Homeless Voice; SNAP Doesn't Supply Kitchens

V I S I T U S AT H O M E L E S S V O I C E . O R G

KITCHENS

The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021 1

Publisher

Vendor and client Michael White | Photo by Miranda Schumes

The Homeless Voice is owned by the COSAC Foundation, a multi-faceted non-profit agency that feeds, shelters, and arranges access to social and medical services to every homeless person that enters its shelters. We aim to enable them to return to a self-reliant lifestyle, but for the small percentage of people incapable, we provide a caring and supportive environment for long-term residency.

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Originally made by a team tasked to raise money from the streets for the shelter, the Homeless Voice was born from the knowledge that freedom of press was a way to raise awareness. We started as a flyer, then a 4-page newsprint, then finally becoming the voice of the homeless with the Homeless Voice newspaper and website in 1999.

In this newspaper we hope to present the problems that the homeless population faces day-to-day, the problems these people personally face, and the ways that laws can help and hinder them.

Visit us at to read past issues, see online-only content, and a full map of where you can find this paper.

Many of our vendors are clients of our shelters, brought to different major cities to vend this paper in return for a donation. Based out of Lake City — where our Veterans Inn shelter and Motel 8 is located — or Davie, they are always brought out in groups of four to help each other stay motivated and keep each other company. They’re given plenty of food and water for the day and don bright shirts to distinguish them as our vendors.

Depending on their specific job in vending this newspaper, all vendors take in about 75% of donations that day, with the remaining 25% put back into the paper.

We distribute in all major cities throughout Florida, including Tallahassee, Lake City, Jacksonville, Tampa, Orlando, Daytona, Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, and now Gainesville.

The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021

Sean Cononie

Editor-in-Chief Andrew Fraieli

Executive Editor Mark Targett

Contributers Dori Zinn Mary Stewart

COSAC Foundation PO Box 292-577 Davie, FL 33329 954-924-3571 Cover design by Andrew Fraieli

Check out our previous issues and other stories at Homelessvoice.org

Thank you to Publix Super Markets Charities for donating to the Homeless Voice’s Food Bank!

The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021 3

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The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021

Arthur Goncalves

By Sean Cononie

A

rtie was a man who did not judge anyone, and he gave people many chances to get it right.

He loved working with those who had drug addictions — giving them chance after chance.

It is not every day a person can be addicted to drugs like Artie was, and then regain their body and spirit and remain drug free. Then to come from the bushes on the street to running an agency is something to be said. This was a great man who did so much for so many people.

When homeless families came in, the world stopped, and Artie would change every bed in the shelter if he had to in order to get them space.

The COSAC Foundation is proud to announce that we will be starting a Rip Current Education Agency — all about education on what to do if caught in a rip current.

We are starting this initiative because of the death of our beloved Arthur Goncalves, who died in July 2021 in a rip current.

Artie was one person who believed that we all should know what to do in an emergency to save lives. He responded to so many code calls at the shelter, but this time there was no one to help him. He suffered a heart attack trying to fight the rip current.

The program will be paid for by the homeless who sell the Homeless Voice newspaper, as the entire project will be funded by some of the profits.

In 1999, Arthur Goncalves came to one of our shelters and sold the Homeless Voice. He worked his way up from running the newspaper, to finally running our Veterans Inn shelter. Artie was a small guy, but we called him “Big Guy” because of his title at the shelters.

Artie retired, but came back as a volunteer to help the director, myself, when I was not able to run the shelter because of an injury to my head. Artie then was in charge of keeping those in our shelter free from COVID-19 — where we’d had zero cases. Artie was a true hero. Knowing him, he would want people to learn all about rip currents.

Artie I will miss the early video calls with you. So many times we would talk business, then have our coffee together. I enjoyed those times even over video.

You saved so many homeless people, thousands over the years. Now Artie, you will be saving more lives by educating people about rip currents. A job well done.

I love you, Artie.

Arthur Goncalves’ “Preventing Death from Rip Currents Agency” will be known as the “Don’t Fight A Rip Current” program.

