Does Compassion Still Have a Place in the U.S.? Homeless Kids Want To Know

 I was one of millions enthralled to watch and listen to Pope Francis address Congress. Sure, my evil self wanted him to flog the recalcitrant, heartless members. But the Pope's compassion prevailed, not before he gave them, and us, a papal prodding.

Throughout his visit, he's constantly calling attention to the poor, homeless, downtrodden and forgotten. I couldn’t be happier that this growing segment of our nation’s adults and kids finally get attention. Now, to turn attention to compassion.

Realizing that immeasurable good is done behind the scenes every day, I still hope that more will be done. I’ve seen firsthand, nationwide, the suffering of families and youth who lack a place to call home. 

For the past 30 years that I’ve been working in, for and among those clumped together as “the poor” and “the homeless,” I’ve seen a frightening growth in their numbers, and an atrocious reduction of resources needed to survive, much less thrive. Recent reports of our nation’s (lack of) progress on reducing poverty, and alarming documentation of soaring homelessness among students (and their families) confirms what I’ve seen in my HEAR US travels: more families, youth and adults are struggling to escape the shackles of poverty and homelessness. 

Recently I spoke with one of the women I met in Kansas this year during my filming of Worn Out Welcome Mat - KS (click to watch).  Her plight, and that of her young daughter, was and is dire. Her path out? Well, let me say she’d have better luck winning the lottery than escaping her doubled up situation. 

The other day I heard from a friend about what she’s doing in her community to help—a vital service—giving a homeless college student a place to stay over holidays when the dorms are closed. Sweet!

What makes a difference in the lives of the families and youth without housing? Plenty, large and small (check our HEAR US compassion epidemic list, a 1-pg. menu): 

• Housing, a given, with advocacy to make more housing available being one place to get involved. 
• Education, another biggie, should be happening all over the country, thanks to the McKinney-Vento Homeless Education program. 
• Basic needs—supplies, clothing, shoes; food; medical supplies, etc.
• One-to-one help—tutoring, mentoring, etc. 
• Support your favorite homelessness organization. Sure, we’d love you to join the HEAR US supporters, but local efforts are good, too. 

I’m about to embark on what will be a 10,000 mile marathon journey across much of the U.S. to conduct presentations, meet with potential partners, screen my new film, and speak with current and formerly homeless families and youth. I’d like to tell them that everyone possible is doing everything possible to make life better for the millions of our sisters and brothers without housing. 

I’d love to hear from you. Just click POST A COMMENT and let me know what you’ve done. It’s not bragging—it’s further inspiring a compassion epidemic! 

Pope Francis, Savior for America's Homeless Families and Youth?

One, faced with insurmountable odds, can only hope for a savior. As Pope Francis packs his bags (I can't imagine he has a butler doing that task), I'm packing up my hopes in one basket for his pending U.S. trip on behalf of the 3 million or so homeless kids and their families.

Despite our ongoing best effort to get Congress to address the growing issue of homeless kids, nothing seems to work. Recently, the U.S. Department of Education released the latest number of school kids identified as homeless, 1,360,747. This number represents DOUBLE the amount of students since before the recession.

As the kind folks at the National Alliance to End Homelessness were good enough to point out, most of these students are doubled up, staying with friends, relatives, or acquaintances because they have nowhere to go. (If you want to hear from the families and youth as to what it's like being doubled up, here's my latest HEAR US documentary, Worn Out Welcome Mat - KS.)

Pope Francis will visit NYC where record number of homeless families and youth are overwhelming the underwhelming system.

He will travel to Philadelphia where families living in tents have befuddled authorities in their feeble attempts to make sure no one, especially babies and toddlers, are sleeping on the streets.

He will stop in DC to afflict the comfortable members of Congress as he addresses a joint session. (Oh, to be a fly on the wall watching the squirming...).

