtail public employees’ collective bargaining rights. True to form, his words were firey and provocative.

Moore was raising the issue of the ever-growing chasm of wealth inequities in our country. One figure he cited could certainly make one blanch: The 400 richest Americans have as much wealth as half of all Americans combined.

Whether these exact figures are accurate would need some corroboration, but the fact of growing wealth disparities is certainly a real trend in this country, and one that should concern us all. But how we choose to approach this issue is important. On all sides of the political fracas we hear cries of “class warfare.” Conservatives and moderates decry critics like Moore, saying they are inflaming class warfare through a blame-the-rich, soak-the-rich approach to public policy. Moore and his compadres on the left, meanwhile, assert that the rich are the ones who instigated the class warfare through a systematic plunder of the public wealth and support of policies that hurt the middle class and those on the bottom. And so it goes, back and forth, critique and counter-critique, ever partisan, ever polarized, ever poisoning of our political culture.

Let’s step aside from the scorched-earth debate and consider a very different way to think about these issues. At Project H.O.M.E., as our friends and supporters know all too well, we put a high premium on community. We speak of people from all walks of life being part of a community of hope, all engaged in the work of healing our society, all on a common journey home. In considering our broader political discourse, we might suggest that a very different and perhaps helpful image is one from our cultural and political history, but one shrouded in some obscurity: the Commonwealth.

The word comes out of the English political tradition, meaning a political community founded for the common good. It also developed the meaning of a political system in which power was invested in the people, but again with the purpose of fostering the common “wealth” or well-being. Four U.S. states are legally designated commonwealths, including our own Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The Massachusetts constitution describes its commonwealth in these words: “The body politic is formed by a voluntary association of individuals: it is a social compact, by which the whole people covenants with each citizen, and each citizen with the whole people, that all shall be governed by certain laws for the common good.”

While the United States constitution never opted for the legal definition of commonwealth, the tradition is evoked in the phrase from the preamble delineating one of the purposes of the government, “to promote the general welfare” (the word “welfare” being a linguistic cousin of “weal” or “wealth” or “well-being”).

The commonwealth is a richly evocative image. It suggests that, far from being an aggregate of atomistic individuals each pursuing our unique destinies and living our separate lives, we all participate in a multi-dimensional and highly interwoven web of civic and economic activity, to which we all contribute, from which we all benefit. It is also descriptive of undeniable truths about our common life: None of us really picks ourselves up by our own proverbial bootstraps – we make our way in life dependent on public systems and institutions and structures. Power grids, financial systems, educational opportunities, commercial regulations, traffic laws – all of these emerge out of citizen covenants, all of them make possible both the common good and individual flourishing. Not to mention how our success in life is largely dependent on other people – family, friends, teachers, mentors, colleagues, and others.

Is it possible for us to reframe our political dialogue under the paradigm of the commonwealth? What would it mean if we took seriously that we covenant together as citizens with a shared commitment to the common good? Can we agree that a legitimate role of citizenry and government is to promote the general welfare? Can we approach public policy with a concern for a healthy balance between the common good and individual liberties – rather than assume that the two are mutually opposed?

For instance, in the often venomous debates on budgets currently taking place in state houses and in Congress, a key issue is taxes – raise or lower, who pays, at what rates, what is fair, what is good for the economy. But the very framing of the issue is deeply problematic: The dominant paradigm in American thinking is that taxes are the government taking “our” hard-earned money and giving it to “other” people who didn’t earn and probably don’t deserve it. This way of thinking is fraught with a radical individualism, in which any intrinsic connection between citizens is negligible if not non-existent.

What if we debated the issue of taxes within the framework of the Commonwealth? As unpleasant as they may still be, we would understand taxes as the investment we each make as citizens in the commonwealth, an investment that fosters the common good which in turn further empowers each of us to flourish. We are investing in the various systems, structures, institutions, and initiatives that make our society work – for all of us. We don’t squall that the government is “taking my money,” because we understand that a portion of our income, which is made possible precisely because of a healthy commonwealth, goes back into the sustenance and nurture of the commonwealth, from which we will continue to benefit, at least indirectly.

At Project H.O.M.E., part of our budget includes public moneys, derived from taxation, which we use to develop permanent supportive housing, affordable home ownership programs, health, education, and employment programs for adults and youth. We make every effort to be good stewards of that public investment. We are helping to solve some of society’s pressing urban problems. We are enabling persons to move from being needy and unstable to being productive and contributing. In the end we believe that what we do is good for the commonwealth – and that all citizens ultimately benefit.

We are concerned that the hyper-individualistic and hence minimalist approach to taxes is unhealthy for our commonwealth – especially when such an approach invariably forces our elected officials to make severe cuts in programs that assist millions of our fellow citizens. We believe that, guided by the beautiful image of the commonwealth, we can have more productive and fruitful conversations about reasonable and fairly shared levels of taxation and public investments.

Can the notion of a Commonwealth heal our political discourse — and help us move toward a society where we more equitably share in our common bounty?

