Hanging by a Thread

This past week, the Salvation Army hired 26 bell-ringers, many of whom are among the clients served by the Continuum of Care. The employment of homeless persons is a huge bonus of the Salvation Army program, and those hired are grateful for even short-term income. The $8 an hour will help them survive through Christmas.

However, there were over 300 applicants for these jobs.

In years past, a few homeless people applied for bell-ringer jobs to bridge the gap between other seasonal work, and others took the job as extra income for Christmas gifts, or to simply help out the Salvation Army.

This year, far too many people are desperately looking for subsistence for themselves and their families. Recessions are brutal on the poor, and in this case, there was no relief during the period of economic growth. Wages fell behind inflation, and the working poor had to turn to credit cards to pay for food, medical bills, car repair, and other basic necessities. A job loss or reduction in hours spells almost immediate catastrophe for people with no savings, but a lot of debt.

Over the last few years, I have been pounded with the message that downtown panhandlers are the only public face of the homeless, and very few people outside the Continuum of Care recognize that any other homeless persons exist. I contrast this image with the one created by the people calling the Continuum of Care office, and all the other points of service in our community. Hundreds come to each of us every month, and few, if any, are panhandlers looking for an easy way to make a buck. The people we see are working anywhere and everywhere they can, but jobs that pay a living wage are becoming increasingly rare.

The Continuum of Care is partnering with the Greater Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce to create a more accurate vision of homelessness in the public mind, and to encourage those who would support panhandlers to support service providers instead. The hope is that service providers can ensure that anyone who needs food and shelter from the cold can get it, and that those looking for a way back into the work force and sustainable housing can get the hand up that they need.

The economic storm brewing is already sending out squall lines that are blasting out at our most vulnerable citizens: single parents, children, the elderly and those in late middle age with health problems. We are grateful to the Chamber of Commerce, and all the others who are joining together to form the first line of defense.

Happy Holidays.

When Homelessness Is Not A Choice

Last week I had the very great pleasure of attending an outstanding conference hosted by Bridgeway Center, Inc. on the topic of co-occurring mental health and substance abuse disorders. The primary speaker was Dr. Kent Mintkoff, an official national expert (as he honestly and humorously described himself) who was incredibly knowledgeable and practical.

The organizers at Bridgeway wanted to add some local tie-ins to Dr. Minkoff’s speech, so I gave a luncheon address on how severe, persistent mental illness and addictions are experienced by those who live on the street. I can sum up my entire speech in one phrase: it is not therapeutic.

Naturally, I didn’t stop there. I tried to highlight various barriers homelessness poses to the mentally ill by giving examples taken from the lives of the homeless who live here in Okaloosa and Walton Counties. Some of the homeless I have met have been inspirational, and their stories profound. At one point, I suggested that perhaps we could do at least as much for these lost people as we do for the lost animals in our community.

It turns out not everyone agrees with that last sentiment. I have been informed that animals are helpless and dependent, and are not homeless by choice the way people are.

Now, I am not against help for animals. Along with my four children, I have raised four horses, two dogs, seven cats, two rabbits, one gerbil, three hamsters, two birds, several tanks of fish, and - the one mistake - an iguana who is now happily living with Mrs. Hagan, the biology teacher at Choctaw. I have donated to SOCKS, the Wildlife Rescue Fund, and PAWS. With my children, I have rescued birds and baby squirrels dislocated by hurricanes, and I can’t count the number of times I have gotten out of my car to help a turtle cross the road.

My point is not that we should stop helping animals, it is to suggest that our priorities are skewed when we can't also set aside equivalent resources to help lost people.

It is certainly true that we share our world with many species, and we are not always good stewards of our environment. But it is not true that most homeless people have adopted this lifestyle as a choice.

Mental illness is a leading cause of homelessness, and it is not a choice. People do not wake up one morning to think, "Gosh, I think I'll be paranoid schizophrenic today and ruin my life and the lives of everyone around me." Most mentally ill homeless people do try to access traditional mental health services, but the mental health centers often do not have the resources to effectively help all those who are also plagued by poverty, lack of shelter, food and public hostility, and who turn to substance abuse to cope with the internal voices they wish to drown, and the despair of their lives.

Homelessness is a terrible way to try to survive. Very few would do it had they any other option.

One final note: the fastest growing homeless population is children. I don't think 3-year-olds are homeless by choice, any more than is a kitten.

We need to be better caretakers for all who share our world, creatures of the forest, the sea, the grasslands, and yes, the streets.