06 24 2009

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June 24 - July 7, 2009

Where the poor and homeless June 24 to July 7, 2009

earn and give their two cents

D STE GE ON G S U N AT I DO

Volume 6 Issue 17

65 cents for the Vendor

35 cents for production of the paper

Too Hot to Handle Hope for Homeless in a Maryland Community Page 4

Poet David Harris Publishes Book Page 12

Summer Weather Poses Risks to Homeless, see page 5.

Inspiring Night Honors Journalists Page 14

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June 24 - July 7, 2009

1317 G Street, NW Washington, DC 20005 Phone: (202) 347–2006 Fax: (202) 347–2166 info@streetsense.org www.streetsense.org BOARD OF DIRECTORS Kristal DeKleer Lisa Estrada Ted Henson Mary Lynn Jones Sommer Mathis Brad Scriber John Snellgrove Michael Stoops Martin Walker David Walker Kathy Whelpley EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Laura Thompson Osuri EDITOR–IN–CHIEF Mary Otto VENDOR MANAGER Gregory Martin ASSOCIATE EDITOR David S. Hammond (volunteer) VOLUNTEERS/WRITERS

Sherry Antoine, Laura Arico, Robert Basler, Robert Blair, John Brandt, Jane Cave, Carol Cummings, Rebecca Curry, Katie Edson, Andy Freeze, Lisa Gillespie, Cassandra Good, Joanne Goodwin, Roberta Haber, Erica Hall, Carol Hannaford, Justin Herman, Annie Hill, Dan Horner, Phillip Hoying, Kayne Karnbach, Michael Kelly, Maurice King, Geof Koss, Brenda K. Lee-Wilson, Starlett McNeill, Kim O’Connor, Gabriel Okolski, Robert Orifici, Michael O’Neill, Jon Pattee, Katinka Podmankzy, Sarah Pope, Diane Rusignola, Cara Schmidt, Jamie Schuman, Jesse Smith, Christna Studivant, Matthew Taylor, Robert Trautman, Eugene Versluysen, Linda Wang, Denise Wilkins, Marian Wiseman, Corrine Yu

VENDORS

Jake Ashford, Lawrence Autry, Glenn Baldwin, Daniel Ball, Carlie Banks, Kenneth Belkosky, Tommy Bennett, Phillip Black, Reginald Black, Corey Bridges, Michael Brown, Bobby Buggs, Melody Byrd, Cliff Carle, Conrad Cheek, Aaron Conner, Pamela Cooper, Anthony Crawford, Louise Davenport, James Davis, Chino Dean, David Denny, Ricardo Dickerson, Muriel Dixon, Alvin Dixon El, Jerome Douglas, Charles Eatmon, Eric Ellis, Randy Evans, Tanya Franklin, Samuel Fullwood, Roger Garner, Robert Gregory, Barron Hall, David Harris, Dwight Harris, John Harrison, Patricia Henry, Shawn Herring, Michael Higgs, Philip Howard, Lester Irby, Joanna Jackson, Patricia Jefferson, Jewell Johnson, Carlton Johnson, Donald Johnson, Allen Jones, Mark Jones, DeRutter Jones, Clinton Kilpatrick, Brenda Lee-Wilson, Michael Lyons, Kina Mathis, John Matthews, Charlie Mayfield, Herman Mayse, Robert McCray, Jermale McKnight, Jennifer McLaughlin, Jeffery McNeil, Virginia Moore, L. Morrow, Tyrone Murray, Charles Nelson, Sammy Ngatiri, Evelyn Nnam, Larry Olds, Moyo Onibuje, Gregory Phillips, Thomas Queen, Ash-Shaheed Rabbil, Michael Reardon, Jeanette Richardson, Tyrone Rogers, Ed Ross, Chris Shaw, Veda Simpson, Patty Smith, Gerald Smith, Yvette Smith, Franklin Sterling, Warren Stevens, James Stewart, Garland Stroman, Leroy Studevant, Sybil Taylor, Steve Thomas, Eric Thompson, Francine Triplett, Carl Turner, Patsy Uzzell, Martin Walker, Joseph Walker, Lawless Watson, Gregory Wells, Michael J. Welsh, Darrell Whitmyer, Edna Williams, Ivory Wilson, Charles Woods

S treetS ense.org

Our Mission

Street Sense aims to serve as a vehicle for elevating voices and public debate on issues relating to poverty while also creating economic opportunities for people who are experiencing homelessness in our community.

The Story of Street Sense

Street Sense began in August 2003 after two volunteers, Laura Thompson Osuri and Ted Henson, approached the National Coalition for the Homeless on separate occasions about starting a street newspaper in Washington, D.C. A street paper is defined as a newspaper about poverty, homelessness and other social issues that provides an income to the homeless individuals who sell it. About 25 street papers operate in the United States and Canada in places like Seattle, Chicago, Montreal and Boston, and dozens more exist throughout the world.

After bringing together a core of dedicated volunteers and vendors, Street Sense came out with its first issue in November 2003, printing 5,000 copies. For the next three years the paper published on a monthly basis and greatly expanded its circulation and vendor network.

For the first year, Street Sense operated as a project of the National Coalition for the Homeless, but in October 2004, the organization incorporated and moved into its own office space.

In March 2005, Street Sense received 501(c)3 status, becoming a nonprofit organization.

In October 2005 Street Sense formed a full board of directors, and in November the organization hired its first employee, a fulltime executive director.

A year later in November 2006 , the organization hired its first vendor coordinator, and began partnering with several service providers.

In February 2007, the paper started publishing twice a month and to support the increased production, Street Sense brought on its first fulltime editor–in–chief in April.

As of January 2009 the paper has 80 active vendors and prints about 30,000 issues a month.

Do you want to continue to support Street Sense throughout the year?

Order a subscription today!

Not only will you receive 26 issues packed with all our latest news, poetry and photography, you will also help raise awareness about poverty in the D.C. area. ___ YES! I want to subscribe to Street Sense for just $40 a year for 26 issues. ___ YES! I want to give half of the cost of a subscription to my favorite vendor: ________________________________ Name: _______________________________ Address: ______________________________ _____________________________________ City:__________________________________ State:__________________ Zip: __________ Phone: _______________________________ E-mail: _______________________________ Please make checks payable to: Street Sense.

Mail to: Street Sense, 1317 G St. NW, Washington, DC 20005.

We are proud members of: North American Street Newspaper Association

International Network of Street Papers

Last Month’s Donors Darren Abernethy Lena Aburdene Fahah Ashraf Susan Marie Branting Russell C. Capps Cathleen A. Clinton Barbar Gilbert-Chen Jack and Amana Cutts Anne Dellinger Lisa Estrada Lara Thornely Hall Paul Hare Nicol Harkin Sarah Heaton Sandra Hoffman J. Johnson Jason Johnson Peter Johnson Jarroda Kelsaw Phyllis Kimmel Julia Knox Danielle Kwateng Valerie Lee

Mary L. Liepold David Martin Erica Mason Michael Mavretic Melani McAlister Pender M McCarter Margaret McNaughton Sharyn Meister Glenn Osaka Jennifer E. Park Maite Rodriguez Kimberly Ross Natasha Scott Elizabeth Stein Virginia R. Tauss Abby Thomas Lisa Tunick Anita Wallgren A special thanks to Renae & Chad Campbell Brenda Edwards Robin Goracke

Thank You!

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June 24 - July 7, 2009

IN OTHER NEWS Compiled by Vanessa Voigt Hundreds of Homeless in Sydney, Australia now Wearing Prada Eyeglasses OneSight, a charitable foundation, partnered with Salvation Army, has given hundreds of residents at the Foster House homeless shelter in Sydney’s Surry Hills free eye exams and designer eyeglasses this month.

In the first two days of the venture, which started on June 15, 237 homeless received free eye tests, and 182 eyeglasses were made.

According to the Australian Associated Press, 80 % of the glasses were recycled or from surplus stocks from eyewear retailers.

The Salvation Army Major Marina Randall said this venture is important because for many homeless, eye tests are not a priority, but good vision is so important for a livable life.

OneSight operates in Australia, the United States, and Italy.

They have a global program that outreaches to developing countries, then regional and community programs that provide free eye care in their home countries. They also have a preventative program, that does research on the disorders that affect vision.

For more information, get a vision test of become involved, visit www.onesight.org.

Severe Hail Storm in Eastern China leaves Thousands Homeless Hail storms in the eastern China province of Anhui, one of the poorest parts of the country, destroyed 9,000 homes, leaving 14 dead, 180 injured, and over 10,000 homeless, said the Civil Affairs bureau in Anhui.

According to France 24 International News, this second storm caused 65 million dollars in damage.

