Today, was somewhat a rough day on me. As many know I’m the LISC AmeriCorps Housing Support Specialist where I don’t just help with the low income families/individuals but also the homeless. It is something that is very close to my heart due to the fact that I want time I was homeless myself. I’m in a position to give back but it’s very hard when the person I’m trying to help isn’t really willing to work at it to get out of homelessness. Nothing is given for free without some sort of work on the person part. There isn’t an easy fix to anything. For example, the government throws money at homelessness thinking that will take care of it only it doesn’t. Various agencies around the US put some limitation on their services to homelessness which is evident from outreach specialist that I follow on twitter and other social media.
I don’t claim to have all the answers but I could very well be a valuable tool with my experience at one time being homeless. There are a lot of changes that are needed to fix homelessness across the US. I think it starts with the actual people themselves that are homeless. The government and agencies really need to understand the problem before they can fix the problem. To be able to understand the problem they need to talk to the homeless and they will have a better understanding on homelessness. Everyday, I’m exposed to homeless individuals and families that I just wish I could help more than I already can but I know I can’t because these individuals and families have to want these changes. I’m always reminding myself that talking about my experience is a lot easier than when I was actually homeless.
As of right now, I have a potential of four families/individuals on my work plate that I can see in their eyes the determination that dig their self out of homelessness. We started the process as I have them referred to various programs and etc. I just hope they understand that I’m their for them if they need something. This is what I’m great out is helping others and one of the reason I love what I’m doing.
TL
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