Hyacinth King has been a member of the Project H.O.M.E. community for many years. She resides at our 1515 Fairmount Avenue residence and is active in many capacities in the organization, including our Outreach Coordination Center, our Advocacy Committee, and our Board of Trustees.  This video, in which she talks about her personal experience of homelessness and the urgent need to end homelessness, was originally produced a couple of years ago by MiNDTV35.  Speaking today, she says, “Project H.O.M.E. still maintains its stand that homelessness can be ended, regardless of the obstacles.  We have an ability to be flexible and meet new and different challenges.”

Carolyn Placke is Project H.O.M.E.’s Director of Housing and Community Development.  Much of her work takes place in the lower north central Philadelphia neighborhood, where we do community development work – as reflected in her blog entry.

At the end of each year my partner and I take a look back on the year and offer up our own version of the “Best of…”  This comes in the form of  experiences, books, newspaper/journal articles, music, art, travel, whatever… There’s no real method to it, just a stream of conscious to give thanks for the past year, and to acknowledge these “best of moments” that shaped us and our world.

2010 was a milestone year of struggle, change, and recommitment for me, and so music became sort of a haven. As I was creating my “music best of” it was a toss up between the Black Eyed Peas’ “The Beginning” and the Roots’ “Wake Up!”

Now if you aren’t familiar with either of these groups, you might be if you are anyone or all of these things: a Super Bowl fan, a lover of documentary films, or into the Philly music scene.

I’m not a Super Bowl fan, but this year, “The Peas,” as we call them in our home, were part of the half-time show. So, I became a football fan if only for 20 minutes.  Let me tell you – the Peas totally kicked it! Check out the show.

As for the Roots, they are a Philly band formed in the late 80’s and known for their hip hop/neo-soul style. I’ve followed them on and off over the years, and I took a special interest in them last year because they had teamed up with John Legend. For those of you that saw the electrifying 2010 documentary about the state of public education, “Waiting For Superman,” you’ll recall the song “Shine.”

So there’ve you’ve got it … 6 degrees of separation.

Now, this is a Project H.O.M.E. blog and so you might be wondering where’s all of this going… veer a bit to the left, just two steps back, refocus on the goal… (a dance move we at “PH” are all familiar with doing), and voila, we’re back to the Roots’ “Wake Up!”

The collaboration between the Roots and John Legend is, well, legendary (yup, that was intentional). For those familiar with the soul songs of the 60’s and 70’s you’ll recall the seminal call to action, “Wake Up Everybody.” Since I’m writing this blog from Philly, this classic from Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes is especially meaningful, as it is rooted in the sounds of Philly Soul music era. But more importantly, this is a CD that uncovers a rich history of funk, revolution, and all that is soulful. It is the music that ignited an era, and yet it still resonates today. Check out remakes of Ernie Hine’s “Our Generation,” or Bill Withers and Ray Jackson’s “I Can’t Write Left Handed.”

John Legend credits the Roots’ Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson with finding and compiling these “obscure” songs. He states in the CD’s forward, “Nina Simone said, It’s the job of an artist to reflect the times,’ and we attempted to do just that.” This CD does just that!

I’m hard pressed to find music that has ever come so close to expressing, for me, the heart and soul of my work… and, of what I’ve come to know and cherish about the North Philly community where Project H.O.M.E.’s neighborhood revitalization work occurs. Our community is steeped in history, strength, sadness, joy, and an irrepressible resolve for neighborhood recovery – all of which I have come to understand are the essential parts of what all individuals aspire to have, and all what communities aspire to be: a place to call home: Housing, Opportunities, Medical care, Education (H.O.M.E.).

But back to the music:

Coming up with an anthem that could inspire a generation who grew up on hip hop and pop (not soul), who came of age with MTV and YouTube (not vinyl), was no easy task. These bright-eyed citizens are “post-racial” and “post-feminist” children: those who have grown up after the legislated victories of the Civil Rights and Women’s Right’s movements. They now soldier the wars of “choice” in Iraq and Afghanistan, but are not shielded by a substantial anti-war movement. They are the beneficiaries of an unprecedented cultural integration, yet remain victims of segregated school and criminal justice systems. They reside in the wealthiest nation, but are divided by inexplicable urban poverty and economic inequality. Strange times indeed. (Salamishah Tillet, from the same CD forward)

Now, bringing it back H.O.M.E….

These are strange times indeed. But what I know, and have come to understand, is something very simple: One day, one person, one block at a time can lead to enormous change. I see it everyday.

This blog is dedicated to Big Mama, Grandma (to us all), Ms. “Downtown” Helen Brown on the occasion of her 70^th birthday! Much Love, C. 

And give a listen:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJgxJ6JrPkc

Helen Brown, Project H.O.M.E.'s Community Organizer, on her 70th birthday.

This is the second of two parts of a talk given by Sister Mary Scullion to a group of Chester County officials, service providers, advocates, and other stakeholders to encourage them in the development of a Ten Year Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness.  The first part was posted on March 15.

