Lori and Savanna
I met Lori and her daughter Savanna while visiting a rotating shelter in Detroit, Michigan. I cannot imagine the challenges of raising a child without permanent housing. Yet children are the fastest growing segment of the homeless population. According to data collected one night in January 2007 – 50% of homeless populations are families and children in a given year. 13% of families are homeless due to domestic violence. 39% of the homeless people are children under 18 (5% are unaccompanied youth) Researchers estimate that between 4-7% of youth will experience homelessness before their 18th birthday. Homelessness takes a toll on young children. For exam

Nathan
While walking this morning in Portland, Oregon I met Nathan. Too me the weather In Pacific Northwest is nasty and I don’t know how people survive on the streets. Nathan told me he has a sleeping back, a few jackets and uses storefront awnings when he can to stay dry. Nathan has been homeless off and on since we was 10 years old. Many street people do not want to use shelters. Lines to eat or use showers are long. Often they are not safe. Nathan survives by begging for money at an intersection. In weather like today he hopes to get enough money for a nights stay in a hotel. Today Nathan was lucky

Butch
40 years. That’s how long Butch has been homeless. It began in 1969. Butch was just a teenager living in Cleveland, Ohio. His family fell apart, and he became homeless. Today, he is confined to a wheelchair. He begs for money to eat everyday. He says he’s doing the best he can, given the circumstances. Still – I can’t get this number out of my head. 40 years homeless. Shame on us. We can do better.

Tim
Last winter shelter season my eyes and heart opened up to the horrible plight of sex offenders living on the streets. Our street outreach team was called to find shelter for a man. He was a registered sex offender, so he wasn’t allowed to stay at the winter shelter. He had done everything right, reported to the police and the shelter workers. But there was no shelter that would allow him to stay. No matter what you think of the crimes this man committed, he had served his debt to society and was adhering to the terms of his punishment. Still, finding housing – even emergency shelter – proved

Jay
Jay’s story might sound familiar to you. His unfortunate situation is not uncommon these days. He lost his job, then his home to foreclosure, and ended up homeless on the streets of Cleveland, Ohio. Jay talks about his frustration trying to get help from homeless service providers. Since services have become specialized, he must travel to multiple agencies to get all of the help he needs. But without reliable transportation, he has trouble getting around. Although there are many good things to be said about the Continuum of Care model, it is not perfect. It does not, for example, fill in all of the communication gaps or take into consideration the lack of access to relia