So, the "eggs (hopes)" in my basket are:

• Get Congress to issue a joint apology to the millions of homeless families and youth, coupled by their commitment to revamp our nation's paltry approach to this population, and the serious funding necessary. Oh yeah, pass (fully funded) the Homeless Children and Youth Act for a show of good faith.
• Get Congress to agree that poverty in America is immoral and that they will immediately and wholeheartedly take drastic steps to restore a decent quality of life to the disenfranchised.
• Get Congress to institute a moratorium on any cruel initiatives to punish those at the bottom of the economic ladder--in areas not limited to health care, criminal justice, welfare, childcare, education and nutrition. 
• Hear the confession of the NAEH folks who up till now denied the plight of families and youth who lost housing and doubled up with others.

I'm sure these things will happen. Wanna know why? The Nuns On The Bus will be in DC to make sure things go well. Amen!

Crushing Reality for Homeless Families

The turtle looked up at me. I gasped in horror. Crunch. I ran over this timid, stalwart creature before I knew it was happening. I don't like creating any road kill, but a turtle? Tillie the Turtle, my motorhome's nickname, might give you a correct clue that I like turtles.

I had no idea these slow moving reptiles were so common crossing roads at this time of year. After the first mishap I paid attention. And saw lots. Most ducked their heads into their shells when my van approached. I can't imagine how terrifying that must seem. Plenty didn't make it, run over by other vehicles. I'd like to think I didn't hit any more, but who knows?

Inadvertently snuffing out a life is one thing. It wasn't practical to stop and carry them across the highway, though the thought occurred to me, and I'm sure some do-gooders do. As horrible as it seems, I'm sure other drivers take to crushing them for sport. Which led me to my train of thought about homeless families...

Having just left Kansas after a productive and surprisingly pleasant 3 months working on Worn Out Welcome Mat --KS, a documentary about homeless families and youth who doubled up with others because they have nowhere to go, I met some amazing parents and young people. Despite all that has happened to them, and they've all been through many different forms of hell, they keep trying to survive and thrive.

Melissa's story is probably the most grueling, though Maggie's is pretty awful, too. Candace, a young Marine with a darling 4-yo daughter, will rip at your heart. (All short YouTube vids on my Worn Out Welcome Mat KS playlist)

With ample road time to think and the unpredictable appearance of turtles in various stages of going from one side of the highway to the other, I couldn't help but make the comparison between turtles and homeless families.

I watched one resolute turtle just climb onto the pavement and plunge ahead, not looking for traffic. Kind of a damned if I do, damned if I don't way of thinking. Kind of like when a parent makes the desperate decision to move in with a risky host because she and her kids have nowhere to go.

Kansas has identified over 10,000 school kids in various forms of homeless situations. That doesn't KS policies and practices seem aimed at, well, crushing vulnerable families.

Melissa and her 7-yo daughter are homeless,
doubled up and desperate.

include their younger and older siblings or parents. And that doesn't include those not identified by the schools, which would likely double the number. Lots more are homeless, and not only are resources scarce,

And yet, HUD, the federal agency charged with housing the housing-vulnerable and un-housed, continues to fight the need to expand their definition of homeless.

To urge your congresspersons to support the bipartisan legislation to change HUD's definition of homelessness, go to http://helphomelesskidsnow.org and TAKE ACTION.

In my mind, HUD's like the cruel-hearted driver intentionally running over the helpless turtle.

Simple Walk Not So Simple

This sign didn't stand near the obviously dangerous
oil pump area. No, it was perched on an empty field in the park, inexplicable even to me.

My layover day—besides getting things done, a chance for "me" time. My time in Kansas filming the Worn Out Welcome Mat --KS project has taught me a valuable lesson: don't wait for outdoor activities, when the weather is right, do it! So I went for a walk around my surprise find—a $10 campground with water and electricity, peace and quiet.

Western KS is not for wimps. Two consecutive nights of tornado warnings made that clear. This mostly flat land has its own charm, unlike the picturesque Flint Hills and rocky bluffs of the eastern part of the state. Today the winds qualified as a gentle breeze, as opposed to the land-clearing blasts more common out here.




I'm staying in Beymer Water Recreation Park, directly south of Lakin, KS. The price is right and I get a wifi signal on my hotspot, enabling me to get work done.