The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021 5

Sean Cononie discussing vaccine safety | Photo courtesy of Sean Cononie

COSAC Foundation Continues to Help the Homeless by Distributing Vaccines Driven to help those that can’t help themselves, the Homeless Voice’s outreach team brings COVID-19 vaccines to those on the street.

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The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021

By Andrew Fraieli

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hat was previously an outreach team, roaming the streets at night to give shelter and food to those in need, has turned into a mobile hospital for those who haven’t been able, or aware enough, to get vaccinated.

Just six months ago, the team began administering shots and have already given out almost 200. The team consists of two registered nurses and four volunteers, and are led by the head of the COSAC Foundation and publisher of the Homeless Voice, Sean Cononie.

Together they go out every couple days to search for those in need.

In the past, they gave out vaccines during the swine flu outbreak, so this is not their first time. But this

Registered Nurse, and Homeless Outreach Volunteer, Cathy Foster, giving a vaccine | Photo courtesy of Sean Cononie

Sean Cononie giving a COVID test outside the outreach team’s RV | Photo courtesy of Sean Cononie

time around is different, according to Cononie: “The homeless aren’t in groups like they used to be a long time ago, the cities have stopped them and made it very hard for us to find them. So we really have to go looking for them.”

The team goes out in the morning and late at night, but “some days we can go out all day and find one, and some days we’ll [vaccinate] 20,” he says. Over the past months this has been across Dade, Broward, Jacksonville and Palm Beach counties.

vaccine, taking down cell phone numbers and having the people call them if they need anything, “and we go out looking for them.” This is to make sure everyone stays safe — in the past they’ve gotten calls for allergy medications and emergencies — and for second shots, as they give out both the Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines.

When finally asked how long he thought they would be giving out the vaccines, Cononie answered quickly, “I don’t think we’ll be able to stop. I think we’ll be doing this for a long time.”

day, but many do decide to take it as the team has interacted with many of them before, and they’ve built a measure of trust. Even when the pandemic first started there was no gap in their outreach. They stocked up on masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, all sorts of PPE, and would travel around the same way passing it out.

The vaccines themselves they receive for free from the Florida Shots state program. Whenever they run out of supply, they bring people to a CVS or Walgreens — of which they’ve brought 300 people so far.

They also keep track of everyone after giving out the

“

The homeless aren’t in groups like they used to be a long time ago, the cities have stopped them and made it very hard for us to find them.”

Only the “really functional homeless” get the vaccines themselves according to Cononie, so the team looks for “people who aren’t normally going to go take care of their own health problems...the really hard to reach.

We even do some trailer parks, people who don’t have transportation, stuff like that.”

The team goes out with an RV and sets up with the vaccines and supplies, along with an SUV that they drive around to look for people, and transport them.

The process doesn’t take long: going over risk factors, reading forms, and asking if they are interested. “And if they decide to, we give them a shot, and they wait about 20 minutes after the shot, and we’re done.”

For those who are hesitant, they come back another

The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 |Issue October 2021 7 Registered Nurse, and Homeless Outreach Volunteer, Cathy Foster, giving a vaccine Photo 4, courtesy of Sean Cononie

KITCHENS

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The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021

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or those living on the sidewalk, it’s a bit hard to cook. There aren’t usually any functioning stovetops, and it’s generally frowned upon to start a fire where people are trying to walk. So why, then, can’t a person experiencing homelessness buy pre-cooked food with SNAP? SNAP, or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, is a federal program that provides money to lowincome individuals and families to buy groceries. It’s heavily relied on by those who are homeless and may not have a consistent income, but in almost every state SNAP benefits cannot be used to buy any food that is “hot at the point of sale.”

This distinctly excludes those who may not have access to a kitchen to cook, but who still depend on these benefits as their only way to afford to eat. Namely, it excludes help for those experiencing homelessness, like a man who prefers to go by Derf in New York:“You don’t know how desperate you get until you really fucking get down here. Eating out of garbage cans, man.”