Anhui is experiencing typhoon season, and this was the second disastrous storm this month. The first one killed 23 people and injured 200.

China officials fear further storms, and contingency plans are needed.

SunWise Hands Out Free Sunscreen for the Homeless in Edinburgh, Scotland SunWise, a charity organization dedicated to offering skin protection to the poor, is distributing free sunscreen lotion to the homeless at hostels, hospitals and other health facilities throughout Edinburgh this summer.

According to BBC News, UK, “Malignant melanoma is the most rapidly increasing cancer in the UK, largely due to sun exposure.”

The organization posted posters throughout the city, to give the homeless information how to obtain their sunscreen.

Fifty Homeless and Formally Homeless to Earn Associate’s Degrees at St. John’s University The New York Department of Homeless Services unveiled a new program June 11 that will enroll 47 homeless or formally homeless people at St. John’s University to earn an associate’s degree.

The DHS program, called the Advantage Academy, will provide the homeless and formally homeless with an education in the fields of Information Technology and Business, the New York DHS news release said.

According to Newsday, in addition to the DHS paying tuition for these 40 scholars, they will also provide free housing, school supplies and other special services.

School supplies include books, laptops, and even notebooks and pencils, said Dr. James Pellow, executive vice president of St. John’s campus in TriBeCa. Robert V. Hess, commissioner of the Department of Homeless Services, said the goal of Advantage Academy is to help empower the program’s students to be self-sufficient, and earn a livable income.

In New York, the average income for a person with an associate’s degree is $44,000, which is 30% higher than for those who do not have such degree, said the NYCDHS.

Donate to Street Sense My Information

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Name:_______________________________________________________ Address:_____________________________________________________ City/State/Zip:_______________________________________________ Phone:_______________________E-mail:_________________________

___ $50 for two vendor awards each month

Please make checks payable to Street Sense Street Sense is a 501(c)(3), nonprofit organization.

All donations are tax deductible.

Mail to: Street Sense, 1317 G St. NW, Washington, DC 20005.

You can also donate online at www.streetsense.org

___ $70 for food for vendor meetings ___ $100 for postage each month ___ $200 for the vests of 15 new vendors ___ $500 for rent for vendor office ___ $1,200 for the printing of one issue ___ Another amount of $_______ ___ Another amount of $_______ for vendor: ________________

In Kind Donations Needed * Messenger and tote bags and backpacks for vendors

* Laptop computers with at least Windows 2000

* Bottled water to hand out to vendors

and 10 GB of storage space

* Food for vendor meetings

* Laser color printer

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June 24 - July 7, 2009

Dangerous Summer Heat Often Overlooked

By Josh Miller

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esources for surviving the heat will be harder to come by this summer for the District’s homeless population.

The D.C. government will again open cooling centers offering access to air-conditioned spaces but, due to budget cuts, will no longer provide water during heat emergencies.

“I think that’s troubling because water is very important in dealing with people who are outside in the heat,” said Mary Ann Luby, outreach worker for the Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless. “You couldn’t have tap water and use a filter? I often think there are things that are considered problems that have easy solutions.”

The D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency (HSEMA) has made the threshold for issuing alerts slightly more rigid this year. HSEMA will declare emergencies when the ambient temperature hits or exceeds 95 degrees (or when the National Weather Service forecasts such heat). HSEMA last year used the heat index, which factors in humidity and often surpasses ambient temperatures.

The trigger when the District first be-

Cooling Centers:

1. One Judiciary Square, 441 4th Street, NW 2. Frank D. Reeves Center, 2000 14th Street, NW 3. King Office Building, 3720 Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, SE 4. 920 Rhode Island Avenue, NE

Emergency Homeless Facilities for women:

1. Open Doors, 425 2nd Street, NW 2. House of Ruth, 651 10th Street, NE 3. John Young Shelter, 425 D Street, NW 4. Building 9, 1900 Massachusetts Avenue, SE

Emergency Homeless Facilities for men:

1. 801 East Homelessness Assistance Center, St. Elizabeth’s Campus 2. New York Avenue Shelter, 1355-57 New York Avenue, NE 3. La Casa Trailer, 1436 Irving Street, NW 4. Adams Place Shelter, 2210 Adams Place, NE

gan its heat emergency program had been an ambient temperature of 100 degrees.

“Ninety-five [degrees] is not terrific; that’s really hot!” said Luby. “It’s better than 100, but probably should be 85 according to what I think.”

Easing life for homeless people in the District during high temperatures deserves a greater degree of urgency, according to Paul Amara, program director at the 801 East Homelessness Assistance Shelter.

“In the winter, the capacity at shelters increases and we have extra food,” he said. “The same sense of seriousness is not seen with hyperthermia (severe heat stroke) as it is with hypothermia and, for me, it’s equally dangerous.”

The natural tendency is for people to consider the cold more dangerous than the heat contributes to the awareness gap, said Hilary Espinosa, First Helping outreach manager for D.C. Central Kitchen.

“The warmth doesn’t hurt as badly as the cold does so you forget to think about it as an issue, and also I think there’s such a highlight in the winter because it coincides with the holiday caring season,” she said. “There should be a shift in consciousness because homelessness exists 365 days a year and people can do a kind gesture for a stranger in July.”

HSEMA coordinates the heat emergency response plan but other agencies are charged with its implementation.

“We needed to put something in place because experience taught us people are vulnerable to severe heat,” said Jo’Ellen Countee, public information officer for HSEMA. The plan extends hours at eight homeless shelters — four for men and four for women — and opens street showers, public pools and cooling centers.

According to homeless outreach workers, however, broken or overworked air conditioners hinder the effectiveness of shelters. Lack of communication about the opening and closing of centers, poor proximity to homeless hangouts and hostile security guards can further discourage homeless residents from utilizing the cooling centers, or even where water is available.

“After about 15 minutes in the air conditioning, a security guard asks you to leave — I just described a cooling center,” said Nechama Masliansky, senior advocacy advisor for So Others Might Eat. Countee disagreed.

“That has not been my experience,” she said. “There’s no published time limit and people can be there as long as needed.”

The Office of Property Management is charged with operating the emer-

gency cooling centers — from noon to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday, during extreme heat — in the lobbies of the following buildings: One Judiciary Square, 441 4th Street, NW; Frank D. Reeves Center, 2000 14th Street, NW; King Office Building, 3720 Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, SE; and 920 Rhode Island Avenue, NE. The United Planning Organization canvasses various areas in vans and shuttles residents to cooling centers. The heat emergency hotline is 1-800-535-7252.

The 1995 Chicago heat wave, which contributed to more than 600 fatalities in a week, prompted the D.C. government and many other municipalities nationwide to develop heat emergency response plans. Determining death tolls from hyperthermia, or severe heat stroke, in D.C., however, has proven difficult for homeless advocates.

The D.C. Office of the Chief Medical Examiner recorded zero hyperthermia deaths in 2007 and has yet to confirm figures for 2008. Two District residents who died during an August 2006 heat wave may have been homeless, according to a Washington Post report.

National figures are similarly fuzzy.

The American Journal of Public Health in 2004 reported heat waves since 1998 had caused 400 weather-related fatalities, more than any other natural disaster. A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, meanwhile, revealed 688 people died yearly on average from 1999 to 2003. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency website, on the other hand, 175 people die each year from exposure to extreme heat.

“Medical research shows that more people die during the heat than during the cold,” Luby said. “Yet we never have any deaths reported from the heat.”

If not the cause of death, heat is known to exacerbate pre-existing conditions that can lead to loss of life.

“There are people who die in the shelters but it’s hard to know if they died from the heat or other underlying issues,” Masliansky said. “Part of the problem is a backlog at the Chief Medical Examiner to reveal the cause of death. It would help to at least have a date so that we could go back and check the weather conditions for that day.”

The adverse impact of severe heat is greater on the young and old as well as on people who have liver and heart problems, take mental health medications or abuse alcohol. Not only do homeless residents possess many of these traits, outreach workers said, but they also face heightened risk due to increased exposure to the elements.

Street Sense vendor Jake Ashford, homeless since 2002 before moving into an apartment in February, knows

The warmth doesn’t hurt as badly as the cold does so you forget to think about it as an issue, and also I think there’s such a highlight in the winter because it coincides with the holiday caring season.

There should be a shift in consciousness because homelessness exists 365 days a year and people can do a kind gesture for a stranger in July.

-Hillary Espinosa, First Helping outreach manager for D.C. Central Kitchen

the dangers of mixing alcohol and high temperatures.

“I had two buddies — Otis and Bill — who died from drinking when it was hot as hell out,” he said. “That happened up at 21st and New Hampshire [NW].”

