11/25/98

Readers Respond: Plight of the Homeless

... in response to "The Homeless" (11/13/98)

Concerns for the homeless stir many SNET readers to act on their behalf, especially at this time of year when winter approaches and with it, religious holidays, that emphasize generosity to others. A selection from their letters follows:

Concert for the Homeless "Orchestra New England has pledged to pair each of its remaining concerts with a community-based helping organization, as a way of showing its appreciation for the support the surrounding population has shown during the past 25 years of the orchestra's existence.

"Orchestra New England's traditional "Colonial Concert" is coming up this coming Saturday evening at the United Church on the Green (at 8:00 P.M.) This concert is performed in colonial dress (for the musicians), and period-style "banter" from the podium, partly authentic and partly just humorous from Jim Sinclair, the conductor, invites participation from the audience in mock auctions, news releases, and other town crier-type of anecdotes.

"Primarily, however, the concert presents music that would most likely have been performed here in New England during the time of the American Independence movement. This year, the concert will include a performance of arias by the world-renowned soprano Susan Marie Pierson (frequent lead artist with Luciano Pavarotti), and it concludes with excerpts from Handel's "Messiah", with the Con Brio choral society.

"The community-based partner for this concert is the New Haven Homeless Resource Center, and concert-goers have been urged to bring to the concert for donation a piece of warm clothing--coats, hats, gloves, sweaters and the like. All donations will go directly for disbursal to the homeless.

"For further information about the donations, please contact our Vice President, Lesley Mills, at 776-2273 (day) or 878-0722. For further information about the concert or Orchestra New England in general, please contact me at 562-7671, fax 562-0777, or at rcarriuolo@snet.net."

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Unmarketable Skills and Narrow Choices

"One member of the transient population whom I came to know was a poet, a brilliant poet. It was our writing that brought us together. I learned that he had been disturbed since age 15, had a father who was harsh and unloving, and a mother caught between them. He was not allowed to follow his heart, so he started to withdraw. He began drinking at 17 and from there the plummet was unending. Many people have tried to help him.

"He is 47 now, still homeless and drinking, and, worse, he no longer writes.

It's possible that there are many people with skills that don't suit today's workplace, who follow a path to self-destruction. I believe that transients will become more prevalent as people are forced to follow along the "cookie-cutter" path that society has declared to be normal. When there is no place for people to go, they go to the streets and try to live by their wits and instincts, just as my poet friend has been doing for 20 years."

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More Meals and Volunteers Needed

"The invisible homeless person is widespread in this country. We need to do more than give money, because it renders them even more invisible. These people are real. A church near us provides meals to the homeless where my children and I volunteer on weekends. The people are polite but poor. Many are mentally ill. Some are substance abusers and some are in recovery. They want and need good hot meals and they say, "Thank you." We need more programs and more volunteers to help them."

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Criminals Get Better Treatment

"Why do our homeless war Veterans sleep in cardboard boxes while our criminal convicts receive free medical and dental care, wholesome food and shelter, modern exercise equipment and free use of a well equipped law library? And why does our government spend billions of tax dollars on politics and foreign aid while denying valid medical complaints of its Veterans?"

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Realistic Solutions Needed

"I used to work as a collector of delinquent taxes for the federal government. I saw many people who were on their way to the streets. I noticed a pattern: one step at a time, they each got overwhelmed by some kind of relationship problem, be it parent/child, spouse, business partner or employee/boss. The stresses of those relationships souring led to lack of attention to other issues, particularly financial. These people gradually lost the ability to figure out how to help themselves.

"They need attention from people who are capable of seeing beyond regulations to offer respectful, constructive help for their problems."

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Some Become Criminals

"As I leave the city for work every day, I see men on the street corner near the highway holding up signs that say things like "homeless" "Vietnam Vet" "HIV Positive" or "Please Help Me." Last year I called the local paper about them to ask whether they are legit or if a story had ever been written about their situations. No one ever called back.

"I gave money or food to one man in particular, who thanked me and told me his name was Dennis. After months of seeing him every day, I noticed he hadn't been around for a few weeks, so I asked the paper girl hawking newspapers nearby if she knew what happened to him. She told me he was in jail for selling drugs. I felt angry about him selling drugs, but I also felt angry that he wound up in jail.

"I don't regret giving to him and I will continue to give to others. I realized that I had created a world in my mind where I imagined that homeless people go to a shelter every night and manage to get by on donations from strangers. Not so, I guess. Some don't manage at all and become criminals. I think of Dennis often during the holidays. I volunteer at a soup kitchen every Thanksgiving and it's one of my favorite days of the year. The people we feed need a good meal and the help of others to let them know they can eke out another day with their pride and self-worth still intact."

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Help Needed Year Round

"Your article on the homeless really hit a nerve. Especially during holiday time, we all, in our warm houses making lists of Thanksgiving dinner, need to be reminded that we are truly blessed. And being so fortunate, we should try to do something for those who are not.

"Every year I donate to every food bank I see and have my young children purchase and drop off toys for children who don't have any. Thank you for printing the national hotline number to help the homeless. I, too, will carry it with me, so I can help people out during the entire year and not just around the holidays."

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Why Homelessness in such a Rich Country?

"I am a nurse pursuing my BSN (Bachelor of Science in Nursing), and I currently spend one evening a week at a shelter in Hartford as a part of a course requirement. I have conflicting emotions regarding the individuals I encounter each week. I'm mostly overwhelmed by the situations of the homeless. How could people progress to that state, I wonder, when they live in the United States, a land of plenty?

"I will share your article with my classmates and instructors, so we can discuss additional ways to help the homeless."

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Please send questions or comments to bbruno@snet.net.