My fresh air and exercise walk was intended to free my brain from cobwebs. Instead I'm stewing. This park, established in 1979, could be an ideal, affordable getaway for area residents in addition to a simple place to hook-up to water and electric for nomads like myself. Instead, it's an environmental nightmare.

Remnants of 4 ponds demonstrate not only the devastation of the drought, but also the ruthless power of aquifer-sucking irrigation systems watering cattle feeding crops.

Oil pumps, boasting of toxic properties, loom like scary monsters among the green alfalfa and hay fields behind the park, unfettered by fences or even "keep out" signs.

True, these are ubiquitous sites, not just in Kansas, but many states. What bothered me most, perhaps, was the destruction of this little park. Obvious from the placement of picnic tables and playground equipment, this was once a vibrant recreation spot.

Not so much now. At. All.







Based on the signage, and mind-numbing bureaucratic legalese regulations, this was once a popular fishing spot, too. The chemicals smell and the crusted fishing hole bottom confirmed the abject neglect of not only the park's well being but that of the surrounding area.

As I entered the last leg of my doom and gloom walk, I paused to get "beach" pictures, if you will humor this beach-loving gal.

The irony of the "No Dogs on Beach" sign hurt as I stared at the dried-up pond, now a puddle, likely chemical-laden with no wading, no swimming warnings. No kidding.

A car pulled up near me. Kids piled out of the car and ran over to the railing on the handicapped accesible concrete pad overlooking the lake. They seemed excited, not morose like me. The adult stood nearby.

How do adults explain this all-too-common reality to kids? "Well, when I was a kid we used to come out here all the time. We swam, fished, and played for hours."

"But now, we've killed this park with our lack of personal and governmental responsibility. Sorry kids. Let's go home so you can play on your computers."

You might wonder what a post of this nature has to do with my HEAR US Inc. mission. A lot, really. Our collective apathy and our nation's systemic failures have contributed mightily to the economic and environmental demise of our country. I feel a sense of desperation to call attention to what I see--whether it is the desperate conditions facing millions of kids and families or the demise of our environment as I travel the backroads of America.

Wait, you say. Is not your use of fossil fuels contributing to this demise? True, but with my deliberate, purposeful, frugal use of the resources available to me, I try my hardest to balance the use with the mission--to leave the world a little better than I found it, for all kids. Thanks for asking, and for reading. Now, let's do something to make the world better.

Sex—Not the Reason Most Homeless Moms Double Up With Men

Going from bad to worse. Frying pan to the fire. Damned if you do, damned if you don’t. None of those adages express the level of dire anguish Melissa and her daughter face. 

A 3-year string of horrible events culminated in this pert mother and her adorable 7-year-old daughter landing in the Kansas version of prison: a town of less than 400, with nary a grocery store, much less any sign of life, no transportation and no support network.

Melissa, who's worked in the home healthcare field for a number of years, tossed out a desperate Craig’s List plea a few weeks ago to escape from the apartment she platonically shared with “Max,” who had “compassionately" offered to share the 2-bedroom apartment he was about to rent with Melissa who had just escaped another untenable living situation.

“Sex,” she told me in the interview she agreed to do for my HEAR US doubled up project, Worn Out Welcome Mat--KS. “What is it with men who think of nothing else, even after I clearly spelled out that I was not interested in it…at all?” 

A divorce tossed her over the edge 3 years ago. The job she had fell apart. When she faced eviction she remorsefully turned to the father of her older daughter to take her, knowing he could provide a decent living situation for the few months Melissa anticipated it would take to get back on her feet.

She attentively and creatively strove to patch her life together, protectively tending to her youngest daughter’s needs. The school McKinney-Vento homeless liaison accommodated their high mobility. They bounced from being doubled up in friend’s apartments to motels to the highly-restrictive, religious shelter back to friends. 

Melissa’s housing choices in this military town were nil, subsidized housing not available, so she generated options intended to give them a place until she could save money to get their own place. Jobs paying a living wage, even for this hard-working woman who put herself through college? Forget it. So she turned to the underground employment and housing network to compensate for the basic needs’ drought in Kansas (and other states). 