What makes it realistic to talk about ending homelessness is the existence of a very real community of hope – people from all walks of life who find some way to contribute and to be part of the solution.   As people come to understand the issues, they want to get involved, and we need to be able to show persons and organizations what concrete roles they can play.  We need to creatively find the outlets for persons’ and organizations’ gifts and energy and expertise.  Can professors and students in a local business school help us develop marketing plans for new businesses that can provide jobs for persons breaking the cycle of homelessness?  Can local universities find internships and placements, not just for social work students, but for urban planners, architects, education students, in programs that can use their skills to work on policies, property development, and education supports?  Can local businesses help us work with young persons in low-income neighborhoods through mentoring and apprenticeships as ways to strengthen their skills, foster better economic possibilities, and prevent future homelessness?  Can our religious congregations tap their powerful spiritual and moral traditions to harness energy and vision and help offer humane and caring services and advocacy?

Sister Mary Scullion speaks at a 2008 rally calling on presidential candidates to address homelessness.

The answer to all of these is yes.  And, our experience has continually shown us, it’s not simply homeless persons who benefit:  Invariably, these organizations, schools, businesses, and congregations are also enriched.

We also need to nurture real leadership – but we must open our eyes to many forms of leadership among all kinds of people at every level.

Persons who have experienced homelessness must be part of the solution.  Their life stories are invaluable in helping us understand the realities of homelessness and what kinds of solutions work best.  Their passion, courage, and resilience must be our guideposts along the way.   The vision of Project H.O.M.E. was developed in large part by the men in our first emergency winter shelter twenty years ago.  At that time, our first concern was saving these men’s lives by getting them inside.   Over those months, we dialogued with the men about what solutions were possible, and they helped us identify the building blocks of our program:  housing, opportunities for employment, medical care, and education.  Over the years, our residents’ input has helped strengthen our programs and clarify our vision.

Without the constant input and leadership of men and women who have experienced homelessness, our ten-year plans become bureaucratic reports on shelves, and our meetings and consultations just a lot of professional talk.

Another hopeful sign is when people who might normally be in opposition to each other find common ground.  For instance, homeless advocates and business persons have been pitted as adversaries – those of us who care about the issue of homelessness have sometimes been guilty of painting those in the chambers of commerce as cruel and inhumane, whose only interest is to pass anti-homeless legislation to forcibly remove persons off the streets.  Homeless advocates have been pigeon-holed as caring only about the civil rights of homeless persons to stay on the streets, with little concern for the health of the broader community.  But in fact we can and must see each other as allies.  Many in the business community are caring and humane.  They also understand, sometimes better than politicians, that cost-effective and humane solutions can be a win-win situation.

The fact is, we have much common ground.  We all want to get homeless persons off the streets.  We can come together in the conviction that we all desire for our downtowns and our neighborhoods to be safe, sanitary environments.  We should all advocate for a quality of life for everyone.  Procuring quality housing and services for homeless persons and supporting commerce and tourism do not need to be mutually exclusive:  In fact, both are critical in helping our urban communities flourish.

In fact, perhaps the most important – and most hopeful – lesson we have learned over the past three decades is this:  Our efforts to solve homelessness are good for the entire community.  When we invest in effective permanent supportive housing to help people get off the streets, we save millions of dollars otherwise spent on emergency rooms, police and court costs, endless rounds of detox and psychiatric hospitalizations.   When we develop permanent housing and economic supports to help homeless families move out of shelter and toward self-sufficiency, we save the costs of dead-end shelters.  When we empower individuals and families to break the cycle of homelessness, we create productive and contributing citizens.

Two reports commissioned by Project H.O.M.E. bear this out.  A 2007 economic analysis showed that the Philadelphia neighborhoods in which a Project H.O.M.E. residence is located experienced a higher rate of property value increase than in the city in general.   Other studies have shown similar findings: that supportive housing programs do not result in decrease property values, but in fact are correlated to increased property values, and therefore have a financial benefit to the city.

Likewise, a report we released last year entitled “Saving Money, Saving Lives” also showed that investment in permanent supportive housing actually saves money for municipalities in the long run.  We have substantial data which clearly shows that creating solutions to homelessness is actually cost effective – which is surely good news for local governments.

We cannot allow ourselves to say that homelessness and poverty are too expensive to fix.  Rather, they are too expensive not to fix.  One way or another, we are paying for them – in human lives and in social resources.  Our cities can never fully flourish, our economies can never by truly vibrant, our civic health is never truly stable, when we allow so many of our fellow citizens to suffer.

Making a serious commitment to working to end homelessness is a tremendously positive step.  I believe it is a morally conscientious decision – and at the same time it simply makes good political sense.  I believe it is a spiritually significant, compassionate, and humane commitment – and at the same time it is practically speaking an effective use of policies and resources.  This is the good news:  We can make our communities more stable, economically healthy, and vibrant places for all our citizens – and in the process, I believe we become more fully human.

