Babies on the block

Today I saw a woman pushing a stroller down Lee Street, not far from the shelter.  It was loaded with bags and belongings in the back, and a baby sat in the front.  A tiny toddler walked beside the stroller.  On “the block” at Lee and Eugene, in front of the shelter, another young mom with a stroller stood near the usual group that hangs out there.  That’s the second time recently that I’ve seen a baby on the block, and I don’t think it was the same one.

I know at least two homeless young women who are pregnant (both for the third time) and on the street right now.  Both are with partners and unwilling to leave them to go and stay at Room at the Inn, the homeless shelter for pregnant women.  Both plan to keep their babies.  But they don’t where they’ll live when their babies are born.

I heard today that the waiting list for the Pathways Family Shelter has now gone up to 50 families.  Homelessness is increasing in Greensboro, and across the nation.  Sadly, I expect to see more families on the street, and more babies on the block.