Even this didn’t work. Seemingly “safe” arrangements turned hellish. Moving from one bad situation led to even worse. A constant state of panic and heightened parent-protective alertness were matched by the absolute lack of alternatives in the Sunflower State.

Social services and the hypothetical safety net have been all but eliminated by the tax-slashing Governor Sam Brownback and his Republican conspirators. So few shelters exist in Kansas—and they have months’ long waiting lists—that families like Melissa’s desperately do what they have to do.

When the last straw came in the form of sexual and physical confrontation that needed police intervention (again), Melissa turned to a town I’ll call “Hell.” The man who agreed to take in these two vulnerable nomads assured her this was to help him with home health care, not sex. 

Three days later, Melissa told me he made explicitly clear that he had needs and expectations. 

I suggested she contact the nearest shelter (and even offered to give them a ride). I explained the “trick” of qualifying for admission—to make sure the intake counselor knew she and her daughter are in danger (they are), that their circumstances are dire and housing is dependent on her providing for her “host’s” sexual needs. HUD has a high bar when it comes to determining eligibility for their vaunted homeless shelter beds. 

Melissa and her daughter might not be “homeless enough” to qualify for help. If that’s the case, she is absolutely out of options. 

The public library in this hellish town is only open a couple hours a day, three days a week, with one computer. That is, if she will be able to leave the house of this invalid-predator. So searching on Craig’s List won’t even be an option.

  

Having Nowhere To Go = Homelessness, Not Choice

• Crawling though decrepit attics to find doubled-up families. 
• Cutting taxes for the highest income bracket to stimulate the Kansas economy.
• Discovering that a stable, financially comfortable community has close to 50% of their students living in or near poverty.
• Realizing that the state's budget has gaping holes, so cut education funding across-the-board.

What a state I'm in, Kansas, where I'll be spending the bulk of my time in the next several weeks. My unplanned offer to film Worn Out Welcome Mat--KS, a short documentary on families doubled up because they have nowhere to go was accepted by the state coordinator of the homeless education program. What a tremendous opportunity! And the timing couldn't be better. It's like being dropped into an economic war zone.

Homeless families and youth have been, in many places across this state, hidden. Very few resources exist, especially away from metro areas, and even there it's a brutal struggle.

The KS Department of Education has made tremendous strides training and encouraging educators to identify and assist homeless students. Their census numbers have steadily climbed, not a good thing on one hand, but good that they're identifying and serving more, nearly triple since the recession. 

• 2007 -- 3,569
• 2014 -- 10, 378

I've spent worthwhile chunks of time this past week with school officials, migrant assistance staff, community leaders and volunteers here in Manhattan, KS. Riley County, which includes Manhattan (The Little Apple) and surrounding area--rural and military--just completed a needs' assessment. Not surprisingly, they determined,

"Riley County is a community that is divided between a high quality of life, prosperity, and growth on one hand, and dwindling resources for and lack of attention to those who are most in need on the other."

A brief conversation I had with someone who should know better (remaining unnamed for the time being), reinforced the importance of our WOWM film project--which will be comprised of kids and parents talking about the struggles of living doubled up because they have nowhere to go.

This person differentiated between those "literally homeless" and those "choosing" to live doubled up. The "literally homeless" term is HUD (US Dept. of Housing and Urban Development) language reflecting a limited definition of homelessness that excludes millions of homeless families and youth. I'll get back to this person.

I listened to the migrant assistance worker telling about crawling through the dark attic and finding a family living/cowering in the far reaches of this abandoned building's top level. Desperation and fear caused this homeless Kansas family to hide in the attic. At least these outreach workers were bringing help. How many more are living in these dire circumstances?

It's worth the reminder:

• No community has adequate emergency shelters for families/youth. 
• Some communities have NO shelters, especially for youth (on their own without parent/guardian) or families. 
• Some shelters turn families away because they don't accept intact families with older boys, two parent families, or parent/s with work schedules that conflict with curfews, or because a family member has a felony, mental illness, addiction problem, etc.
• Time limits, capacity issues, immigration status and requiring proof of homelessness can also be barriers for families seeking emergency shelter.