Sister Mary Scullion

Project H.O.M.E.’s co-founder and Executive Director Sister Mary Scullion spoke recently to a group of Chester County officials, service providers, advocates, and other stakeholders to encourage them in the development of a Ten Year Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness.  This posting is part one of her remarks.

It is true that we have been dealing with homelessness as a significant social crisis for three decades now.  So it is understandable when people begin to feel discouraged.  From a certain perspective, it is easy to believe that homelessness is an intractable problem, an inevitable part of the American urban landscape.   Cynics might even say that it is obvious that many homeless persons are beyond help and that despite years of efforts the problem is not going away.  The best we can do is simply manage the situation with the help of a few well-intentioned charities and some shelter beds – and when necessary, legislate and police people out of our downtowns and our nice neighborhoods.

So to speak of developing a plan to end homelessness seems hopelessly naive at best, and at worst mere political posturing and sloganeering.  What do we really hope to accomplish beyond a fancy bureaucratic report which in the long run will be shelved and forgotten – while the suffering of sisters and brothers on the streets and shelters will persist?

We are here today because we dare to believe differently.  We dare to use the language of ending homelessness.  We dare to hope, and to work to turn that hope into real progress

Our hope is far from naive – in fact, it is grounded in reality and experience.  There are many very real reasons for our hope.  One of those reasons is Hyacinth King.  Her mental illness landed her on the streets for several years, but today she serves on Project H.O.M.E.’s Board of Trustees – when she isn’t helping with street outreach or involved in our political advocacy efforts or rebuilding computers for fellow residents.

Another reason for hope is Ben Mitchell, who admits that his life of drugs, crime, and homelessness was heading toward a tragic end.  Today he is a Certified Peer Specialist employed by the Mental Health Association to provide support and assistance to other mental health consumers.  And he frequently inspires crowds when he shares his life journey.

Or there’s Yvonne Bailey, for whom sixteen years of life on the streets are in the past.  Today she is a lead hostess at the Back H.O.M.E. Café, reunited with family, and setting greater goals for her future.

I could mention many more people.  In fact, at Project H.O.M.E., we can recount literally thousands of stories of men, women, and families who have broken the cycle of homelessness.  Even persons who were on the streets for ten years or more, who struggled against unfathomable odds and whose lives were devastated by horrible issues, persons of whom it was said, “They will never come in, they will never get better” – even persons like these are now stable, flourishing, living independently, in recovery, working.

I can personally testify how much men and women like these have given me hope and enriched my vision of what it means to be human and what we can accomplish in life through faith and perseverance.  I am sure that even in this room there are men and women who are living beacons of hope to all of us, who point the way for us in our efforts to make a real difference in our society.

This is the good news:  Effective solutions exist.  We know what kinds of programs and services work.  We know what results we can achieve with well-invested resources and solid planning.  Not only in Philadelphia, but in cities around the country, we have a track record of over twenty years worth of successes.

We know, for instance, that permanent supportive housing, when operated by quality programs with sufficient resources, has a tremendous track record.  The vast majority of our residents in permanent housing, who have lived with chronic mental illness, addiction (or in many cases both), are now working, going to school, and in some way giving back.  Permanent housing created the stability in their lives that allowed them to develop their talents and become contributing members of society.

We know, too, that employment is a critical component in overcoming homelessness.  Here, too, we can point to many successes.  It is true that the majority of persons who are homeless come from backgrounds of severe poverty and have therefore had significant deficits in education and work background.  But there are innumerable examples of effective job training programs and employment initiatives that have allowed persons coming off the streets to succeed.  At Project H.O.M.E., we have created some of our own job training and employment programs, such as a thrift store, which allow many of residents to begin the process of learning fundamental job skills and responsibilities.  We have also developed creative partnerships with other organizations to create employment opportunities.  One of our more remarkable successes came out of dialogue with the Free Library of Philadelphia.  Their main Center City branch was struggling with the issue of many homeless persons coming in from the streets to use their restroom facilities, which was creating unsanitary conditions and some tension among patrons.  Together, we developed a creative program in which the Library hired several of our residents as restroom attendants, who could both keep their facilities clean and orderly, and share with many of the homeless persons information about resources to help them get off the streets.

Encouraged by this success, a year later, Project H.O.M.E. entered into a partnership with the Free Library, Starbucks Coffee, and Metropolitan Bakery to open the H.O.M.E. Page Café in the Library.  It provides quality products in an internet café while giving good jobs to many of residents – and it is succeeding as a for-profit business.

This is a shining example of the rich and diverse community that has come together to build real solutions.  This is, in fact, a necessity:  We need to develop strategic and effective partnerships to get the work done.  Project H.O.M.E. could not have accomplished any of our successes without partnerships and support from organizations, entities, and individuals from all walks of life and all sectors of society.

To be continued in the next posting.

Nicole Tell works in Project H.O.M.E.’s Development Department, where she serves as Director of Donor Relations and Communications.  In this post, she shares reflections on Project H.O.M.E.’s commitment to human dignity.

