I want to share with you something that has puzzled me for a while. As I eluded in a past posting, it is real easy for many to simply talk about the plight of the poor and homeless; however it is something totally different when you are faced with the opportunity to do something about it.
About 2 years ago, for a short period of time my family and I lived in upper middle-class community in Pasadena, CA. While I was never really in love with the city, I still enjoyed the late night walks our family would take in the downtown area. With the year-round warm weather, you would always find tables and chairs set in front of the plethora of restaurants in the area. It is was not an uncommon thing to find these outdoor seating areas full to capacity well into the evening under the dimly-lit glow of candles on the tables while hearing the faded sounds of music and clanking dinnerware in the background.
It was in the midst of all of this wonderful ambiance a homeless woman would find her spot for the day just right outside of the neighborhood Starbucks. She would usually stay positioned there for a few hours, then she would move across the street for another few hours. She would continue this routine all along this particular stretch for days at a time. She would disappear for a few days only to return to do the same thing all over again.
It didn’t take me too long to realize that this woman must be mentally challenged. I never saw her ask for money or food–she just sat there on the corner as though she was waiting for someone or something. From time to time I would see her talking to herself while just seemingly looking through the people around her. It was as though she was in her own little world. She always carried with her a small array of bags while donning a medium weighted jacket and a sweater cap. My wife offered to buy her some food–she politely refused. I said “Hi” to her a couple of times hoping to start a conversation–there was no acknowledgment. To me, she seemed to want to be left alone.
How do you help somebody that is homeless that seems to want to be left alone? What if they are mentally challenged? Sure, it would be real easy for me to suggest that the state should take care of the woman, but will she really get the help that she needs? Will more of my tax dollars fund yet another failing program that could potentially do more harm than good to an individual such as the one I have been talking about?
The solution–It takes commitment.
Anybody could have taken this woman to a local shelter. But what if her mental instability prevents her from being able to follow simple requirements of the shelter? What if this individual decides to leave the shelter all together? Who is going to try to compel this individual that she needs to stay with the program? Most importantly, how are the medical bills for this individual (mind you, if this person in mentally challenged, medical expenses will be huge) going to be covered? Forget the state health care solution similar to that of Canada. There has already been many complaints of longer wait times for a doctor as well as poorer medical expertise. Adding the mentally-challenged homeless to this type of program only worsen the situation. The fact is, these hopeless individuals need something on the level of a surrogate family member–someone who is willing to go through the whole healing process with them. Tossing coins into a cup is one thing. It is something totally different when the person that is in need of help needs more than just food. Commitment is the change these folks need.
In the years that I have spent working in the non-profit sector, the one thing that I have noticed to be the downfall of many non-profit organizations that serve the needy around us is not just the lack of funds, but also the lack of ordinary individuals who want to shoulder the weight of responsibility in caring for these individuals. Helping the less fortunate is never convenient. This is the dilemma for many well-intentioned individuals.
We don’t need another “awareness” campaign on the plight of the poor and homeless. How many of us are willing to walk with them on the road to recovery? I am asking myself the same question.
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July 3rd, 2005 at 7:21 am
Great call for “commitment”; now let’s hear some specifics. It’s nice that you wanted to talk to the lady. Did you do anything to change her circumstances?
You slag the national-health approach (a la Canada) because of “longer wait times”. those without medical coverage have the longest of wait times: forever. Obviously, fee-for-service is not cutting it as regards the homeless. (Your comment regarding “poorer medical expertise” could use a little vetting , as well; Canada still has higher requirements for its physicians than most states of the Union. I know; I’ve applied for that job. Did I mention that I am a doc who does from time to time work with the homeless?)
It’s true: helping the less-fortunate is never convenient. Have you some specific suggestions for those who are committed to help? Any ideas beyond “commitment is the change these folks need’? And any ideas about how those with such commitment are going to live while exercising that commitment? Our upstanding conservative politicians have already made it clear that government is out of the business of caring for the less fortunate, and religious organizations are more concerned with making sure that men don’t marry men than making sure that hungry people eat.
If you’ve got suggestions, I’m all ears.
July 3rd, 2005 at 10:21 am
Since you have demonstrated a lack of ability to read completely, I will try to drop some change in your very small cup of comprehension.
The first step on helping somebody is establishing communication. As I mentioned , she didn’t want to talk nor was she trying to talk to anybody. She didn’t want food either. You can’t force a grown person to do what you want, even if you feel it is for their best interest.
Your next paragraphs speak a whole lot about your real angle. It was you that brought in the Left vs. Right thing –not me. I am simply asking the question “how do you help people who cannot or will not help themselves?” (this does not speak of all homeless people) and you chose to politicize this issue.
Applying for the job and waiting for medical attention are two different things. According to the recent case brought to the Canadian high court, there are a lot of people in Canada that do not like their current health care system for the reasons I mentioned.
As far as suggestions go, if you are a doctor, work from time to time with the homeless, and still don’t have a clue on how to define commitment….
debating about it here will not help you. So don’t.
August 24th, 2005 at 2:32 am
Too bad I stumbled on this article so late, but I’ll still add a comment that I too feel at a loss as to how to handle such a situation. Would have preferred to have read a concrete suggestion of action in response to Michael’s comment. Is the solution something like adopting the lady, or are you calling for better staffing of the non-profits, or…?