Homeless People

[Mickey]

I was talking to a home schooling mom and she told me that she volunteered serving meals to homeless people. I told her that it must be rewarding and she said that it makes her feel good to do nice things, but that these people were generally ungrateful and unappreciative. I told her that I honestly think that you must be mentally disturbed to CHOOSE to sleep on the dirty street and eat out of dumpsters and she insisted that they are one thing and one thing only—LAZY.

What do you think? Are these people crazy or lazy?

Have you had experience working with homeless people?

Do you give money/food/clothing to people on the street?

[AnnW]

I think it's probably a combination of those things, and not just one convenient answer. I think that some are mentally ill and unable to hold down a job, I think that there are others who beg off the streets cause it is easier than getting a "real" job. I think that there are others who are too proud to take the assistance available to them so they are choosing to live on the streets.

I have done various volunteers jobs with the homeless and found that there is no easy answer.
I don't give money to the one's on the street. Here, there are too many "rackets" of people who travel from city to city just to panhandle. I do carry meal tickets for one of the shelters in my car.

[Diane]

I agree that it's a combination of these things. What gets to me is when, once in a while I'll hear of a homeless person dying and finding out that they were actually millionairs. Ugh!!! They CHOSE to live this way... because they wanted to. Gotta wonder!!

I've never given any money to a homeless person... but if I could give/offer them food or something warm... I would rather do that. I also agree that there are too many "rackets" of people out there who panhandle for a living.

I also think that this would be an extremely rewarding feeling but then again... I think it would frustrate me at the same time, especially if they weren't at all grateful or appreciative for all that they were being given. That's the least we should expect from them... I think! I honestly feel for some of those who can't help where they are... but I think their are a lot out there that are nothing but a bunch of lazy bums.

Diane...

[Mickey]

I think you get both kinds of people, too...but I still think the majority of them are homeless as a result of mental problems and/or addiction to drugs or alcohol.

Diane, my dad's friend drove a bus and a homeless lady rode his bus every day for years--she had a heart attack one day and the paramedics went to cut her down-filled coat off of her and found out that it wasn't filled with down...it was full of money (large bills, too)! You have to be crazy to be rich and live under a bridge, imo.

My home schooling friend said that most of the homeless people she serves always smell like alcohol and are never without cigarettes--I think that's a priority problem, not about being homeless. I know many people who work hard for their money and they're in debt and can't afford bread, but always have nice jewelry and cigarettes.

Regarding hustling...when we lived in Oxford, England, a friend of dh's was laid off from his factory job, so he took his guitar to the city centre and played and sang for the day for some extra money. He ended up doing that for quite a while as he made more in one day doing that than he made in a week at the factory--tax free, too.

I don't give money to people who are begging because I suspect it goes for drugs or alcohol, but I have given them food.

Ann, what's a meal ticket? Where did you get them? Do you have to buy them? Do the homeless people actually use them?

[Jeff]

I don't know how appreciative I would be of someone seeking a quick fix of feel good either. I doubt I would respond favorably to someone who thought their life was great and mine was to pity.

[AnnW]

Originally posted by Mickey

Ann, what's a meal ticket? Where did you get them? Do you have to buy them? Do the homeless people actually use them?

One of the shelters here uses them. We can get them at our church, there is no charge for us, our church underwrites it . It really is just a way of letting them know that there is a place for them.

[netmechwife]

I agree with ann. I prefer to volunteer to help in ministries that meet specific needs such as geared towards troubled teens (before they get to the point of being one of these people), domestic violence shelters, foster care agencies, etc. I do not give money to people on the street. I know too many people personally who are having financial problems that I can help out that I feel I should help first and there is also a very good chance that the homeless person you are giving money to will just waste it anyway or don't really need it.

[Lynda-WA]

Homeless people have been bit of a hot topic in the Portland area. They set up an area called Dignity Village. Tents and all for them. The city said it would be safer for them to give them a secure area. The problem was that they complained about it. The first Dignity Village was on an empty lot. The owner said it was fine with him in the short term but that he had building plans for that land. When the city moved the village the homeless complained about the new area and refused to leave that man's land. They eventually did move.

But all this led to some media on the local homeless. There is a segment that is truely in need of help. People with mental illnesses.

For the most part it sounded like they were just lazy. A couple confessed to having degrees and such.

There was also a show on runaways. It mentioned Portland since that is another problem. It sounded as if many of the homeless runaways become addicts AFTER becoming a runaway.

So I suspect that there is a large portion of homeless that are now addicts. Not that being an addict caused them to become homeless but that living the homeless lifestyle led to their addiction.

DH has set up generators in a couple of homeless shelters and his work has been located near homeless shelters another two times. He said that most were lazy and/or addicts. Only a couple were visibly mentally disturbed. They (his company) had a big problem with the homeless urinating on their equipment. The generator units are located outside so these guys would go in them rather then walk inside to use the restrooms.

DH worked on a farm many years ago. The farm owner would stop and offer a days work to those people holding up the signs. He never had a single person willing to work.