I have worked at Project H.O.M.E. for three years. During that time, I have talked to hundreds of people about the organization’s mission and values. I have worked alongside and befriended many homeless and formerly homeless men and women. I truly believed I understood what the organization meant when it proclaims that its work “is rooted in our strong spiritual conviction of the dignity of each person.” However, it took a recent reading about a World War II prisoner of war (POW) to really hit home to me what Project H.O.M.E.’s vision means; and most importantly, just how crucial this vision is to ending homelessness and poverty in our community.

How does a WWII POW’s story relate to Project H.O.M.E.’s mission to end homelessness and poverty? Well, let me explain.

I recently finished reading Laura Hillenbrand’s new book Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. The book tells the harrowing true story of Louis Zamperini, a WWII soldier who not only survived years in Japanese POW camps, but also survived for nearly two months on a life raft in the middle of the Pacific Ocean with no provisions or fresh water.  The book details the unspeakable physical torture and living conditions to which Zamperini and his fellow captives were subjected.

With all the horrible physical deprivations (lack of food or water, uninhabitable living conditions, disease) and torture the men were subjected to, Hillenbrand found that nearly all the men she had interviewed did not find those conditions to be the worst thing they endured. Rather, Zamperini and other POWs almost uniformly believed that the way the Japanese guards in the camps would “entertain” themselves by humiliating the captives was far more trying on their well-being. In fact, Zamperini believed that he would have given anything to be back on his life raft suffering physically than in the Japanese camps.

The reason for this is that the guards’ humiliations attempted to deprive Zamperini (and the other prisoners) of the one thing that sustained him throughout his time on the raft:  his dignity. As Hillenbrand said so eloquently, “This self-respect and sense of self-worth, the innermost armament of the soul, lies at the heart of humanness; to be deprived of it is to be dehumanized, to be cleaved from, and cast below, mankind. Men subjected to dehumanizing treatment experience profound wretchedness and loneliness and find that hope is almost impossible to retain. Without dignity, identity is erased.” (Unbroken, p. 182-83)

She goes on further to state: “Dignity is as essential to human life as water, food, and oxygen. The stubborn retention of it, even in the face of extreme physical hardship, can hold a man’s soul in his body long past the point at which the body should have surrendered it.” (id., 183) Not until I read that did I fully appreciate what makes Project H.O.M.E.’s mission and work stand out from other organizations doing similar work.

In the first blog post for H.O.M.E. Word, Sister Mary Scullion wrote something I have heard her say many times:

 At Project H.O.M.E., we stress in our mission statement that all our work is rooted in our spiritual conviction of the dignity of all persons. The men and women we get to know and build relationships with suffer from homelessness, poverty, addiction, and mental illness. Worse, they have felt the dehumanization of a society that stigmatizes and marginalizes them because of their situations and their struggles. We have learned over the years that, in addition to providing effective and professional services, one of the most transformative aspects of our work is simple to affirm a person’s dignity, to stress that whatever their situation, we believe they have gifts, worth, and potential, and that they, no less than anyone else, deserve the chance to flourish in life. We have also learned the amazing truth that in this process we are also affirming our own dignity and worth.

Sure, I knew we have great programs and services. Sure, I knew that more permanent, affordable supportive housing and educational and employment opportunities will help end homelessness. But, it was truly understanding the impact that maintaining a person’s dignity or helping restore such dignity has on the recovery of a person and on a community that finally hit home for me (pardon the pun). It also made me realize what courage and strength those who have experienced homelessness must have to have turned their lives and circumstances around.  They are men and women who are living beacons of hope to all of us, who point the way for us in our efforts to make a real difference in our society.

Richard Bogue reads his poetry at a Project H.O.M.E. community gathering.

Richard Bogue is a resident of Project H.O.M.E.’s 1515 Fairmount Avenue residence. He is also a fine poet. He shares a brief reflection on his time at Project H.O.M.E., followed by a poem that comes from his experience as a young man on the streets many years ago.

I have been a member of the Project H.O.M.E. community for roughly 10-1/2 years; I moved into 1515 Fairmount Avenue in April of 2000. If I had to sum up in a few words how I feel about Project H.O.M.E., I would say I am “accepted and respected just as I am.” I was homeless, off and on, from age 25 through age 30. Sometimes in big cities, sometimes in the country. I was so very lucky during this period not to have been arrested for long and not to have been badly beaten up. I was living on luck and the sunshine.

Many, many good people tried to help me when I was homeless. Finally, when every friend and every acquaintance had given up on me, when I had run from the East coast to the West coast, I began to try to help myself. It took a long, long time, years, to climb out of the hole I had dug myself into.

Founded by Sister Mary Scullion and Joan Dawson McConnon, Project H.O.M.E. has many female benefactors, employees and volunteers; it was and is a pleasure to work with these women. Now I honestly feel if I use a little common sense I will never be homeless again. Ten years is a long time in today’s world. My doctor and my therapist both tell me I am doing well. I feel I am doing well. I have quite a few friends in the Project H.O.M.E. community and I have friends at Associated Services For The Blind And Visually Impaired where I volunteer. In less than two months I will celebrate my 68th birthday. I look forward to that day.