The key to surviving the summertime, according to Ashford, 50, is to find a way off of the streets.

“I worked at a temp service during the day,” he said. “During the day, sitting around outside not doing anything was bad.”

Ultimately, Ashford said, homeless residents must do as much as they can to keep themselves safe.

“People have to take care of themselves because you can see what a hard time the government is having,” Ashford said. “I would say stay away from crowds, too. The air condition won’t keep 1,000 people cool.”

Concerned citizens, meanwhile, should still contribute, outreach workers said.

Espinosa pinpointed water, food, deodorant, T-shirts and socks as items particularly in demand during the summer.

“Think about the things you need in the heat,” she said. “The chances are a shelter or someone on the street could use those things too.”

For more information on the cooling centers and emergency homeless facilities, visit: http://dcema.dc.gov or call 1-800-535-7252.

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June 24 - July 7, 2009

MontCo Celebrates New Homeless Facility

By Liane Schmersahl In the beginning, there were the trailers. The trailers filled. Next, there was a too-small building and a growing need for space.

Now, after months of more trailers, renovations, and temporary placements, Rockville’s renovated Gude Drive Complex, a “public-private partnership providing emergency shelter, temporary housing, and a range of on-site supportive services to homeless men in Montgomery County,” has the room it needs.

On Thursday, June 18, the partnering organizations dedicated to the development of the Gude Drive Complex gathered together to celebrate the ribbon cutting for two new buildings. Sharan London, the executive director for the Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless (MCCH), recognized it as the “physical transformation of this complex and the transformation of the men who live here.”

County Executive Isiah Leggett counted the development as a success for Montgomery County.

“Success is not what we do for those on top,” he said. “The success of Montgomery County depends on what we do for the least of these in our society.”

The complex is home to the Home Builders Care Assessment Center, which provides emergency and hypothermia shelter, the offices for the MCCH, and Adrianne’s Safe Havens and the Chase Partnership

Success is not what we do for those on top..The success of Montgomery County depends on what we do for the least of these in our society.

- Isiah Leggett County Executive

House, both transitional housing programs.

The Home Builders Care Assessment Center provides 24-hour emergency shelter for 135 residents.

Though the building has stood since 2000, there has been a much greater demand for homeless services.

The recent development project provided room for 35 more men with a 3,780 square foot addition that allows for new laundry equipment, medical examination rooms, a computer lab, and meeting space.

The project also provided a new, 14,520 square foot shared facilities building for the Chase Partnership House and Adrianne’s Safe Havens, as well as the MCCH offices. The Chase Partnership House, which operates separately from MCCH, provides transitional housing for 35 homeless men in substance abuse recovery. Adrianne’s Safe Havens offers transitional housing for 15 homeless men who struggle with mental illnesses.

One emergency resident, James Toler, who has lived at Gude Drive since April, called the complex “the Hilton of shelters.” While the emergency beds are arranged in bunks and rows, Adrianne’s Safe Haven and the Chase Partnership House both offer more private living arrangements, with one to four residents per room. Though he has only lived at the complex since April, he also recalled a visit in 2000, when “Adrianne’s Safe Haven and the Chase Partnership House were in bad condition.”

This multi-partner project goes beyond simply housing Montgomery County’s homeless, however.

The MCCH and the Community Ministries of Rockville provide residents with vocational training and counseling, educational resources, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, and psychological counseling.

According to MCCH Vocational Counselor Doyle Currey, about 30 percent of the men in the vocational counseling program are placed in jobs during their stay. Some aspects of the vocational counseling include assessment tests, resume writing, interview practice, job readiness classes, and Internet job searching.

One Street Sense vendor and Montgomery County resident knows first hand what an impact the shelters have had on the community and in his life. Vendor Sean Riley has lived in both the Home Builders Care Assessment Center (or “the big house” as residents call it) and the Chase Partnership House, where he

lives currently. Riley has lived in D.C. and Montgomery County shelters and now, with the help of the Chase Partnership House, is seeking his Bachelor’s degree for physical therapy from Montgomery College.

“I have brand new opportunities here,” he said.

“They can serve a lot more people at the bigger shelters in D.C., but there’s more of a one-on-one approach here. We have resources.”

Riley’s next door neighbor and co-Street Sense vendor, Lester Myers, agrees.

“Thanks to this place, I have no reason or excuse to relapse again. Before, I was beginning to give up hope, thinking things couldn’t get any better. I’m feeling great now,” Myers said.

Myers’s account confirms the vision of County Council President Phil Andrews, who said he hopes the new buildings are “Not just a shelter for homeless men, but a place of hope for homeless men.”

One resident, Andrew Hampton, 63, reflected on his predicament. “I never thought I’d be homeless,” he said, “but then again, never say never.” Hampton is currently waiting on housing, and says that he’s thankful for the services provided at the Gude Drive Complex, “it makes you stronger,” he said.

The entire development project cost about $6.6 million, and was funded from both government and community efforts, and hopefully, the Montgomery County community will see positive results.

According to the Montgomery County Homeless Enumeration Narrative Report for 2009, there are 1,247 counted as homeless in Montgomery County – a nine percent increase since 2007. At least 500 of these are single adult men.

However, the report states that “possibly due to additional shelter availability,” the population of unsheltered and street homeless in the county decreased by 47 percent from 2008.

The problem of homelessness is increasingly prevalent in Montgomery County and the nation, but it is the hope of the Rockville and Montgomery County communities that this project will bring what Leggett called “humane and sanitary help” to the area’s homeless men.

“It’s not over today,” said Ted Smart, president of the Home Builders Care Foundation. “But it’s a start.”

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June 24 - July 7, 2009

Family Homelessness Rises in DC Area Annual count shows impact of recession

By Mary Otto The Washington region has seen an increase in homelessness over the past year, particularly among families, according to an annual survey of streets, shelters, soup kitchens and other programs that serve the indigent.

The ninth annual homeless count, compiled for the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, found a total of 12,035 literally homeless men, women and children living in shelters, transitional housing and out of doors in the District and its suburbs.

That shows an increase of approximately 2% over 2008.

Most striking was the increase in family homelessness, up 15.4% since 2008, according to the data gathered throughout the region by teams of volunteers and program caseworkers on a single bitterly cold day and night in January of this year.

“What really pops out is the percentage of increase in the family side,” said Tom Fredericksen, research associate at the Community Partnership for the Prevention of Homelessness.

Fredericksen said he believes the increase was an indicator of hardships associated with the troubled housing market and the recession.

“It’s just a sign of the times,” said

Fredericksen, who presented an analysis of the annual count at the June meeting of the area’s Coalition of Homeless and Housing Organizations, or COHHO. The enumeration identified a total of 5,293 homeless people living in families in the District and in suburban areas of Virginia and Maryland this year – up from 4,566 in 2008. This year’s total included 3,275 children identified as literally homeless, 396 more than last year.

And among adults in the families, more than 40% across the region were working, with the percentage even higher in some suburban jurisdic-

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tions. In Prince William County, Va., for example, 67% of adults in homeless families were homeless despite being employed.

The annual survey is conducted in compliance with rules laid down by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which funds programs for the homeless nationwide. In accordance with HUD’s definition of homelessness, the count does not include people who are “doubled up” in housing with relatives or others, although many of those individuals are considered by advocates to be living at great risk and in great need.

In one hopeful sign, the count found fewer single homeless adults in the region this year – a total of 6,742, A Reconciling representing a Congregation 6.5% decrease from last year’s count.

Invites you to join us in That reduction worship on Sundays coincides with at 9:30 and 11:00 AM Housing First efforts in the District Homeless Outreach and in suburban Hospitality: communities.

Fridays 9:00 AM Those programs a re d e s i g n e d t o Foundry United move the most vulMethodist Church th nerable, chronical1500 16 Street, NW ly homeless people Washington, DC 20036 off the streets and (202) 332-4010 out of emergency www.foundryumc.org shelters.

They are placed in permanent supportive hous-

FOUNDRY

ing programs that offer apartments, medical and emotional counseling and other assistance, according to Michael Ferrell, chairman of the Council of Government’s Homeless Services Committee and executive director of the Washington, D.C. Coalition for the Homeless.

The supportive housing programs which are being implemented in cities nationwide ease suffering and also save money, advocates say, because they stop the cycle of homeless people moving in and out of shelters, hospitals and jails. A total of 5,204 adults now live in permanent supportive housing throughout the region, according to the report, a 13.2% increase over the past four years.

“More jurisdictions are adopting the idea of using permanent supportive housing as a way of addressing the problem,” said Ferrell. “That’s good news. People are not standing still wringing their hands. They are doing something to move people toward permanent supportive housing and selfsufficiency.’”

