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what every homeless person needs

from a friend:

somewhere to be
something to do
somebody who cares
to find or replace what was lost

13 Responses to "what every homeless person needs"

Beau D. Jackson says:

April 1, 2008 at 3:47 pm

from a friend:

1. somewhere to be
2. something to do
3. somebody who cares
4. to find or replace what was lost

What every homeless person needs, of course, but not necessarily what every homeless person wants to work to achieve. The obvious common denominator of the homeless is that, indeed, they are homeless. But that aside I can line up 10 homeless people and each will have a different tale to tell. They will tell you how they want to straighten up thier life but if you were to give them 20 bucks the very first place they would head to would be the crack dealer. The homeless that have been on the streets for years are hard core veterans and are almost content with thier plight in life, the ones you need to get help for are the young kids and the mentally ill.

[quote marks added by editor]
Cara Michele says:

April 1, 2008 at 4:09 pm

Beau, as always, thanks for commenting and sharing your perspective.

I must say that of the hundreds of homeless people I’ve met over the past eight or so years, I’ve yet to meet one who is “content” with his or her situation.

And I believe that we need to help everyone. But you probably already knew that.
LV says:

April 3, 2008 at 9:24 am

“the ones who need help are the kids and the mentally ill.” Well if substance abuse doesn’t mean anything about mental illness, then what does it stand for? Does it stand by it self as a big or worst sin then the rest? I have to agree with Cara Michele, everyone needs help regardless how long they have been out there. There is always hope that the hardcore individuals will come out of their situation!
Cara Michele says:

April 4, 2008 at 2:33 pm

LV’s right. Never stop hoping. People do get better. This I know.
Simple dreams : Chosen Fast says:

August 5, 2008 at 10:25 pm

[...] friend formerly homeless friend Tim dreams simple but big.Â He has what he needs now, and he’s focused on helping other people.Â He’s making progress, too.Â Â Go, [...]
Center City Park: Homeless in the morning : Chosen Fast says:

September 8, 2008 at 9:17 am

[...] This morning, those who are here are quiet. They look tired and pensive, their eyes staring off into the distance, seeing something that I can’t see. I wonder where they slept last night — and how much. I wonder what it’s like to wake up each day and have nowhere to go and nothing to do. [...]
brittany says:

December 2, 2008 at 11:19 am

some people became homeless for poor decisions.(quote of a homeless person)
Cara Michele says:

December 2, 2008 at 11:22 am

i hear that a lot. i’ve yet to see it be that simple.
Liz Butler says:

January 1, 2009 at 4:57 pm

My brother has been homeless for the last eight years – I tried to help several times but the more I tried to help the more he stole from me and my family and in the end he always takes off and with whatever he can take.
Last night he phoned from the subway station (this is the first contact in 2 years) he had taken a bus in from another town, my husband and I picked him up and brought him to our home – he is now 30 years old and an alcoholic homeless man who uses Listerine to control the withdrawal seizures that he takes. The problem is I don’t have the money for a high end rehab facility that will intervene the situation and the detox centers available at no charge will not force him to stay there – and he does not want help. I am worried that my brother is lost forever and he will wind up with liver failure due to this disease – he left my home today to go downtown Toronto to find alcohol – I could not continue to administer it to him – my options were give him a bottle of booze and let him get drunk and irate and then we kick him out or let him go down town and find his booze and drink it down there – all options end up with him drinking alcohol on the streets living in shelters and never maintaining a normal life again. He did hold a stable job for 4 years after high school and is a high school graduate – he started smoking crack – lost his job and apartment and stole from everyone who tried to help. The Crack smoking turned into what ever substance that would ease the crack addiction and the alcohol is a result of whatever substance addiction he is now trying to quit which I believe he said is opium – he would be better of getting arrested and spending a year in jail to dry out or sober up – there is no help and this is a vicious cycle that he cannot get out of.
Priscilla says:

February 17, 2009 at 9:52 pm

Dear Liz,

I have an uncle that sounds similar. I hope and pray that your brother will want to break free from his sin and bondage. I think of my uncle the same way. God Bless.
Andi says:

November 25, 2011 at 4:13 am

why dont you post a list of what every homeless person needs literally (a blanket, a beanie, pocket change, pocket knife, swiss army knife, library card, a best friend, bike/skateboard, etc whatever everyone thinks)
Joseph Milburn says:

December 29, 2011 at 6:00 pm

i’m homeless and i dont drink or do crack, thier are so many homeless people and yes are storys are not the same, but Danny just turn your head
and keep telling people that crack = homeless!
and help i need(i worked 35 years as a die maker)but not yours!
hope life is good, and prey it stays that way!
but i have to say, f your life!
48 hours of StreetWatch | ChosenFast.com says:

March 16, 2012 at 8:42 pm

[...] about helping them do the next thing, but above all, it’s about being somebody who cares. (See #3 on this post.) Tweet Tags: chronically homeless, stories, street [...]

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