Currently, only three states — Arizona, California, and Rhode Island — have functionally implemented the program meant to circumvent this aspect of SNAP, called a Restaurant Meals Program (RMP). It allows the use of SNAP benefits at approved restaurants and for prepared foods. Only the disabled, elderly and homeless are qualified for the program, as the purpose is to give more options for a nutritious meal because of their general lack of ability to use, or lack of access to, a kitchen.

"

many seniors and many homeless individuals do not have access to cooking facilities, or may not have the ability to prepare meals on their own"

Even so, the programs are limited in scope. For California, only 11 counties — such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, and San Diego — had implemented an RMP. In San Francisco, only 17 local restaurants were participating, the rest were fast food restaurants such as Subway and a few Domino’s, Burger Kings, and Carls Jr.’s among others.

Other counties have many more participating restaurants, like Orange County, but they are again mainly fast food such as El Pollo Loco, Pizza Hut, and Subway.

The whole state of Arizona participates in the program, but almost exclusively fast food restaurants with only about 40 local restaurants compared to a couple hundred Subways. Rhode Island is similar with a single local pizza place and nine Subways.

New York is progressing a bill that would add an RMP to their SNAP benefits though. Sponsored by New York Assembly member Karines Reyes, she elaborates in an assembly meeting the necessity to allow these people to buy hot meals, “as many seniors and many homeless individuals do not have access to cooking facilities, or may not have the ability to prepare meals on their own.”

“In the spirit of making sure that they are able to The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021 9

Derf, 50, a man experiencing homelessness, panhandling outside a McDonald’s in Manhattan | Photo by Andrew Fraieli

receive a nutritious diet, we want to make sure that not everything that they eat is processed, preserved, or frozen,” she said.

Each state has varying requirements to qualify for the SNAP program, as this is a federal-state program, and states have some freedom to change the qualifications.

Homelessness though, is generally covered in each, as SNAP is dependent on income, and the restaurant meals program specifically highlights homelessness.

Part of New York’s SNAP requirements is a gross annual income less than $19,140. Other factors are considered, but savings generally are not. These are slightly different requirements than Florida, which does consider savings, requiring less than $2,001 in the account, but an annual income less than $25,760 before taxes.

The maximum amount one person can get is different in each state too, being $204 for New York, and $234 for Florida.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), the reason hot food can’t be bought with SNAP benefits normally, and why this is an issue at all, is because SNAP’s written definition of “food” excludes prepared foods to begin with.

Created in 1964, the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 — what it’s called now — was originally called the Food Stamp Act. As originally written, the purpose of the program was to raise nutrition in low-income households through this federal-state program, and “strengthen the agricultural economy” by more effectively distributing locally grown food surpluses.

They defined “food” as “any food or food product for human consumption except alcoholic beverages, tobacco, those foods which are identified on the package as being imported, and meat and meat products which are imported.” Further on they specify that the food is only to be bought at approved “retail food stores” that “sells food to households for home consumption.”

In 2008, the act was amended and expanded, changing the definition of “food” to include this limitation of “home consumption.”

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The Restaurant Meals Program itself is a provision of the original Food Stamp Act implemented in 1977.

It allows states to start these programs at their discretion. And in 1983, New York did.

So if the current bill passes, it will not be the first time New York has had a Restaurant Meals Program.

Originally, it was only for the elderly and disabled as the homeless were not considered a “specific population” at the time — that is, until 1990. Following that federal change, New York state officially expanded their restaurant meals program to include the homeless in 1994.

This only lasted until 2000 though before the entire program was dissolved, but one man experiencing homeless on the lower east side of Manhattan still remembers it fondly.

“It was beautiful,” said 50 year-old Derf.

“They wanted to see how it would go,” but soon, he says, came the criticisms of the concept.

“Everybody’s complaining, ‘Oh, why should they be allowed to get hot food, it means that they can get lobster,’ or ‘why should I have to pay my taxes for that.’ But what the fuck does it matter? It’s fucking food.”

“If I want to spend $55 on a lobster I’ll spend it, because I want it, I want to eat that, that’s what I want to eat, it’s my choice, it’s my prerogative,” he continued.

