On the Release of Statistics...
Last night our local meteorologist said " ... a wind chill factor of minus twenty tomorrow morning." This morning our sturdy outdoor thermometer seemed stuck on an abysmally low number. I imagine that at 5:00a.m it was below zero.
That's enough. Release me from this cold weather—now.
As soon as I wrote that I thought of the homeless—just in this area of New England. Where did they sleep last night?
Most people are homeless because of a myriad of reasons.It's an epidemic that doesn't only affect single people or couples—entire families are homeless.People sleep in cars, on the street, huddled under layers,in shelters, or in church basements.
The longer you're homeless the more difficult it is to pull out of that condition—no address,unsure of a place to clean-up, too many hours spent surviving.
The Coalition for the Homeless reported that :
That same organization also reports that
It was cold here. I put on a heavy sweater and turned up the heat. The cold seeped under the front door so I put a snake draft dodger against the door.
In December a number of communities hold memorial services for the homeless who died that year and lived in their community.Each name is read aloud. Sometimes there's someone to speak about that person.
A recent report released by HUD highlighted the epidemic:
I can't imagine sleeping with rolled newspapers as a pillow or wearing layers of everything I owned. I can't imagine sleeping under a plastic tarp hoping it will act as a barrier to keep dry, to moderate the wind.
I can't imagine being homeless, but I also know many of the people who are homeless couldn't imagine being homeless.
Somethings amiss.
That's enough. Release me from this cold weather—now.
As soon as I wrote that I thought of the homeless—just in this area of New England. Where did they sleep last night?
Most people are homeless because of a myriad of reasons.It's an epidemic that doesn't only affect single people or couples—entire families are homeless.People sleep in cars, on the street, huddled under layers,in shelters, or in church basements.
The longer you're homeless the more difficult it is to pull out of that condition—no address,unsure of a place to clean-up, too many hours spent surviving.
The Coalition for the Homeless reported that :
During the course of each year, more than 110,000 different homeless New Yorkers, including more than 40,000 children, sleep at least one night in the municipal shelter system.
That same organization also reports that
1,065,794 homeless kids were enrolled in schools in the 2010-2011 school year, an increase of 13 percent from the previous year and 57 percent since the start of the recession in 2007.
It was cold here. I put on a heavy sweater and turned up the heat. The cold seeped under the front door so I put a snake draft dodger against the door.
In December a number of communities hold memorial services for the homeless who died that year and lived in their community.Each name is read aloud. Sometimes there's someone to speak about that person.
A recent report released by HUD highlighted the epidemic:
Because no beds were available for them, homeless families with children were turned away by emergency shelters in 64percent of the (25) survey cities; and shelters in 60 percent of the cities had to turn away unaccompanied individuals.
I can't imagine sleeping with rolled newspapers as a pillow or wearing layers of everything I owned. I can't imagine sleeping under a plastic tarp hoping it will act as a barrier to keep dry, to moderate the wind.
I can't imagine being homeless, but I also know many of the people who are homeless couldn't imagine being homeless.
Somethings amiss.
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