The 2009 report provides only a glimpse of the region’s homeless population, captured on a single day. But over the past nine years the effort has provided useful insights into trends in homelessness and how well existing programs meet people’s needs, said Skip Watkins, who works at the CCNV shelter in the District and serves as coconvener of COHHO. “With these numbers, we can look at what government is doing and what you advocates are doing and if you are doing a good job,” Watkins told the COHHO meeting.

S treetS ense.org

June 24 - July 7, 2009

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Florida Tent City Offers Hope to Homeless given night during a one-month period. Between 2.5 million and 3.5 million Americans experience homelessness for at least one night in a year.

The alliance said it expects more than 1 million people to become homeless as a result of the current recession.

The End Is Not Near

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By Robert Green St Petersburg, Fla. - A Florida tent city for hundreds of homeless people lies at the end of a dead-end street, but residents say they have not given up hope of a better life despite the U.S. economic downturn.

The Pinellas Hope camp, 250 single-person tents in neat rows on land owned by the Catholic Diocese of St. Petersburg in a wooded area north of the city, has room for about 270 people and has been filled to capacity since it opened two years ago.

"I could open the gates and have over 500 people," said Sheila Lopez, the chief operating officer for Catholic Charities at the St. Petersburg diocese.

The camp has a food hall, bathrooms and showers, a laundry room and a few computers for residents to look for jobs and prepare resumes.

"This is a great place to be. It gives us a great opportunity," said Alex, a resident who declined to give his last name. "We have a safe place to live. It sure beats sleeping on the street."

The number of homeless people in the United States, one of the wealthiest countries in the world, is difficult to pin down, advocacy groups say, because most people are homeless for only a short period of time.

The National Alliance to End Homelessness estimates about 675,000 people are homeless on any

ent cities have sprouted across the United States, and advocates believe they could represent the leading edge of a wave of homelessness in the coming months as U.S. unemployment, nearing 10%, rises.

"I don't think we've begun to see the end of it. I think the challenges remain significant and they remain in front of us," said Ron Book, chairman of the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust, where calls to a homeless hotline have quadrupled in the last year.

Florida, where unemployment has soared as the recession put out of work thousands of people employed on construction sites during the housing boom, has nearly 50,000 homeless, according to the alliance.

Nearly 6,500 of those are in the Tampa area.

Asked about the proliferation of tent cities at a news conference in March, U.S. President Barack Obama said it was "not acceptable for children and families to be without a roof over their heads in a country as wealthy as ours."

He cited his jobs programs and spending on infrastructure as ways of combating the problem.

In some places, tent cities are discouraged. In Seattle, for example, authorities arrested and moved homeless people from a tent encampment — called Nickelsville as a protest of Mayor Greg Nickels' policies — on city land last fall. Some of those people have recently returned.

In Sacramento, California's capital, authorities dismantled an illegal encampment of more than 100 people and moved the residents into shelters or permanent housing.

Pinellas Hope was welcomed by St. Petersburg. Mayor Rick Baker said

the city contributed $250,000 to the camp last year and city crews helped clear the land.

"We're very supportive of Pinellas Hope. Catholic Charities is particularly good at running this," he said.

No Families, No Drugs

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had been at Pinellas Hope for two months.

"You can't complain. The people are really wonderful," he said.

Scott said he had applied for a job retraining program that was part of Obama's economic stimulus plan, but after being told he qualified, he got a message saying no new applicants were being accepted.

Lopez said it costs $2.6 million a year to run the camp, with about half of the money coming from donations of food and other items.

Pinellas Hope replaced a tent city in downtown St. Petersburg that was closed two years ago. Police forced residents to leave and slashed some tents.

Lopez said 80 one-person wooden huts were being added to the tents.

She said the diocese hoped to build apartments on the land, which is far from any residential neighborhoods.

A copy of the Ten Commandments is posted prominently, along with signs calling for peace, joy, love and kindness.

"Hopefully, we can save some souls," Lopez said.

he camp's residents range in age from 18 to mid-70s. No families are allowed.

Camp rules include no drugs, no alcohol and no violence. Residents come and go during the day but there is a curfew at 10:30 p.m. curfew during the week and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.

Other rules tell residents to be courteous and respectful and to pick up after themselves.

Bob Kinzie, 58, said he has lived at the tent city for six months after losing his job with a security company.

Clean-shaven and neatly dressed in a T-shirt and pants, he said he was renting a home before he lost his job and his car and ended up at the camp.

"It's what you make of it. It's livable," Kinzie said. "I'll come out of this."

Courtesy of Reuters © Street News SerPeople are referred to the tent city vice: www.street-papers.org by teams of local police and social workers. Once they are accepted, residents are assigned to case workers to try to help them get jobs.

Lopez said My clients are using the average stay is about “Web to Print” solutions like 77 days but many stay “Personalized URLs” and “Variable Data” longer. to develop targeted messages Scott, who for their prospects. also declined to give his last name, Try something new. Ed Bracken said he lost 703-587-7582 M his job building boats beebracken@graphtec.com cause of the www.CGXSolutions.com A CONSOLIDATED GRAPHICS COMPANY recession and

Increase your direct marketing response rates with 1 TO 1 MARKETING

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June 24 - July 7, 2009

Night of Hope for the Homeless

By Lee Davis On the last Saturday of every month some 20 volunteers from Mercy Ministries in Woodbridge, Va., bring food and water to the homeless at McPherson Square Park in Washington, D.C. And every June, Director Lynda Watt brings roughly 200 volunteers to the park for a Night of Hope outreach get-together. Musical entertainment for the homeless can be had, as well as a free shower, free haircut, foot soak and pedicure.

Free food, clothing, and Bibles are also distributed, but you may have to wait in line for these.

Watt says volunteers have come from as far away as Georgia and North Carolina for this yearly Mercy Ministries event, which this month

celebrates seven years of outreach to the homeless.

Pastor Athan Birch of First Church of the Nazarene of Woodbridge, home of Mercy Ministries, says his goal is to help people see God as relevant and to develop relationships with God and with other people.

At this year’s Night of Hope, held on Saturday, June 20, organizers said that 50 homeless people took free showers, 50 to 60 enjoyed foot soaks and pedicures, 113 got haircuts and 400 were fed. And the smiles? They were endless.

If you would like to be a part of this outreach program, contact First Church of the Nazarene in Woodbridge, Va., at 703-670-2252.

Above: A guest chooses from the free clothing offered at a clothing table. Right: A guest enjoys a cool watermelon snack in the shade. Top Right: A volunteer provides a free haircut. Below: Volunteers Mary, Patricia and Joel. Photos by Lee Davis.

S treetS ense.org

June 24 - July 7, 2009

Stacy from Malibu: Part III The Case of the Missing Person

By Ivory Wilson

W

hat Mrs. Fine Taylor didn’t tell Stacy was that the only reason she supports Charles in his Import/Export business in New Orleans is because she has Charles spy on Sam for her. Charles takes pictures for Mrs. Taylor to keep her updated on Sam’s progress in life. Mrs. Fine Taylor warned Charles under no circumstance to tell what he is doing, not to tell Tina she has a sister and not to get close to Sam while taking her picture.

Mrs. Fine Taylor doesn’t know that a few months back Sam was sitting in a park reading a book while Charles was across the street taking pictures of her. Sam spotted Charles and approached him and asked why he was taking her picture. Charles quickly replied that he was planning to open a new magazine in New Orleans and was taking pictures of everyday people for it. Sam asked Charles to sit in the park with her and tell her more about his magazine. She could tell Charles wasn’t from there and she also liked his curly black hair. Charles got caught up in Sam’s beauty and forgot the warning from Mrs. Fine Taylor. Charles took Sam to dinner and it wasn’t long before they were in her bedroom playing bedroom symphony.

Tina became suspicious of Charles traveling to New Orleans and staying for long periods of time. Tina thought Charles was having an affair and seeing another woman.

Tina slept with the pool boy, Dennis, paying him to follow Charles to New Orleans to spy on him. Dennis found out that Charles was seeing another woman whose name was Sam and he reported the news to Tina. After hearing the news, Tina in a jealous rage asked Dennis to help get rid of Sam. Dennis waited outside Sam’s apartment and when she came out for her nightly walk, he kidnapped her, stabbed her to death and tossed her body into the Gulf.

