Shelters
Are an Oasis in a Vast Desert
by
Joe Cimperman, Outreach Worker at West Side Catholic Center
--Tricia
Conner, St. Leo’s Soup and Salad Kitchen, 1993
When I was
asked to write my thoughts and opinions on the role of a shelter, I thought of
this saying from a cook in a soup kitchen in the Bronx.
The realities of our society today amply demonstrate that safe spaces are
needed. With cutbacks in public funds, the burden of providing for
the poor and homeless rests even more heavily on private agencies.
At the West Side Catholic Center, our shelter serves women and children
who need a place to stay for as little as a night or as long as two weeks.
Often the
people we see are dealing with issues of abuse that run the gamut from financial
tyranny to physical violence. Our
shelter, staffed twenty-four-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week, provides more than
a roof and a hot meal.
While these
are the initial and most basic needs, the shelter staff give plenty of listening
time, unquantified amounts of attention, and an overall sense of compassion and
concern that communicates: “you
are here now, you are safe now.”
While in our
shelter here at the WSCC, women are able to lay the groundwork for pursuing a
more permanent residence, educational goals, and employment possibilities.
These are the
tangibles. More subtlety and getting to the core, life direction,
personal growth and development, and fundamental self-esteem issues are
discussed, revealed, discovered, and charted.
Such work takes time, direction and love.
Such work requires shelter from fear of eviction, threat of abuse, and
possibility of relapse. It would be unwise--and completely unrealistic--to think
that a person could end their homelessness within a two week stay at a shelter.
The problems
that led to the person’s current situation are endemic, rooted in a myriad of
complex problems like abuse, mental illness, self-induced chemical addictions,
or just plain bad luck. The myth
that people actually enjoy the homeless lifestyle, hopping from shelter to
shelter, eating stale donuts every morning and standing in line for lunch and
dinner is one propagated by both a lack of understanding and a frustration with
the current convoluted system.
Yes, the
desire to end one’s homelessness must come from within.
Yes, the will to drastically change one’s daily routine from dependence
to independence must be verbalized in the first person.
But if this is to happen successfully and thoroughly and, most
importantly, really stick, we as a society--must provide some stepping-stones.
For example:
viable alcohol/drug treatment provided in 90 day in-patient beds, decent
affordable SINGLE ROOM OCCUPANCY residences (a non-reality in the city), decent
employment opportunities (complete
with sound health benefits) made possible through public transportation.
A shelter
provides someone the time and space and safety they need to change their
situations, a shelter is essential for the breathing space needed to make a
move. A shelter, in effect, is
often the bottom line from which people in need bounce back.
As far as the provision of such a shelter, we depend on the generosity of
others to maintain the building, cook the nutritious meals, and employ the
professional staff.
Often people
ask, how can I help? What can I do
to work to end homelessness in my city? Personal
contributions--financial or volunteering time are always essential.
But it is the opinion of this writer that, at the core, homelessness will
end only when we as individuals see people who are struggling not as “the
Other” but rather as my neighbor. And
in such a way, we all have the awesome opportunity to provide some shelter.
Editor's Note: This is the first in what we hope will be a continuing series of commentaries by service providers. Please send submissions to 2012 West 25th St. #717, Cleveland, Ohio 44113