Homeless In The Park
Because of this, I wasn’t going to mention that I’d seen some of my homeless friends at Center City Park. But then Clarey wrote about it in YES! Weekly, so I guess the secret’s out. Hopefully, homeless folks will be able to continue to enjoy the park, despite the Orwellian signage. If not… Well, there will be more posts. And they won’t end with one of these: 
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Invisible Children
Sheryl Beach’s daughter is going to D.C. to sleep in a box. Along with 66,000 others, she is laying down to stand up for the children of war-torn Northern Uganda.
>> Read “Invisible Children and NetGenrs”
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Laura Bush Recognizes NightWatch!
Speaking at the Salvation Army National Organizations Advisory Conference in Dallas today, First Lady Laura Bush recognized Greensboro’s NightWatch street outreach program in her remarks:
For 150 years, the good men and women of the Army have served their neighbors in need…
In North Carolina, through the NightWatch program, you’ve provided food, clothes and companionship to the homeless…
Our NightWatch team is excited and honored to be recognized by Mrs. Bush! And we welcome and encourage her to come to Greensboro and learn more about NightWatch. We’d love to take her out with us on NightWatch.
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Lee Street Merchants & The Homeless
Yesterday, I attended a meeting of the Lee Street Merchants Association. I was invited by a GPD Community Resource Team sergeant, to talk to the group about the homeless folks who sleep and hang out in the Lee Street area.
I listened as the merchants and a pastor talked to the two CRT sergeants (and City Council member Sandy Carmany) about the problems they have with homeless people in the area, and about their issues with residents of the Coliseum Inn. It was really difficult to hear. I was torn between the desires to apologize, explain, defend and sympathize.
Chronically homeless people do cause problems for businesses. Merchants deal with crime, drug use, prostitution, and more. (The pastor told me later that he’s cleaned up urine, vomit and feces on his church property.) While I know the explanations for the behavior behind the problems (and I know that some of it is beyond the control of the people doing it), explanations still don’t excuse wrong behavior, nor do they fix the problems. And when people have to deal with this side of homelessness, it makes it much more difficult for them to see the “human face” of homelessness.
When it was my turn, I talked about our community’s gaps in clinical substance abuse treatment and mental health treatment for the poor, and the lack of affordable housing. These needs are contributing to homelessness in our community, and if the Coliseum Inn were to close tomorrow, we would just have more homeless people on the street.
I acknowledged that the Lee Street Merchants can’t solve all these problems alone. But the good news is, they don’t have to. I told them about the Task Force to End Homelessness, and our Ten Year Plan that focuses on permanent housing with supportive services for chronically homeless people in Guilford County. I also mentioned the new county drug treatment facility, expected to open this year.
I really appreciate all the kind words that I heard from the folks in that room after I spoke. In spite of the problems that chronic homelessness has caused for them, their businesses, their patrons, and their church members, I heard genuine expressions of compassion and concern for the homeless and the poor, and it reminded me that we can all get frustrated and worn out from dealing with difficult people, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t still care about them. Sometimes, we just need a little help to handle the problem. (And sometimes, we can even be the “difficult people.” I know I can. Thanks for the reminder, God.)
My hope is that the Task Force will be the help that the Lee Street merchants need. And I hope that NightWatch can partner with the pastor and his church.
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JB
We’re driving down a busy stretch of six-lane road when we see him. He is standing on a corner, holding his sign. The traffic is heavy, so we have to circle the block and come back around. We park in the lot next to him. He watches us warily as we climb the hill and walk toward him. He holds his sign at half-mast, his eyes expressionless behind his dark sunglasses, but his body language making clear his unease at our approach.
Steve sticks out his hand and says, “Hi, I’m Steve, from Salvation Army.” The panhandler’s facial expression changes then, relaxing slightly. He shakes Steve’s outstretched hand, and then mine, and then Jeff’s, as we introduce ourselves and tell him about NightWatch.
His name is JB. His hair is grey with streaks of red. His beard is long and white. His eyes, hidden most of the time behind large, dark sunglasses, are a pale blue — glimpsed just once when he takes off his glasses for a few seconds. His sign says “homeless vet” on one side and “parking $2.00″ on the other. His backpack sits on the curb at his feet.
He says he’s been in Greensboro for about a year. He was out west before that. He talks about spending time in California. And being in the military. But soon he and Steve are reminiscing about Carolina Beach. They know the same people, the same places, the same legends. It’s clear that JB has spent years on the North Carolina coast. He’s a good storyteller — funny, smart, engaging. I realize that I haven’t stopped smiling since he began talking.
Then we talk about God. And JB reaches into his backpack and pulls out a well-worn Bible, wrapped carefully in a plastic bag. “I always keep it wrapped up,” he says, “I don’t want it to get wet.” He tells us that a man shared a verse with him recently. Joshua 1:6. He hands Jeff the Bible and Jeff reads the verse and the one following out loud:
“Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go.”