Tina didn’t know she had just organized the murder of her half-sister Sam. Stacy flies to New Orleans and gets a rental car to drive to the church parish to talk to the sisters who raised Sam. Stacy wants to know, when was the last time they saw Sam? The Sisters say that they go for a walk through the park every day at 3 and a few months ago they saw Sam sitting in the park talking to a young man. They didn’t stop to talk with her, just waved “hi.” When Stacy asks if they remember what he looked like, they say no, because it was from a distance that they saw him. All they remember is that he had some pretty black hair. Stacy then shows the sisters a picture of Charles and Tina, and the sisters exclaim that, “yes, that is the young man.”

Stacy thanks them for their help and turns to walk away.

Stacy thinks to himself my, Charles, you have been doubling your pleasures. It is Mardi Gras day and Stacy knows the first place to look for any missing person is the morgue.

Stacy stops on Bourbon Street in the French Quarter.

Stacy is standing against a wooden billboard looking at all the people in their colorful costumes and watching a lady throw beads to the crowd, when a knife comes flying at him. The knife goes through his suit, sticking near his arm pit. Stacy pulls the knife out and looks at it and thinks someone is trying to tell me I need a shave.

Stacy gets to the morgue and finds out a young Jane Doe washed on shore a few days ago. When Stacy asks to see her, he confirms it is Sam. Stacy thinks Well, Mrs. Fine Taylor, you don’t have to worry anymore about losing your fortune.

Stacy flies back to Washington, D.C., gets in his rental car, and drives to his office to shower and change into another suit before going to see Mrs. Fine Taylor. Stacy calls the two hot-shot D.C. homicide detectives who helped him with his first case. He tells them about Sam and asks them to meet him at 1313 Maywood in 3 hours. They say they’ll be there.

Before going to see Mrs. Fine Taylor, Stacy stops at 7th and E streets, NW at the Chophouse for a steak dinner.

Walking to the restaurant he sees the Street Sense salesman. The salesman says, “Stacy, my man, I read about you in The Washington Post, about that big case that you just solved.”

Stacy grins and asks “Do you have a paper for me?” Stacy gives the salesman $100 for the paper and tells him, “Keep the change. I may need your help some day.” Stacy asks, “What’s this store, ‘Tangy Sweet’?” The salesman tells him it’s a new hot spot for the young. Stacy then says, “Humm ... may stop in on my way back.”

Stacy walks into the Chophouse and a sexy brunette with blue eyes says, “Follow me.”

As she is walking Stacy is looking at her rump roast thinking that’s a meal I want. Stacy sits down and the beautiful brunette asks if he is ready to order. Stacy smiles and says “I already have.” She smiles and Stacy asks her name.

It is Tasty. Stacy says, “Tasty? Why tasty?”

Tasty says, “Because I’m sweet.”

Stacy says, “I can tell.”

Tasty leans over, puts her breasts in his face and licks her lips. Tasty tells Stacy she’ll get off work in a couple of hours.

She tells him, “I have some sweet cream you can taste.”

Stacy thinks he can go to hit this and that it will be a tasty dessert after his meal. Stacy tells her he’d like to taste her, but he’s on a case and has some important business to take care of first.

Tasty says “OK,” then leans over again, this time kissing him and pushing her tongue in his mouth. She tells him she’ll be here.

Stacy drives to Mrs. Fine Taylor’s. Stacy gets out of his car, Charles comes walking out the door and gets into his car. Stacy thinks to himself, just the person I want to see.

Stacy says, “Charles, I need to ask you some questions.”

Charles looks at Stacy and says, “I don’t know you. What do you want?”

Stacy tells him, “I’m a P.I. working on a case for Mrs. Fine Taylor. Don’t fool with me, Charles. I know you’ve been sleeping with Sam. Sam is dead. Did you kill her?”

“No, I didn’t kill her,” Charles says.

Stacy says, “Don’t leave town. I have some more things to ask you.”

Charles says, “I’ll be in my office in Chinatown.”

Mitch, the butler, is at the window listening to their conversation and hears it all. He opens the door before Stacy can ring the bell. Stacy thinks that Mitch just got some hot news. Mrs. Fine Taylor and Tina are in her room, talking.

Stacy walks in and says, “Mrs. Fine Taylor, I need a word with you in private.”

Mrs. Fine Taylor says, “Tina, please give me and Mr. Stacy a moment.” Tina walks out of the room, closing the door behind her, but not all the way so she can still hear them.

Stacy says, “Your daughter Sam is dead. She has been murdered.”

Mrs. Fine Taylor falls on her knees crying, saying, “Oh my Sam. I’m so sorry I didn’t come get you.”

Tina comes rushing into the room, saying, “Mother you had another daughter before me? And kept it a secret from me all these years? Why?” Tina starts crying and screaming and runs out of the room.

Stacy walks to the window and looks out at the pool to see where Tina is running to.

Stacy can see Tina, angry with the pool boy. She is shouting at him and pushing him.

Stacy asks, “How long has that pool boy been working for you?”

Mrs. Fine Taylor says, “Who? Dennis? About a year. He came here after leaving a traveling carnival. He was a knife thrower.”

Stacy says, “I’ll be b a c k .” St a c y walks to the pool.

Tina is standing there crying. Dennis doesn’t see Stacy walk up. Dennis has three knives in his hand.

De n n i s h a s b e e n throwing knives at a target.

Dennis turns to throw a knife at the target. Stacy takes out the knife Dennis had thrown into the target and says, “You’re missing one, Dennis. Now you have your set back.” Dennis turns to try to stick Stacy with a knife. Stacy punches him in the stomach and in the face and Dennis falls backwards into the pool. Stacy pulls out his Colt and cocks it and says, “Get out, Dennis. The New Orleans police want to see you.”

Mrs. Fine Taylor looks out the window and comes running down. She asks Dennis, “Did you murder my daughter? You bastard!”

Dennis looks at Tina and says, “It was your daughter who had me kill Sam.” Mrs. Fine Taylor is at a loss for words.

Tina says, “I didn’t know, God. I didn’t know that Sam was my sister. I’m so sorry mother. I thought she was just another woman Charles was sleeping with.”

The two metro homicide detectives come walking to the pool. Stacy asks, “How did you get in?” They say the door was wide open.

Stacy says, “Where’s Mitch?” He runs to the front door and sees the Rolls Royce is gone.

Stacy jumps into his car, knowing Mitch was going after Charles. Stacy drives to Chinatown and, walking toward Charles’ office, he hears a loud noise of breaking glass.

Stacy looks up and Charles flies in the air and lands in the middle of the street. Stacy looks up at the window and sees Mitch. Mitch comes out of the office and walks over to Stacy. Mitch says, “There’s no need. I did it.” He decreed it for destroying the Taylors.

Stacy thinks sex, jealousy, fortune can get a man knocked off.

The next morning Stacy is sleeping in his chair behind his desk. Tamika walks in and says, “Stacy, you were gone three days and I was worried about you so I called Tyrone to go look for you and he checked all the hospitals in Southeast.”

Stacy grins and says, “Tamika, make me some coffee.”

The phone rings. Tamika answers, smacking her gum, and says, “Stacy Investigations.”

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June 24 - July 7, 2009

gREGORY’S gREAT gAME Vendor Gregory Martin loves to create seek-and-find puzzles and drive the Street Sense staff crazy trying to find their answers. Below is his latest puzzle. Good Luck!

Find Our Interns & Volunteers F

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The Fourth of U-Lie

Beyond the Silence

By Shawn Herring

By Veda Simpson

You lied I’ve tried To believe I can’t conceive Your thoughts of freedom Isn’t freedom a statue On the Capitol dome?

Can I cross your door?

May I sleep on your floor?

Would you take me in?

Could I be your friend?

Would you accept me as I am?

Would you really give a damn?

Am I just that slave your ancestors had?

Does seeing me sad make you glad?

Once again it’s my task To ask Isn’t freedom a statue On the Capitol dome?

Where’s my home??

Where’s my home???

Dammit. Where’s my home?????

A voice . . . a vision . . . a spark . . . a flame . . . now it’s time to look beyond the blame.

I’ve opened the door and faith stepped in Finally, I’m ready for my life to begin.

Not as it was or how I thought it should be, But with my past and my future merge authentically.

Beyond the silence . . . the shame, the fear I’ve grown through the pain that has brought me here.

I’m learning to live with both laughter and tears And to trust myself As well as my peers.

Learning to feel, to love, to guide And have no reason to hide.

Although I still struggle daily to survive I’m finally glad to be alive.

S treetS ense.org

June 24 - July 7, 2009

Will write for food: Writer’s Group

Writer’s Group meets Wednesdays 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the Street Sense office. A poetry after party is 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Fourth of July Let’s give the readers some poems about the Fourth of July – memories good and bad, or a small editorial on homelessness and Independence Day

Forth-Rights Foresight

By Sean-Christopher Riley Independence? Economics and ergonomics coming to 2009, candles on street corners and parks representing deaths’ Independence from homelessness and poverty. Celebrations with sparklers, 6 million dollars of color up in smoke, pyro-techniques to make our citizens look up to the skies but still miss the homeless amongst the rubble, the ticker taped unwanted refuges that lie throughout our city, streets, parks, Metro stops and sidewalks.