Keyes, the Assembly Member, also dismisses these fears, which commonly cite frequent fast food restaurant visits as a nutritional problem, saying it’s “erroneous,” as restaurants have to apply to enroll in the program and be approved by the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance.

Criticizing the excuse of nutrition itself, she references the high sodium content in common TV dinners and soups. “We do not tell individuals, ‘you cannot buy a can of soup,’ ‘you cannot buy a TV dinner.’

Unfortunately, for many of them, that is all they purchase with their SNAP benefits because they have nowhere to prepare fresh meals.”

Derf has heard similar concerns: “That’s the other thing, they’re worried about nutrition, do they have a fucking clue how the shit that we’re eating right now isn’t good for us?”

Asked, in a given month, how much access he has to a kitchen, Derf said none.

“Listen, I’ve done everything a man shouldn’t have to do to survive to eat. Eating out of garbage cans, man, fucking disgusting. It’s the worst. But this, humiliating myself like this every fucking day, it takes a toll.”

But, at least in part, this concern over nutrition and the overtaking of fast food in these RMPs have already stagnated other state’s attempts at implementing it.

Being a federal-state program, it is up to the states to create and implement it, but it requires approval by the USDA. The approval of which was slow-moving when Illinois passed legislation in July 2019 creating the program in their state. It required the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) to start operating it by January 2020, but that date came and passed without that approval.

This was also at a time when the USDA was raising eligibility requirements for SNAP. “I don’t want to say that it is an automatic no, but we do know that there have been some challenges with the current administration and how they view people who receive public benefits and people living in poverty,” Niya Kelly, state legislative director for the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, told Civil Eats in January 2020.

Maryland passed their bill into law in May 2019 with a December 2019 start date, with that date coming and passing without approval as well.

Michigan’s program, on the other hand, doesn’t even have a start date, according to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

Florida, though, actually created a pilot program in a single county in 2009, with only 14 participating restaurants, and meant solely for the homeless. But the program never expanded, and the USDA could only further elaborate that it ended in October of 2018.

According to Derf, people manipulate the SNAP benefits system constantly, be it a vendor that will illegitimately accept EBT, or the people on the street that pay it to get the hot food — breaking the law just to eat something that isn’t cold.

“I’m manipulating the system,” Def freely admits, describing another option where some vendors that sell frozen or uncooked food will just cook it for them.

“But it’s tough, you’re surviving on nickels and dimes.” He gives an example of a 7-11 that will cook a frozen pizza for him, and a fish and chips restaurant that will accept his benefits.

But, he says, the fish and chips was his last decent meal, three weeks prior. “I don’t know what a fucking decent meal is. McDonald’s?”

The Restaurant Meals Program is not common across the country, but states — like Maryland, Michigan, Illinois and New York — are trying to change that. With it would be an enormous change in the availability of food for people, like Derf, who struggle everyday to get by, panhandling to afford any hot food at all.

“I haven’t been able to get anything hot, just sandwiches. It’s not enough, it’s really not enough, because it’s cold food, that’s the fucking problem.

It wouldn’t be if we could just go anywhere to get something to eat.”

Homeless Prevention:

How to Help your Credit Score and Avoid Bad Credit

Beginner tips to bring up your credit score

Avoid homelessness by taking care of your money now.

By Dori Zinn

L

ess than 40 percent of Americans have enough savings to cover an unexpected $1,000 expense, like a car repair or medical bill.

Another 18 percent would have to put the expense on a credit card, meaning they’ll need to pay interest on top of the money they borrow. This is all according to a survey from Bankrate, a personal finance website.

If you don’t have cash on hand to cover an emergency, you could turn to credit cards like that 18 percent, but what if you have bad credit and don’t qualify for one?

These financial issues can lead people to the brink of homelessness, with bad credit making a dire situation even worse. But, you can take steps now to build up your credit and make sure you have options whenever an emergency comes up.

What is credit and why does it matter?

Credit is the act of borrowing money that you’ll pay back later. It comes in the form of credit cards or loans — like home, auto, student, or personal. Usually it’s paid over the course of a few months or years, accruing interest along the way.