TO A 16 YEAR OLD RUNAWAY

Think carefully tonight
crouched beneath some tree
in Golden Gate Park
shivering, teeth chattering
think carefully
of your dimly lit bedroom, home,
the smells of home,
your mother waiting anxiously, prayerfully,
think carefully on all familiar things
balanced against unimaginable blackness.

Know you are choosing,
know you are making a choice.

The tree, the night, the wind, the chill,
your disembodied stomach, strangers,
strangers, strangers.

Know you are choosing,
know you are making a choice.

Strangers may become friends
who will sink their knives deep into your back,
friends will become strangers
disappearing in the night.

Your healthy body will rot into the earth
before morning, you will awake from nightmare
to find yourself a skeleton.
The foghorn, the moon, the chill, the tree.

Know what you are choosing,
know the choice you make.

Kim Covello, a volunteer for Project H.O.M.E., recounts her experience doing street outreach in this two-part series.

This is the second part of a story that was first posted on March 2.  Kim Covello is a retired attorney, commercial model, and mom of three children ranging in ages of 8-21 years.   She continues the Journey…

We move on to some very gritty sites.  We park the car alongside the West River Drive bridge at a place that Sam says he discovered years ago by accident.  We scamper down a trash-strewn, rocky, steep hill and go underneath.  When my eyes adjust to the darkness, I am shocked by what I see – a little village of bunks in the steel cut outs of the bridge.  The filthy mattresses in the bunks are covered with dirty blankets.  Clothes hanging from the rafters.  Food, too.  “They hang it so the rats don’t get it,” Sam explains.  He calls out and David answers.  So we go over to David and find him in bed, but he’s very chatty with Sam today.  He tells Sam that he wasn’t hired back at the summer camp.  “Wait a minute,” I say to myself, “David worked at a summer camp…?”  And then I remember that one-third of our people living in shelters actually have jobs. David tells me to check out the view, and I look across the river; at the people eating on the porch of the Waterworks Restaurant….

Sam says the hardest part of the job is walking away when you know someone needs help. “But you have to respect them,” he says.  He tries to get David to go in and fill out the paperwork to get on a housing list.  “Give me a couple years,” David tells him. “It took me a few years to get on medication, give me a couple of years to get the housing done.”  I think, “A couple of years…?”  David has AIDS and a host of other problems and may not even be here then.  But I remember that this is a long, slow process of building trust. There are no easy short-term solutions.

We head to South Delaware Avenue and Sam shows me the place where he found Gloria.  Gloria hit him hard.  Sam found her on January 29, 2010.  Gloria was a chronic alcoholic but went to detox a few days before she died.  She just walked out of the detox center at some point, no one questioning her.  They say she had a stroke, but Sam believes she would be alive today if she was in detox when she had that stroke…

Sam Santiago does street outreach for Project H.O.M.E.

Further down Delaware Avenue, Sam calls out to some men living in tall weeds and grass by a bridge, but they wouldn’t answer his calls of “Hey, what’s happening?”  We then checked on Jerry, who lives with his partner in a box, under the Schuylkill Expressway, right by the new Schuylkill River Path that the City built a few years ago.  This place made the West River Drive ‘bridge bunks” look like a palace.  No one lives here except for Jerry and his unnamed friend.  Sam gives Jerry a hard time for “using” again and implores him to accept help, but Jerry is gripped by the haze of the “high.”

Despite Jerry’s response that day, Sam believes that if he can earn their trust, he will make progress in eventually getting people off the street.  Sam, after all, works for an organization that provides over 500 units of supportive housing in 11 different locations around the City. Those beds are filled with formerly homeless people, many just like those we encountered today.  Sam knows that when Project H.O.M.E. isn’t the right place, there are other services like Pathways To Housing. Pathways leases blocks of apartments for homeless men and women, and provides support services that help them adjust to their new lifestyle.

I ask Sam, “How do you measure success?”  I’ve seen Sam’s awards and accolades –  the recognition he received from Jefferson Hospital for starting a program to sensitize the doctors to the special needs of patients from the streets, the “Hometown Hero” award from the 76’ers organization, the Certificate of Appreciation from the Veterans Administration, the other “awards of excellence.”  These awards are important, but they are not why Sam comes to work everyday.  Sam explains “They are the voiceless people, nobody even sees them…most people just walk right by them like they don’t exist.  Somebody has to help.”

It is only appropriate that many of Sam’s workdays end with a game of chess with one of the formerly homeless residents of 1515 Fairmount Street, someone once on the street, now in dignified and safe permanent supportive housing.  Sam’s penchant for chess mirrors his work. He excels at chess with the same patience he utilizes on the street every day.

Kim Covello, a volunteer for Project H.O.M.E., recounts her experience doing street outreach in this two-part series.