Homeless cries are muddled by hunger and lack of medical attention, economic separation and donor hesitation. Their celebration in most cases is passing a bottle or a joint to celebrate “no more misery” and the end to the low-man’s history of pain, loneliness, hunger and hopelessness. So maybe this year those that have, should share in celebrating with those that don’t have, by soliciting their lobbying powers to spend 6 million on colored candles to light up the dinner tables set up in the parks, city streets and city sidewalks that will assist with economic independence. Create a true society in which independence can be elevated mentally, physically and spiritually by all American citizens. Let your humility be the fireworks of everyday Independence for all. Hello!!!! Shower smiles peace and love from the ground to the heavens above, celebrate with the most dependent by uniting efforts in the elevation, and eradication, of poverty and homelessness. God Bless.

Sean is new to the Writer’s Group. Contact: Sean.riley@rocketmail.com

Fourth of July

By David Rubin

The French general Jacques Guibert (1743-1790) helped us understand the origins of military thought, and I hope his ideas inspire all the homeless persons seeking employment on this great occasion. The Fourth of July should be about freedom as defined

by General Guibert where his treatises describe universal laws that govern us all. The French general mentions a good soldier with good mathematical skills. He encourages the study of calculus following the models of Newton, Leibniz and D’Alembert. In addition, playing Sudoku is a good source of keeping the mind of the homeless person refreshed from money and the employment search. And indeed Sudoku is in Street Sense. Lastly, out of the mind of this good soldier, General Guibert made mobility on foot easier, boldness in conduct of operations (for example, no jaywalking in the city) and rapid thinking in the outdoors, all useful traits needed for the homeless persons in the streets. HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY! David is a new member of the Writer’s Group. Contact: stonepots2000@yahoo.com.

Prison of Disenfranchisement

By Reginald Black

The Fourth of July is the day Americans celebrate their independence. While fireworks burst and people hold cookouts and parties, there are those that are not having such a good time. They are living in flammable boxes or overcrowded shelters. And a study conducted in 2007 by the National Alliance to End Homelessness stated that the District of Columbia is one of the areas with an extremely high homeless count estimate. The study was done in 2007; homelessness continues. So the next burger you fire up, or the next firework you set off, just think about those in this country that are said to be free but are cast off to a prison of disenfranchisement.

Reggie cohosts the Writers Group. See Reggie’s Reflections for contact information.

Reggie’s Reflections- In Review

By Reginald Black I have been writing about homelessness and how it affects the social scene. This is for those who may want a little more insight.

“Follower” - I was trying to find stability but I learned that others will want what you have and will go behind your back to get it.

“Revelation” - While I was being chased from relationship to relationship I found that people will do anything to see you suffer.

“Dreadful Night” - I was still around the neighborhood trying to survive. I learned that stretching the rules is not always the best decision.

“The Angels” - I was determined to be with her, but to no avail. While on an outing I learned that sometimes people will do things you will never expect.

“Terrible A.M.” - I knew there were many forces pulling at me, but when I wanted to do my own thing, I learned that your friends can be the worst of all.

“Used” - After a terrible attempt at a date, things seemed to be going downhill. I learned that even a male can be used for personal gain and that there are females out there with only one-track minds.

“Changes” - I was failing in the social scene it seemed, but something new was taking place. Someone was trying to get my attention. I learned that change can be scary.

“Heartbroken” - I was lost and really down on my luck and she was nowhere to be found. I learned that someone you thought to be perfect for you, just might be the wrong person.

“Copy Cat” - I was still in the turmoil of being homeless and somewhat in love.

While I chatted, I noticed that another was consumed by me.

Well that does it for the second season. Stay tuned for season three. E-mail: roninworrior@yahoo.com.

Thank you so much

By Robert Warren

This light woman that buys Street Sense from me yes she has street sense you see.

Always with a smile, a thank you sometimes before me, this light lady is as cool as can be a real down to earth light lady you see.

Light lady don’t mean the color of her skin – This light lady is most times white but can be as black as me but the light of her smile you will always see.

This light lady’s not too old, not too young, this light lady is a lady how God made ladies to be, this light lady who lights up dark days for me with kind words and bright smile for all to see.

Even when she says “no thank you” to me, I write to say “thank you” from Street Sense vendors and me.

For the light of your smile you see, that’s worth more than the 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 dollars you sometimes give to me, and the words of encouragements the light lady gives to a guy like me.

Down but not out is always in need so light lady it’s good to know that like you will always be.

Thank you ladies for helping people trying to get back on their feet Those smiles and kind words are always in need.

Robert also is an advocate. Contact: robertwarren47@yahoo.com

PRODUCTION, HOSTING, LAYOUT AND SUPPORT: Cara Schmidt, Carlton Johnson, David Hammond, Patty Smith, Reginald Black

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June 24 - July 7, 2009

Homeless Poet Creates “Street Corner Majesty”

By Bob Blair

photo Courtesy of David Harris

For writers, publication of one’s first book often comes as a momentous accomplishment, a dream realized. Poet David Harris, long-time Street Sense contributor and alumnus of the writing workshops at Miriam’s Kitchen, achieved his breakthrough with the recent release of "Street Corner Majesty."

“This is a book about a few years of my life,” he explains in "Majesty’s" introduction. “I chose to tell my story in poems as I lived through these experiences. The most interesting few years of my life began in winter 2001, when I found myself living on the streets of Washington D.C., cold, lonely, hungry and scared.”

"Majesty" is fundamentally a memoir, a recounting of street life’s trials, miseries and unexpected solace laid out in a vivid mosaic of 56 lyrical poems. They mainly portray the period from 2001 through 2004 when Harris’ “home” was the park benches and sidewalks of downtown Washington, D.C. But the experiences recorded in "Majesty" are not the abstract, generic homelessness of sociology seminars and statistical studies. Harris weaves his words into an intimate tapestry of observations and reflections on life

lived rough – and its emotional consequences.

Taken together, the poems reveal a vulnerability that comes from the painful recognition of how fragile the certainty and comfort “of many middle-class tomorrows” can be, and how badly one’s sense of identity can be battered when that certainty is lost.

In “Forgotten One,” Harris imagines the public’s revulsion: "A nuisance if not a menace,/a disgusting drunk lurking in an alley,/bothering you with my many needs,/cluttering your streets/as unsightly litter./ And in the rare moments/ when you toss me/ a 'good morning' or random smile/you don’t see the warmth that fills my heart."

Harris' work, however, is not limited to laments on the indignities of street life or elegies for lost possibilities and broken relationships. It includes Baltimore art galleries, bus trips through the Shenandoah Valley, art therapy exercises, and even the 2005 Bush Inaugural.

Several of "Majesty’s" poems grow out of Harris’ work with the National Coalition for the Homeless’ speakers’ bureau and leading reflective writing sessions for students in the Church of the Pilgrims’ service-learning programs. Harris serves as poet-in-residence with the church’s outreach program.

In “Thursday Evening,” for instance, he observes of students: "Tonight,/curious voices/are silent/as pens/ glide across/days of labor in steamy kitchens/amid the constant chilling voices/of need and hunger."

Harris dedicates "Majesty" to “a few of my many muses,” several of whom appear in individual poems – including “Gift from Marina. ” "Tomorrow, she

graduates/from four years/among the lost & desperate,/spreading the gifts of her strength & compassion/ among those lost in darkness" and “Pastel Ballerina.”

"Meanwhile, my clumsy fingers/struggle to capture an image/I’m not there to witness or photograph./My child, in a distant room with a dozen others/practices ancient rituals of movement."

Harris' relationships with the other homeless men and women that he writes about are particularly poignant. For example, in the book’s introduction, Harris briefly mentions this. “After a couple of weeks on the streets, I met a lady, a veteran of homelessness, who told me about Miriam’s Kitchen.” That relationship, and what it meant to Harris, is captured in moving detail in “Kindness,” the three-page poem that closes the book.

"Next morning,/she rose/and took me on a tour/of her world-/here’s the park/where the vans come each evening,/packed with food;/here’s a church/providing weekday breakfast/for those like her and me;/here’s a toll-free number/where I can ask/a caring voice/for thick gray blankets."

In “Small Blue Love Poem,” Harris reflects on various poets – Yusef Komunyakaa, Pablo Neruda, Lucille Clifton, and Sylvia Plath – that he read while living on the streets, and ends with this wish: "grind my bones/into ink/so some unborn poet/can write across/the wide white sky/This is love.”