I'd like to be more optimistic about our nation's ability to turn the corner on this soaring poverty and homelessness that I've witnessed over the past 10 years since I took to the highways and byways under my HEAR US Inc. banner. But my travels have exposed me to the skewed priorities of states across the land and the challenges of addressing poverty and homelessness when it's not a concerted effort.

Right now my hope is resting heavily on the families and youth I'll be interviewing in the next several weeks. Their faces and stories will, I know, be powerful tools to open minds and hearts, raising awareness of the struggles of thousands of people--families, youth, and single adults-- in this state with nowhere to go.

Please consider helping HEAR US raise funds for this project. Yes, it's for Kansas, but they need the help--at least the homeless families/youth and those working hard to serve them. If we can make things work in KS, we can turn to the next state where gross neglect of impoverished families and youth is rampant. Plenty of choices. 

HUD’s Seven Big Homelessness Fails

I’m a nomad-by-choice. For the past 10 years, under the banner of HEAR US Inc., my nonprofit organization, I’ve traveled over 200,000 miles of mostly backroads travel chronicling homeless families and youth across the country. I live full-time in a van converted into a motorhome/workspace. I used to run the largest shelter in Illinois outside Chicago. I’ve been working on the issue of homelessness for 3 decades.

Last night I relented and paid for a campground in Asheville, NC instead of sleeping in my van in the ubiquitous Walmart parking lot because temps were down to 20 and I don’t like to freeze. One of my neighbors, I learned today, was a homeless family staying there because they have nowhere to go. Their school-age children were on the bus and off to school before I stuck my nose outside.

Last night in this funky and wonderful western NC city, motels provided some semblance of shelter for dozens of families who use up their meager earnings to keep a roof over their heads. Others cobbled together a spot on the couch or begged for an empty corner in someone’s basement so they could stay warm and safe.

The meager family shelter options don’t begin to meet the needs of hundreds of families and youth in the county in need of assistance. I learned of one mother, a former school social worker whose loss of housing kicked her and her 8-year-old son to the street. The challenging conditions at the local rescue mission are too stressful for the boy, so he’s staying at a children’s emergency shelter while his mom bunks at the mission.

Family and youth shelter options in Asheville, as with most communities, are horrifically inadequate, forcing homeless families and youth to desperately turn to makeshift options, typically on a night-by-night, or less, basis.  But they’re not “homeless enough” to meet HUD’s standard of homelessness according to Amy Hobson, program coordinator at Trinity Place, a local emergency shelter for kids on their own.

During this, the last week of January, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD, has mandated that communities across the land send out teams of social workers and volunteers, armed with clipboards, to count homeless persons. The diligent effort of these census-takers does not make up for serious failures on the part of HUD when it comes to addressing homelessness because they don’t count the bulk of their community’s homeless population—the invisible families and youth that desperately need HUD’s housing assistance.

 Last year, HUD reported 578,424 homeless persons, an alleged 11% reduction since 2007. Their count chillingly ignores millions of homeless persons, including babies and toddlers.

The US Department of Education’s (DOE) 2012-13 report indicates 1,258,182 identified homeless students (not including younger/older siblings or parents), a whopping 85% increase since the 2006-07 school year. Even worse, a recent report, America’s Youngest Outcasts, states that the number of homeless children/youth exceeds 2.5 million (not including parents or single adults). My official HEAR US estimate is 3 million.

HUD maintains their narrow definition of homelessness, the hallmark of their fizzled-out 10 Year Plan To End Homelessness.   The Baltimore Sun editorial opines, “The central principle of the city's 10-year plan to end homelessness was that it would prioritize finding housing first and services second for those living on the streets. Events like today's clean-up are a reminder of just how far we remain from realizing that promise.”