Interest is the charge from lenders or credit card issuers for letting you borrow money. It’s a percentage of the loan or charges you build up over time, with most interest charges determined by your credit score and history. The higher your credit score, the lower your interest rate.

Potential lenders and credit card issuers check this credit score — a three-digit number that reflects your credit history — before lending. If your credit score is low, or you don’t have much, or any, sort of history with borrowing money through banks or credit unions, some lenders might be wary, possibly rejecting your application to borrow money outright.

What makes up a credit score?

There are many variations of credit scoring models, but the most widely recognized one is the FICO score.

Your FICO credit score and history are made up of a few different aspects.

• Payment history: This makes up a large portion of your total FICO credit score. The more on-time payments you have, the more your credit score will climb. But, even one late or missed payment can cause your credit score to plummet.

• Amounts owed: This is how much credit you’re using compared to how much available credit you have.

Continually maxing out your credit cards and only making minimum payments results in high credit usage and looks risky to lenders, leading them to believe that you could default. Most lenders want to see borrowers keep their amounts owed to under 30 percent of their possible credit.

• Length of credit history: How long you’ve had credit is not as important as your payment history, but it is a factor. The longer you hold onto active credit cards, the higher your score goes, even if you use those cards sparingly.

• New credit: While new credit applications can cause a small dip in your total credit score, it’s only temporary.

Keep your new applications low, preferably around one to three a year.

• Credit mix: Lenders like to see a variation of credit, including different credit cards and loans. You don’t have to have a lot, but having a few different types of credit can give your score a little boost.

Where to check your credit score

Many banks and credit card issuers have a credit score feature online or through their app. You can also check it at Mint or Credit Karma.

You can also check your credit report — which details your credit history — at AnnualCreditReport.com.

Checking your credit score, and report, is free.

If you’re just starting out, here are some tips to boost your credit score: • Credit builder loan: This is where you make fixed payments to a lender upfront, then you get access to that lump-sum loan at the end of the term. This is rather than a traditional loan, where you receive a lump-sum amount, then you pay back a fixed amount every month for a set amount of time.

A lot of community banks and credit unions offer credit builder loans, but compare lenders to see which ones have the best repayment terms and lowest interest rates.

• Secured credit card: With a normal credit card, purchases are made up to a certain approved credit limit. At the end of the cycle — usually a month — you pay at least the minimum payment, but preferably the entire balance to avoid interest charges.

For secured credit cards, you pay the limit upfront, usually $500 or $1,000 in cash, then make purchases up to this limit. Your limit goes down as the money is used up, and each month you pay upfront again. After a few months of on-time payments and strong credit usage, you could apply for a traditional credit card.

• Authorized user: Ask a trusted friend or relative if they’ll let you become an authorized user on their credit card. If you do so, your credit score will get a boost from their strong credit usage. This only works if the friend or relative has a good or excellent credit history though. Every time they pay off their card in full and keep balances low, you get rewarded for their good behavior. You don’t have to use a card to reap these benefits.

Since this is to build credit, make sure you get a lender that reports your payments to the three major credit bureaus that create your credit report: Experian, Equifax, and Transunion.

How to avoid bad credit

You can use credit cards to build your credit score without falling into deep debt with some simple rules.

• Pay in full every month. Paying off your balance at the end of the month essentially means you get an interest-free loan every month. Set up automatic payments so you never miss a payment.

• Keep usage low. Even if you get approved for a $15,000 credit card limit, that doesn’t mean you need to spend $15,000. Only make purchases you can pay off at the end of the month.

• Ask for help when you need it. If you can’t afford to get a credit card or loan on your own, ask a friend or relative for help. Getting a cosigner with good or excellent credit increases your chance of qualifying and getting the lowest interest rate offered.

• Use on needs — not wants. Use your credit card like a debit card, only spending what you can pay at the end of the month, and only using it to pay for needs like groceries or gas. This helps you avoid unnecessary spending.

Remember that paying off your bill in full every month is one of the best ways to avoid interest charges and falling into massive credit card debt.