Happily, whatever may become of Harris' bones, that hypothetical future poet now has "Street Corner Majesty" to turn to for insight and inspiration. The book is available at amazon.com.

Author Analyzes Slavery by its Other Names

By Robert Trautman This book will be an eye-opener for anyone who thought slavery ended with the Emancipation Proclamation.

It didn’t. It continued on by other names, including involuntary servitude and peonage, well into the 1930s, and the sordid story is reported in telling detail and lucid writing by Douglas A. Blackmon in “Slavery by Another Name: The Re-enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II” (Anchor 2009).

Blackmon tells with horrific examples how recently freed blacks were rounded up and arrested for violating many hastily enacted laws, especially vagrancy ordinances – with vagrancy defined as not being able to prove at any given moment that one is employed – a situation not uncommon for the thousands of blacks just recently unchained by their white owners.

He cites the case of a 22-year-old arrested for vagrancy, found guilty, given 30 days of hard labor, plus required to pay fees to the sheriff, his deputy, the court clerk and witnesses. When he couldn’t pay the fine, a local steel company agent turned up, fortuitously, to pay it, and the “vagrant” was turned over to the company to pay back his fine, which turned out to be nearly a year of hard labor.

Blackmon says the incident was common in the postemancipation South.

The vagrancy and other capricious ordinances were enacted because the whites running the governments were baffled as to what to do with the freed slaves who were wandering from town to town looking for work and food.

“Indentured servitude” followed, the result of a conspiracy between local officials and businessmen.

In many cases, the only income the local officials got was through their “leasing” black convicts to the local businesses, who then used this “pool” of blacks as all but free labor (as in slavery), as during slavery, to run, at first, plantations and then later as industry came to the South, coal and iron mines and steel mills.

Blackmon writes that “These bulging slave centers became a primary weapon of suppression of black aspirations.

Where mob violence or the Klu Klux Klan terrorized black citizens periodically, the return of forced labor as a fixture in black life ground pervasively into the daily lives of far more African Americans.”

He says, “ hardly a year after the end of the war, in 1866, Alabama Governor Robert M. Patten, in return for the total sum of $5, leased for six years his state’s 374 prisoners to a company calling itself “‘Smith and McMillen.”

The company was a sham, and actually was controlled by the Alabama and Chattanooga Railroad.

And the example is not unique.

The conditions under which the indentured prisoners worked and lived were dire: they were often chained as they worked, and were fed sparingly, and at night were kept, chained, in communal barracks, without the necessities of running water and toilets.

There were whippings and other grisly punishments.

Blackmon found out that in the first two years that Alabama leased its prisoners, nearly 20% of them died; in next year, the mortality rose to 35%, in the fourth year nearly 45% died.

Faced with this resurgent slavery and little justice from the southern courts, some blacks and their few white advocates, sought help from Washington, asking for grand jury investigations.

But they got little help. In one case cited, a federal grand jury convicted two whites for “peonage,” but an appeal was made to Washington for a pardon, and it was granted by President Theodore Roosevelt.

President Woodrow Wilson, in contrast to his “Wilsonian” reputation, was little better, Blackmon finds, The end of this new slavery came in an ironic way, with World War II, Blackmon concludes.

“President Franklin Roosevelt,” Blackmon writes, “instinctively knew the second-class citizenship and violence imposed upon African Americans would be exploited by the enemies of the United States.”

He issued orders that allegations of slavery that in the past had been handled by local, and mostly antiblack jurisdictions, would henceforth be prosecuted as a violation of the anti-slavery 13th amendment to the Constitution.

“It was a strange irony,” Blackmon concludes, “that seventy-four years of hollow emancipation, the final delivery of African Americans from overt slavery and from the quiet complicity of the federal government in their servitude was precipitated only in response to the horrors perpetrated by an enemy country against its own despised minority.”

S treetS ense.org

June 24 - July 7, 2009

Diary of an Alcoholic: Part 2

By Jeffery McNeil

I

didn't know I had a disease, but I was an addict. And there are ways to hold back your addictions if you cry out "I need help."

I went to the Dupont Circle Club tore up from the floor up. Same pissy clothes on for a week straight. Eyes bloodshot, no self-esteem, confidence none. When they asked if anyone had a burning desire to drink, I cried "Please please rid my life of demon alcohol."

I met a man who asked me if I want to go to detox. I cried, "Yes." He drove me to Howard University and we sat there for four hours, only to be told, "we don't have a detox." I was furious, but my new friend had patience and he took me to D.C. General. They didn't want to admit me but I was determined not to drink. I told them I didn't want to go back out on the streets, because I was scared for my life.

My stay in detox wasn't pleasant. I am an addict and I do what addicts do. I had the shakes, so I asked for lots of pills, painkillers, anything to kill pain, plus I got detention for fraternizing with a female addict. My disease got me into a fight with a female for calling me stupid in which I threw grits at her head. That temper tantrum put me in the psych ward.

The psychiatrist realized after evaluating me that I have bipolar disorder.

I learned why I was so moody, depressed and erratic. I had concentration problems and anxiety, which were symptoms of bipolar disorder.

They wanted to put me on Depakote but I tried it and I hated it. So they gave me Tegretol and Seroquel plus multivitamins. I started to not get anxious, and started taking showers and brushing my teeth and feeling relaxed without being hung over. I ate balanced meals, something I never had when drinking and getting high.

Then on my release, on my birthday, May 7, they gave me a treatment plan. It was Cataada House, an aftercare program. I find them very useful.

I also signed up with Alliance Insurance, which is good for people who are homeless and are in poverty.

They gave me some of my medications upon my release, which only lasted a couple of days. They eventually ran out. I started getting agitated and jittery, and my hormones started raging. The next day I left an AA meeting lying to the guy who drove me home. I craved a beer but my disease wanted sex, so I ended up tricking on North Capitol Street. I finished my binge at a church, sleeping on Rhode Island Avenue, and lost a third of the money I saved.

I felt bad but couldn't stop drinking so the next day I went to Cleveland Park, got me some beer and blacked out on a bench. No one seemed to care if I was alive or dead. They walked over me like I was a dead animal, and that's when I decided, "enough!" That pain really hurt me.

So I went to an AA meeting and shared how I relapsed. But I also realized that after not taking my medications, my thoughts were racing and my focus and memory were lost. So the next day I went to Unity Health Care and told them the medications I was on. I hated it, the long lines and the paperwork. Just waiting there, my bipolar was really getting to me. What was worse was this lady wouldn't let me pee because she wanted to mop the floors and there was only one bathroom. I wanted to really cuss her out but didn't.

The next day I walked four hours to the Walker-Jones clinic to get my medications, only to be told "you need insurance." So I ended up paying for my Tegretol but I can't afford Seroquel. But I am working on getting my medications – they are a must if I want to live off of alcohol and other substances.

My next crisis was that Street Sense still kept me on suspension. But I stayed in meetings and met people and my brain started clearing up. I felt better. I started exercising and am hoping to go to a gym or a karate class.

I haven't drunk coffee since I went to detox, and I feel better. I also go to Cataada House and AA for meetings. I couldn't be sober without them.

If you want to quit any substances, will power isn't enough. It's a complete lifestyle change, so if any customer wants to know how to overcome addictions I will gladly tell you what I am learning, because fellowship is a weapon against addictions.

Today I like myself. I burned that rope I wanted to hang myself with and I try to attend my meetings and keep my appointments, for I now realize I can be social and charming without a drink.

Camp Offers Hope to Campers, Volunteers

By Sean-Christopher Riley

W

hen I think of heaven I think of life lived with love, abundance, caring, empathy, and sharing, a place where family is inclusive, not exclusive. If there is a piece of heaven on earth it must be represented in Camp Friendship, a camp for children afflicted with cancer. Some of the kids are terminal but all are spiritually lifted to a heavenly karma.

A person can have an out-of-body experience by merely walking the spiritually sacred grounds. I have felt the presence of campers past, an overwhelming aura of peace that encompassed my body from head to toe. Walking in the footsteps of those who are dealing with severities that I can only imagine opened my mind to exploring and implementing means and ways of giving unconditionally, anything and everything physically, mentally, and spiritually possible.

Before I was invited to lend a helping hand through efforts of the Rockville Kiwanis Club, I knew nothing about Camp Friendship. I had heard of places where children suffering from cancer could enjoy happy outings with their parents and loved ones, but I thought only a select few were eligible. That is how isolated I was, aware only of what directly effected and affected my life.