HUD’s “point-in-time” count skips millions of vulnerable children, youth and adults, a potentially deadly omission. “HUD’s policy excludes children and youth who face real harm, including negative emotional, educational, and health outcomes; it also increases their risk of physical and sexual abuse and trafficking,” according to the coalition pushing for the expanded definition of homelessness, Help Homeless Kids Now.

This confused, grossly under-counted data gets presented to Congress, perpetuating the lack adequate funding to address housing needs of millions of people with nowhere to go.

HUD’s dismal failures include:

1.     “Homeless” to HUD means staying in a shelter or living on the streets. If you lost housing due to crisis and can’t get into a shelter, and you turn to family, friends, acquaintances or motels, you're not considered homeless no matter how fragile those arrangements are. 

2.     HUD demands proof of homelessness (yup, you’ve gotta prove you're deserving of the shelter bed). Such proof might mean an eviction notice, or a letter from a landlord, or your mother-in-law’s note that explains that she kicked you and your kids out. Pity the person who cannot document their situation.

3.     HUD makes it confusing and time consuming for both the shelter provider and the shelter seeker when it comes to proving homelessness (see the chart beginning pg. 3 of this PDF doc). “Arbitrary and unworkably burdensome eligibility rules” now govern our homeless shelter system. It doesn't matter if you’ve got the most desperate family sitting in front of you, HUD’s rules rule.

4.     If you’re a vulnerable (think sex trafficking, sex-for-bed, gang-bait, etc.) homeless youth on your own, but not seen sleeping in an alley, HUD won’t count you. One of the main reasons we have such an abysmal system for serving youth on their own who are homeless is because HUD’s definition of homelessness doesn’t include them, so they’re not counted.

5.     If you’re a family that’s scotch-taped together a flimsy plan to stay with family, friends or acquaintances after you lost housing (doubled up video, Worn Out Welcome Mat), HUD won’t count you. Christine Craft, the Homeless Education Liaison for Buncombe County Schools, told me that 75% of the students she serves don’t fall under the HUD definition, doubling or tripling up in many cases.

6.     If you’re a family staying in a motel on your own thin dime because you have nowhere to go, HUD won’t count you. Most of the families that Ms. Craft works with have someone working, but the motels eat up most of their meager pay, giving them no option to save for a security deposit to move out.

7.     HUD pits single adults against families and youth by forcing communities to prioritize adults in order to get funding. While HUD pays lip service to serving families (not so much youth), their funding decisions tell the story.

The dire realities most people don’t know until they experience homelessness: Many communities don’t have shelters. Some shelters turn away boys in families, don’t accept intact families, same-sex parents, those with criminal records, substance users, or parents with work schedules conflicting with shelter curfews.

First Focus, a children’s advocacy group, estimates  over 1 million homeless children and youth are ineligible for HUD assistance because of not being homeless enough to satisfy HUD guidelines.

And HUD continues to push “Housing First,” a way to pop people into housing and then offer services to help them., although HUD has shifted away from funding services. Housing First was used mostly for those deemed “chronically homeless” by HUD’s parlance with mixed results. Even this approach is doomed, with funding a major issue, hello Congress! And HUD’s one-size-fits-all approach to homelessness doesn’t work, as this short video by the Institute of Children, Poverty and Homelessness points out. 

Especially in light of the latest blizzards and Arctic cold spells, people of compassion would like to think that the federal agency charged with housing the housing-challenged, especially families and youth, was under control. Not so. But hope is on the horizon!

Bipartisan legislation aimed at expanding HUD’s definition of homelessness has been introduced, with growing support making it likely that soon HUD will have to face the brutal reality that they need to help millions of kids and adults with nowhere to go. 

To help homeless kids, urge your lawmakers to pass the new(old) legislation simply by going to www.helphomelesskidsnow.org  and sign the petition. Takes just seconds!

If nothing else, HUD is guilty of a big logic FAIL. How do you justify claiming reduced  homelessness in light of a shattered economy, massive foreclosures and evictions, slashed affordable housing stock, pathetic wages for the bulk of the working class, inadequate health care and child care, and more? Oh yeah, just don’t count them.