The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021 11

The Sandalfoot Laundromat frequented by Mary Stewart | Photo courtesy of Google Maps

The Voice of a Homeless Woman in Boca Raton Mary Stewart tells the difficulties of working on a college degree and bettering herself all while experiencing homelessness in Boca Raton.

By Mary Stewart

I

never thought I would be homeless.

I grew up comfortably in a beautiful threebedroom house in North Palm Beach, Florida, that had a swimming pool in the backyard. I was a spoiled, rotten kid who owned a Lhasa Apso and wore designer clothes.

But, I remember when my grandmother would hand me a dollar for the collection plate at church, I instead insisted on putting it inside their basket marked: “For the Poor.” I explained to my grandmother that the church had money, but the poor had nothing. Little did I know, I would one day be poor myself.

Maybe that is part of the reason that I am so drawn to Boca Raton. It is an upper-middle class community that reminds me of my own childhood neighborhood. I also feel safe there.

Although I love Boca, I certainly don’t recommend it as a place to be homeless. The people of Boca tend to hold themselves to a higher standard. While they have

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“

Although I love Boca, I certainly don’t recommend it as a place to be homeless.”

been very generous to me, and have allowed my kind of people to peacefully coexist in their community, they have zero tolerance for poor hygiene, litter, and being harassed for change every time they pull up at the gas pump.

So, I do my best to look presentable. Last week, I painted my toenails and dyed my hair in the woods, using a $3.00 bottle of hair dye and two jugs of water.

I regularly wash my clothes at the Sandalfoot Square laundromat, and try hard to keep my camp cleaned up.

Once I exit the woods in the morning, I pretty much blend in with the rest of the community. I attend college on a homeless tuition exemption, write blog posts to earn a little money, and dine at local restaurants.

But I feel like an imposter.

At the end of the day, I still sleep outside, and I occasionally need to ask for a little help. Just that alone is considered to be a problem in the eyes of the community and local law enforcement.

I know that my camp will eventually be discovered and I will one day need to move my belongings — that’s if they don’t end up being tossed in the dumpster first. As the saying out here goes: “All good camps come to an end.”

How, then, did a rich kid end up in this predicament?

Honestly, it was a combination of unfortunate circumstances and poor decisions.

At 13, my family refused to pick me up from the hospital, and I’ve never been welcomed home since.

They couldn’t handle my emotional problems — I have high functioning autism, later was diagnosed as bipolar, and, as an adult, developed PTSD from being victimized while homeless.

I spent the remainder of my childhood in group homes and struggled to achieve self-sufficiency as an adult.

Then Hurricane Wilma came and I was introduced to the world of homelessness. When my trailer was destroyed, I was forced to move to motels until I ran out of money, then I ended up sleeping on the floor of a church.

I did manage to get back on my feet, but only to lose everything once again during the economic recession.

When social services took my oldest son from me because I couldn’t afford to care for him, they also took away my motivation to stay sober. I went on a downward spiral of alcoholism that has lasted for ten years and resulted in chronic homelessness.

Last year, I managed to get sober and get off the streets once again, but my husband and I separated and I returned to Palm Beach County. No, I didn’t come back for the beautiful weather. I grew up here, and it’s human nature to run home when you’re in trouble.

Although Boca is still a lovely place, it isn’t the same as it used to be. It gets lonely out here. I once had a group of homeless friends in Boca, and just as the community is unique, so was the local homeless population.

Since it is necessary for one to hold themselves together with dignity in Boca, and it’s hard to find drugs here, most of the local homeless people had a sincere desire to improve their situation. While it’s not the type of place where you can get away with wearing the same outfit for a week, many local businesses do have respect for a down and out person who is willing to work. A few of my friends managed to gain employment.

But they still struggled with finding affordable housing, so most of them relocated, and then successfully got back on their feet. I still keep in touch with them on social media.

A few of my friends didn’t make it though. Sadly, they died as a direct result of chronic alcoholism.

Occasionally, I’ll buy a four-pack of cheap beer and pour some on the ground as a tribute to my dear friends.