We are silent for a moment. JB nods his head. I do, too. I am thinking to myself that JB has strength and courage. And that God is going to bring Him success. But it may not look like what the world expects it to.
JB takes the Bible and opens it to the New Testament. There are many verses underlined. He tells us that he reads the Bible every day. He reads aloud to us from a highlighted passage:
“[Jesus said:] Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?”
My mind is full as I listen to a homeless man reading a passage about valuing spiritual life over material possessions. This is real life. This is the Gospel.
JB continues:
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.”
JB has found it.
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Giving Is About More Than Money
A local pastor’s blog, links to a post about panhandling on Internet Monk.com, entitled: “Question: Should I give money to people on the street who ask for it?” The post focuses on the need for stewardship on resources; Paul’s teaching that if a man doesn’t work, he shouldn’t eat; and the problem of aggressive panhandling. The writer concludes that we shouldn’t give money to panhandlers. And I agree. But there’s more to the story.
“Addiction, mental illness, con artists and criminal intent are on most of America’s streets. The truly poor will be known to local shelters, ministries, schools and social workers.”
And my response:
I’m a former case manager and now a member of an evangelical street outreach ministry team. Some of the poorest folks that I know are addicted and/or mentally ill, and they live on the streets in my town. Some are also con artists. Most all them have criminal records. Every one of them is loved by Jesus, and He came to free them from bondage. That’s the message that they so desperately need to hear.
It’s hard to hear the message when you’re hungry. And it’s hard to hear it when no one is sharing it with you. And it’s hard to hear it when people are avoiding you and not living the message in front of you.
Unless you know their individual situation, giving cash to panhandlers may hurt more than it helps, if it’s used to feed an addiction, so I advise most people not to give cash, unless they feel strongly led by the Holy Spirit to do so.
I do encourage people to make eye contact, speak a kind word, see the panhandler as Jesus would, as a child of God. Maybe go in a group of two or three, have a conversation, offer to pray for the person. If they’re hungry, buy them a meal and eat together, or at least sit and talk with them while they eat. If the panhandler has another need, find out how to meet it. Learn about the homeless service agencies in your town, and find out where to refer people for help. Invite the panhandler to church. Don’t be afraid to treat someone the way that Jesus would. Take a risk.
One of my homeless friends told me about standing on a street corner and watching as drivers averted their eyes from him and people crossed the street to the other sidewalk so that they wouldn’t have to walk by him. “No one ever talks to me,” he said. He was so lonely.
Yes, aggressive panhandlers are different. In our community, they’re almost always substance abusers who need to get high, and they can get ugly when you say “no.” We have a well-enforced panhandling ordinance to deal with this type of behavior, and it’s usually best to avoid panhandlers who are displaying it. But… they’re not always like that. Do you see that same panhandler when he or she is not looking for a fix? When they’re in a different mood? More approachable? I know I do. And that’s when I try to talk to them. And sometimes I’ll say, “So, the other day when I saw you…” And that just might be a good ministry opportunity. Sometimes people get sick and tired of being sick and tired. And they’re ready to escape. There are probably organizations in your community that can help with substance abuse treatment and mental health treatment. Find out.
Jesus loves addicts, mentally ill people, con artists, criminals and panhandlers. I am so thankful. Because I love them, too. And if Jesus could save me, I know He can save them, too.
Peace to you, CM
Help for the homeless in Greensboro:
>> homeless service providers
>> street outreach ministry
>> homeless shelters
>> free meals
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Today at the Mission
I found another blog about homelessness today: “Today at the Mission: Daily Life in a Homeless Shelter.”
An excerpt:
“…The Tiny Mom Lady meets me at the kitchen door and tells me that there’s a guy in the dining room who had been convicted of molesting her daughter. I explain to her that as long as he’s well-behaved here, there’s not much I can do about it. They decide to leave and I can’t say I blame them.”
“Okay, so… The goal is to share a meal together, to share something of the love of God in a tangible way, to welcome folks in and make them feel loved, valued. We’ve created a very safe environment and although we sometimes see expressions of pain, they are rare. But how does grace translate into the fact that the criminal stays and has dinner, and the victim leaves in fear? How does that work? This is, of course, the dynamic tension that exists between God’s grace and justice. Now, “dynamic tension” is a really cool expression, one that neatly summarizes the concept and makes you sound kind of, you know, halfway smart when used in a conversation. It’s another thing altogether when it’s a mom and her grown daughter, and you can see the little girl’s pain in the adult woman’s face who is standing right in front of you. All the theology about grace and justice isn’t worth a tinkers dam now, is it? How do you live out grace in the face of such pain?…”
>> Read all of the post “Had Enough?“
Thanks to Jackie Dowd for the link.
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