Kim Covello

is a retired attorney, commercial model, and mom of three children ranging in ages of 8-21 years.   In this posting, the first of two parts, she recounts her volunteer experiences, including going on the street with outreach worker Sam Santiago.  Kim continues the Journey…

I started a journey … seeking to understand the homeless.  I started this journey as a volunteer for Project H.O.M.E., in January 2010. Project H.O.M.E., a Philly organization started by Sister Mary Scullion over 20 years ago, seeks to alleviate homelessness by providing support services starting with street outreach and then continuing with supportive housing and other services needed by at-risk men and women.

My first experience at Project H.O.M.E. was volunteering for breakfast duty at the Women’s Respite, a temporary winter shelter for women living on the streets, which was open from January to April 2010.  By the time the respite had to close in April, Project H.O.M.E. was able to place many of the women in supportive housing and provide those remaining with some form of support services. So the wrap-up party in April was a happy event, with many of the women returning to the shelter to celebrate their new status. I still have the hand-decorated and written “Thank you” note from the women that I met and grew to know there.

My journey continued … In May of 2010, I shadowed Sam Santiago, one of the outreach workers for Project H.O.M.E.  Project H.O.M.E.’s Outreach Coordination Center (OCC) sends outreach teams to canvass the streets of Center City and the surrounding areas twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, to connect homeless individuals with available support services like shelter, medical care, substance-abuse treatment, and mental health services.

Sam Santiago knows the streets of Philadelphia, having been with the Philly police department for four years and then a private detective for seven years after that. And after eleven years with the OCC, most of our city’s homeless know Sam. I pepper Sam, a tall, machismo man with a heart of gold that he tries (unsuccessfully) to hide, with questions about his life’s work. Sam’s work, I find as the day progresses, is a long, slow process of building trust; engaging people living on the street, getting to know them, learning what THEIR story is, what will help THEM get off the street. As Sam puts it, “It takes time; you have to give them time to trust you.”

My naïveté is apparent right from the start of this day when I ask Sam, “Why don’t they come in? Why don’t they take advantage of the services offered?” Sam quickly educates me about the men and women in the throes of addiction, who in many cases also suffer from debilitating mental illness. It hits me that making any rational, healthy decisions when living daily with these afflictions is extremely difficult.

We begin on Market Street.  Sam introduces me to Lisa (names have been changed) who is not homeless anymore but spends her days on the street, just as she used to. Sam looks her directly in the eye and immediately engages her in conversation.  “Hey, Lisa, how are you today?  You’re still at your place?”   Lisa’s clear blue eyes defy the rest of her appearance as she makes casual conversation about the weather.  Sam acknowledges that Lisa, a fifty-something white lady, “just can’t get the lipstick right.”  Her candy-red lipstick is drawn in a thick line around her mouth, touching just about everything but her lips.  Sam explains that Lisa has been in supportive housing for a while, but returns to Market Street every day with her bags and just hangs out.  Old habits die hard.  But Lisa is one of the success stories, having access to the medications that quiet the demons in her head and keep her from sleeping on the streets.

Mr. Henry, whom we encounter further down the street, is not so lucky. Mr. Henry is a tall, handsome, elderly-looking man with dapper but threadbare clothes. He is lovely. I imagine old Mr. Henry as an elegantly-dressed maître’d at a fancy hotel restaurant. But reality slaps me when I notice his dirty wing-tipped shoes and the shaking tin cup in his left hand. Mr. Henry and Sam talk for awhile; Mr. Henry gives Sam his birth date and Sam notes the information in his trusted pocket rolodex. We move on…

Our next stop is Rittenhouse Square, a beautiful park in the toniest part of town.  One of the hotels on the square lets us park in front.  The bellman and Sam exchange greetings.  In the park, Sam talks with Donny, a hippie in his 60s who never left that era and who’s so high, he thinks he’s still there.  And then we talk with Brittany, a tall, lanky sixteen year-old black girl who knows Sam, and openly answers him when he asks, “Why aren’t you in school?”  Sam tries to get more information but she’s not talking today.  Sam believes she’s not homeless because she always has a different, clean set of clothes on every time he sees her.  Brittany says to me “Sam really cares, you can tell.” Sam explains that Donny and his friends live in an “abandon-minium,” an abandoned building that they call “home.” Donny believes the abandon-minium is preferable to sleeping in the park.  Most people don’t know that thirty to forty people sleep in Rittenhouse Square every night. The police wake them all up at 5:30 in the morning and force them to move on.

We walk over to three men sharing a bench, “Jimmy the Gun,” Tony, and Greg.  Sam greets Jimmy, a short, 50-plus white man, LOUDLY: “Jimmy, the Man, the Myth, the Legend!”  Jimmy laughs and says, “How about I knock your a_ _ out?” and then tells me, “I fought Joe Frazier!”  Jimmy then says to me, “[Sam] loves me; I can tell.”