The isolation gets the best of me sometimes. I would love to really get to know the residents of Boca, but I feel like I’m a completely different species simply because I sleep in a tent.

Once in a while I will spend ten dollars at the Dollar Tree to put together care packages for the homeless people that I know in Lake Worth. However, even though that crowd consists of some good friends, they are also bad influences. I’ve tried to connect them with resources, but most of them aren’t ready to change.

Many people question my desire to help the homeless given the fact that I am homeless myself, but my generous heart is my secret to survival.

The homeless people of West Boca used to call me the “hundred dollar girl” because I had more hundred dollar bills handed to me than any other panhandler did. Many of them wondered what my secret was, but it wasn’t much of a mystery. Very simply, I shared my blessings with others.

One year, I was panhandling on Glades road when a woman handed me a hundred dollar Walmart gift card.

It was around Christmas, so I spent the card on a huge pack of pork chops and thoughtful gifts for each of my homeless friends. I personally believe that small acts of kindness like that have helped me survive ten years of homelessness.

Changing Lives of Boca, a non-profit that supports homeless men and woman in Boca | Photo courtesy of Google Maps

“

The isolation gets the best of me sometimes. I would love to really get to know the residents of Boca, but I feel like I’m a completely different species simply because I sleep in a tent.”

A private beach on the coast of Boca Raton with apartments costing up to $4,800 a month for one bedroom | Photo courtesy of Apartments.com

While Broward County provides some excellent resources such as the Homeless Voice shelter and Broward Outreach Center, Palm Beach County offers little help to the homeless. All homeless services are funneled through the Lewis Homeless Resource Center, which often has a wait list and only provides ninety days of shelter. Afterwards, the homeless need to go on another waiting list for long term transitional housing.

However, Boca offers free hot lunches at Boca Helping Hands and outreach services through Changing Lives of Boca, which is funded by wealthy philanthropists.

I attend the Saturday outreach services at Changing Lives occasionally and have personally witnessed a couple of homeless people I know successfully turn their lives around as a result of the ministry, but what has touched my heart the most is the kindness of the donors.

One particular investor has taken the time to attend the ministry in an effort to get to know the homeless

people who are being helped by his donations.

One Saturday, he stood up and said that he just couldn’t understand why we wanted to sleep with the mosquitoes — he was trying to encourage us to go into halfway houses. There are plenty of nights that I spend in the woods battling the bugs and humidity only to realize that he has a good point.

I find it to be truly amazing when people like that man make an effort to spend time with the homeless and try to understand us instead of judging us.

I started writing freelance last year, and no longer panhandle as frequently as I once did. I’m also pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Human Services; I want to specialize in homeless outreach and advocacy so that I can help my friends out here.

Homelessness has become an integral part of who I am. Until now, most of my writing has been on topics that I find to be meaningless and frivolous — like windshield replacements, combating mosquitoes, insurance, beauty tips, and, once, a 1000 words about

outdoor lighting. I want the pieces that I write to open eyes and hearts and make an impact.

I hope that any homeless people who read this will be inspired to follow their dreams in life, and team up with others in the same situation so that all of you can work together to lift each other up.

I also hope that any readers who aren’t homeless will realize that homelessness can happen to anyone, given the fact that I come from money. I also hope that they will be inspired by the affluent investor to take the time to meet the homeless before judging us. Even if you can’t afford to fund a ministry, volunteer at a soup kitchen on a Saturday, sit down at a table, and talk to the patrons.

From my experience, I have found that the first step to addressing homelessness is to eliminate the stigma. We are human beings with hopes, dreams, and feelings just like everyone else. The only difference is that we don’t have a house.

The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021 13

Rip Currents Can Kill Rip currents, commonly called “riptides,” are dangerous, but they don’t have to be. Stay informed to stay safe.

By Sean Cononie

Y

ears ago in the Homeless Voice, we would publish stories that educated people on staying safe and staying healthy, as major trauma in someone’s life can cause a family, or an individual, to become dysfunctional, break a family up, cause a substance abuse issue, or cause them to become homeless. We have seen this hundreds of times over the three decades we have been in existence.

So this issue, we are covering riptides.

Beach-goers sometimes see scary-looking warning signs telling them to watch out for rip currents. “Rip” in this case could stand for “rest in peace,” because these currents can be deadly.

In the U.S., 61 people, so far this year, have died from drowning due to rip currents — 19 in Florida alone, according to the National Weather Service. Lifeguards in the U.S. also rescue tens of thousands of swimmers from rip currents every year.

Rip currents may form around low spots in the ocean floor near the shoreline, in breaks between sandbars, or around human-made structures such as jetties and piers. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), they vary from as narrow as 10 feet, to as wide as 200 feet — a fourlane highway being about 80 feet wide.

Limited as they are in size, you don’t want to get caught in a rip current while swimming.

Typically they flow at 1 to 2 feet per second, but they have been known to flow as fast as 8 feet per second, or about 5 miles per hour — faster than an Olympic swimmer. They can sweep the strongest swimmer out to sea.

Some ways to survive a rip current is to continue to breathe, keep your head above water, and don’t exhaust yourself fighting the current. Rip currents pull people away from shore, not under, and listed fatalities due to rip currents are from people swimming directly

An example of a rip current using dye. Notice the lack of waves breaking in the middle of the photo, and how the dyed water, the white cloud, is being carried out | Photo courtesy of NOAA

against the current’s flow, tiring themselves quickly, and drowning due to exhaustion.

You can swim parallel to the shore to escape the rip current, swimming back to shore once the current eases, or continue to float and yell and wave to draw attention to yourself.

Rip currents stay close to shore and usually break up just beyond the line of breaking waves. Occasionally, however, a rip current can push someone hundreds of yards offshore.

You can usually see the signs of a rip current from

Looking for fun and friendly newspaper vendors interested in becoming their own boss.

Contact Ginny: 386-758-8080 14 The Homeless Voice | Vol. 22 Issue 4, October 2021

shore. Often there is an area on the beach where the waves are not breaking, but instead you see sandy water, or the white foam of a current headed back out to sea.

If you have small kids, or even for yourself, go to Youtube and find a video that explains all this, and when you are taking the kids to the beach, have them watch the video a few times. Kids have short attention spans, so show it to them a few days in advance as well as the day of going to the beach. More information can be found on weather.gov/safety/ripcurrent.

Have a journalistic or photography background, and looking for freelancing?

Email us at

andrew@homelessvoice.org

How to Receive a Stimulus Check Without Home Address or Bank Account Those experiencing homelessness are eligible to receive stimulus money and tax benefits.

By Andrew Fraieli

T

hose experiencing homelessness are still able to receive their stimulus checks.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) published a press release on April 15 reiterating details on how Americans without a home address, and without a bank account, may still receive their current and previously unclaimed stimulus checks.

According to the agency, they will issue a check even to those who do not normally file a tax return — anyone who has a social security number and is not a claimed dependent can receive one.

To do so, a “basic 2020 tax return” must be filed with the IRS, and once processed, they will send a check to the address given. They specify that

anyone experiencing homelessness “may list the address of a friend, relative or trusted service provider, such as a shelter, drop-in day center or transitional housing program, on the return filed with the IRS. People do not need a permanent address or a bank account. They don’t need to have a job.”

If someone is experiencing homelessness but also working, the IRS says they may qualify for an Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). This is a tax break for low-income workers, but even those earning less than required to file taxes may qualify.

The online EITC assistant tool can judge eligibility.

Help for filing taxes could also be available to those filing a tax return so as to receive a stimulus

check, or if qualified for EITC. The IRS says the nearest location can be found on their website, or by calling 800-906-9887.

They continue that the 2020 tax return can be filed easiest by using IRS Free File, a tool that allows electronic filing of a tax return for free. If no banking information is provided then a check will be issued to the given address instead of any direct deposit.

Previous stimulus checks can still be claimed through the 2020 tax return as well through claiming the Recovery Rebate Credit according to the IRS — this is done within the 2020 tax return.

More information about the credit can be found on IRS.gov.

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