Greg tells us he’s been drunk “all day” and Sam reminds him that it’s only 9 o’clock in the morning.  They show us their drink –  dollar store mouthwash, 29.6% alcohol. Greg tells Sam he wants to go to detox; he’s ready.  I’m practically gleeful but Sam calmly makes some phone calls and then escorts Greg into his car.  Sam and I take Greg to 8^th and Girard, the detox center.

When we get there, Greg needs help getting out of the car. Greg hesitates in front of the door.  I’m ready to push him through that door.  I think, “This is great!  We’re so close, just give him a nudge!”  But Sam does just the opposite – he puts his hands up and says, “What do you want to do?  You want to go in?  Or go back to the park…?”  I was ready to elbow Sam in the gut but instead I look at Greg and pray,…Greg says, “Go in.”  My lasting memory is Greg reluctantly letting go of my hand when we had to leave him in the detox center.  In the car, Sam tells me that we can’t push anyone into recovery; it never works.  They must make the decision themselves and take ownership of their actions.  “Better chance of success,” he says,…

To be continued in the next posting.

Laura Weinbaum, Project H.O.M.E.’s Director of Public Policy, offers the following brief analysis of the current policy debates over the federal budget and how it could impact Americans who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. She also includes action steps you can take to make a difference.

It’s budget time in the halls of government, and everyone’s talking about belt-tightening, severe cuts, and even the possibility of a government shutdown… What is happening and what does it have to do with homelessness? And what can we do to have an impact?

As a first step toward clarity, we need to understand that the federal budget is proceeding on two tracks right now: The first track is the 2011 Appropriations process (with cuts and some possibly damaging changes in the works), and the second track is the new FY2012 budget recently proposed by the President.

FY 2011 Spending (the current budget):

The government’s current spending authorization ends soon – on March 4 – and reauthorization must be granted to avoid a complete shutdown of all government services and of the employment of civil servants. Congress can pass a temporary funding resolution to keep the government operating – something that has happened habitually in the past. But this time, Republicans have threatened to refuse to pass that funding resolution, which would trigger a shutdown.

The House has proposed cutting $65 billion in federal spending for the remainder of this federal fiscal year. These cuts would include the following:

- Head Start ($1 billion – 15 percent cut from 2010 levels)

- Job training ($1.4 billion cut)

- Community Health Centers ($1 billion – 46 percent cut)

- Substance abuse treatment ($200 million cut)

- Community Services Block Grant ($341 million – 44 percent cut)

- Low Income Home Energy Assistance contingency fund ($390 million – 66 percent cut)

- FEMA Emergency Food and Shelter Program ($100 million – 50 percent cut)

- Title I (K-12 education for low-income students) ($693.5 million cut)

- IDEA (special education) grants to states ($560 million cut)

- Commodity Supplemental Food Program ($26 million – 11.4 percent cut)

- Community Development Fund ($2.95 billion –  66.3 percent cut)

- Public Housing Capital Fund ($1.07 billion – 42 percent cut)

- Housing for the Elderly ($551 million – 67 percent cut)

- Housing for Persons with Disabilities ($210 million – 70 percent cut)

In addition several programs would be terminated, including the following: Reintegration of Ex-Offenders; YouthBuild ; Green Jobs Innovation Fund; Career Pathways Innovation Fund; National Health Service Corps; Family Planning (Title X); Teen Pregnancy Prevention Grants; Mentoring Children of Prisoners; Even Start; Striving Readers; High School Graduation Initiative; Student Aid – for higher education; LEAP program (for low-income college students) (Information from the Coalition for Human Needs)

TAKE ACTION NOW on the current budget:

The National Alliance to End Homelessness says these appropriations could potentially make 161,000 people become homeless – learn more and take action at http://blog.endhomelessness.org/?p=3469

The Coalition on Human Needs offers ideas for fighting back – http://www.chn.org/takeaction/index.html

Learn how the funding cuts will hurt your state, so that when you contact your legislator you can tell him/her how much this impacts you – http://www.cbpp.org/cms/index.cfm?fa=view&id=3405

FY 2012 Spending Proposals

In a recent presentation, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan presented the proposed HUD budget for Fiscal Year 2012 (October 1, 2011-September 30, 2012) He highlighted three strategies for HUD in implementing the President’s commitment to level funding for the next five years:

1) Changes at the Federal Housing Administration which will raise fees and capital, while shrinking the federal costs

2) Priority on protecting existing households in HUD programs

3) NO new initiatives and ensuring the best functioning of the operating core.

This, he says, will allow HUD to deliver on the President’s promise to “win the future” through its focus on five key strategic plan goals:

1) Promote housing market recovery

2) Serve more families with rental assistance

3) Use housing as platform for improving quality of life and reducing spending on more expensive settings (such as nursing homes)

4) Foster inclusive and sustainable communities free from discrimination

5) Transform the way HUD does business.

A very cool interactive tool for looking at the President’s budget in the big picture is available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget

The National Alliance to End Homelessness also has created some great materials for looking at the impacts on homelessness of the President’s FY 2012 budget proposal.