Now I know that there is a spirit within each of us that can be released from its imposed prison, in my case, a self-imposed prison. This spirit overwhelmed me with empathy, especially now, with my mother being diagnosed with active cancer of the breast and lymph nodes.

Through my work I realized I had managed to desensitize my inner spirit of unconditional love, which manifests itself in praying not only for cancer patients but for all terminal patients and for the people who

love and help them, including families, nurses, doctors, caregivers, camp counselors, administrators, lobbyists, scientists, and world leaders. I’ve been reminded as I have helped out at Camp Friendship raking, boat-washing, pruning, painting, and fellowshipping that we are family, united in caring and sharing to enhance other souls on this heavenly oasis.

Camp Friendship creates a haven for children with cancer and their families in the mid-Atlantic area, providing a safe place for them to play and enjoy themselves among their peers.

The camp provides year-round recreational and support programs free of charge. Camp Friendship is run by the Carol Jean Cancer Foundation (CJCF), which has a mission to improve the quality of life for children with cancer and their families throughout Maryland, Washington D.C., and Northern Virginia. Many area pediatric hospitals refer their families to the foundation, which has served approximately 8,800 people since 1990.

CJCF has one paid employee, Beverly E. Gough, president and founder, who is paid $10,000 annually. The majority of volunteers give their time starting in the early spring through late fall, with an emphasis during the summer programs. Various duties involve 200-300 people. There is a core group of 12-15 year-round volunteers who give 15-20 hours a month, depending on activities.

A major fundraiser of Camp Friendship is the camper sponsorship program. Since the camp is offered free of charge, the program raises donations to cover the costs. I pray that our readers will help any way they can, including prayers for all the families involved.

For more information, please see the website, www.cjcfkids.org and tell Mrs. Beverly that Sean-Christopher Riley referred you from the Street Sense family.

Sean, a Street Sense vendor, is also a Certified Nursing Assistant and Geriatric Nursing Assistant who is now studying physical therapy at Montgomery College. He currently lives at Chase Partnership, a program that provides housing for homeless individuals in Rockville, MD. He will be serving as a volunteer at Camp Friendship this summer.

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S treetS ense.org

June 24 - July 7, 2009

On Wednesday June 17, 2009, Street Sense held the Second Annual David Pike Excellence in Journalism Awards at the Warehouse in downtown D.C. About 40 donors, volunteers and advocates attended, and the event raised more than $2,000 for Street Sense.

The ceremony was inspiring and included speeches from Pulitzer Prize-winning author David Shipler and D.C. Council member Tommy Wells. Shipler talked about how the lack of appropriate housing can affect all aspects of a person’s life, and Wells’ speech began with an amusing story about a bus ride to the shelter at St. Elizabeths Hospital.

The awardees were all from The Washington Post and included Michael Williamson for photography for “The Healing Fields”; Marc Fisher for his story “Homes for the Homeless, Bargains for Everyone”; and Petula Dvorak for her series on the D.C. Child and Family Services Agency. Dvorak, the only awardee in attendance, spoke about the value of reporting on poverty but also noted that every time she opens up an issue of Street Sense she says “Why didn’t we cover that?”

However, the real stars of the night were the Street Sense vendors and writers who presented the awards. Vendor Reginald Black spoke about his own experience writing and hearing “no comment;” Lester Myers talked about his amateur photography experience; and Sean-Christopher Riley explained his story of finally finding housing in Montgomery County.

The David Pike Excellence in Journalism Awards honor mainstream journalists who challenge the perception of homelessness through their writing. David Pike was a board member and volunteer of Street Sense who passed away in November 2007. David joined Street Sense in 2005 after retiring from a 40-year career in journalism covering the Supreme Court.

STREET SENSE

David Shipler points out all the problems inadequate housing can cause.

FAMILY AND FRIENDS PICNIC JULY 2, 2009 1317 G Street, NW 10am – 3pm

* *ALL ARE INVITED* * HOT DOGS >>> MUSIC >>> ICE CREAM HAMBURGERS >>> PUNCH >>>POETRY (Donations Accepted) For more information contact Gregory Martin @ 202-347-2006/gregory@streetsense.org

BY JANE CAVE

BY JANE CAVE

An Inspiring Night Honors Journalists

Reggie, Sean and Lester stole the show with their moving awards presentations.

Thanks to Those Who Donated in David Pike's Name Gary and Mary Ellen Abrecht Caroline D. Gabel Joanna K Griffith Gabel Eric Glitzenstein Edward A Grefe Anne M Hallum Leon Harris Eileen Kelly Caroline Klam Ethel and Harley McGhee Mary G. Lynch Gisela Marcuse Terry Peister Mary Pike Joe and Glennette Papovich Gregory Stohr

S treetS ense.org WASHINGTON, D.C. SHELTER Calvary Women’s Services 928 5th Street, NW (202) 783–6651 www.calvaryservices.org Central Union Mission (Men) 1350 R Street, NW (202) 745–7118 www.missiondc.org CCNV (Men and Women) 425 2nd Street, NW (202) 393–1909 users.erols.com/ccnv/ Community of Hope (Family) 1413 Girard Street, NW (202) 232–7356 www.communityofhopedc.org Covenant House Washington (Youth) 2001 Mississippi Ave SE (202) 610–9600 www.covenanthousedc.org Housing, education, job prep Gospel Rescue Ministries (Men) 810 5th Street, NW (202) 842–1731 www.grm.org John Young Center (Women) 117 D Street, NW (202) 639–8469 www,catholiccharitiesdc.org My Sister’s Place PO Box 29596 Washington, DC 20017 office (202) 529-5261 24-hour hotline (202)-529-5991 shelter and other services for domestic violence victims N Street Village (Women) 1333 N Street, NW (202) 939–2060 www.nstreetvillage.org 801 East, St. Elizabeths Hospital (Men) 2700 MLK Avenue, SE (202) 561–4014 New York Ave Shelter (Men) 1355–57 New York Avenue, NE (202) 832–2359 Open Door Shelter (Women) 425 Mitch Snyder Place, NW (202) 639–8093

FOOD Charlie’s Place 1830 Connecticut Avenue, NW (202) 232–3066 www.stmargaretsdc.org/charliesplace Church of the Pilgrims 2201 P Street, NW (202) 387–6612

June 24 - July 7, 2009 www.churchofthepilgrims.org

mental health services

Dinner Program for Homeless Women AND the “9:30 Club” Breakfast 309 E Street, NW (202) 737–9311 www.dphw.org

Friendship House 619 D Street, SE (202) 675–9050 www.friendshiphouse.net counseling, mentoring, education, youth services, clothing

Food and Friends 219 Riggs Road, NE (202) 269–2277 www.foodandfriends.org

Georgetown Ministry Center 1041 Wisconsin Avenue, NW (202) 338–8301 www.georgetownministrycenter. org laundry, counseling, psych care

Miriam’s Kitchen 2401 Virginia Avenue, NW (202) 452–8089 www.miriamskitchen.org The Welcome Table Church of the Epiphany 1317 G Street, NW (202) 347–2635 http://www.epiphanydc.org/ ministry/welcometbl.htm

MEDICAL RESOURCES Christ House 1717 Columbia Road, NW (202) 328–1100 www.christhouse.org Unity Health Care, Inc. 3020 14th Street, NW (202) 745–4300 www.unityhealthcare.org Whitman–Walker Clinic 1407 S Street, NW (202) 797–3500; www.wwc.org

OUTREACH CENTERS Bread for the City 1525 Seventh Street, NW (202) 265–2400 AND 1640 Good Hope Road, SE (202) 561–8587 www.breadforthecity.org food pantry, clothing, legal and social services, medical clinic Community Council for the Homeless at Friendship Place 4713 Wisconsin Avenue NW (202) 364–1419; www.cchfp.org housing, medical and psych care, substance abuse and job counseling Bethany Women’s Center 1333 N Street, NW (202) 939–2060 http://www.nstreetvillage.org meals, hygiene, laundry, social activities, substance abuse treatment Father McKenna Center 19 Eye Street, NW (202) 842–1112 Green Door (202) 464–9200 1221 Taylor Street NW www.greendoor.org housing, job training, supportive

Martha’s Table 2114 14th Street, NW (202) 328–6608 www.marthastable.org dinner, education, recreation, clothing, child and family services Rachel’s Women’s Center 1222 11th Street, NW (202) 682–1005 http://www.ccdsd.org/howorwc. php hygiene, laundry, lunch, phone and mail, clothing, social events Sasha Bruce Youthwork 741 8th Street, SE (202) 675–9340 www.sashabruce.org counseling, housing, family services So Others Might Eat (SOME) 71 “O” Street, NW (202) 797–8806; www.some.org lunch, medical and dental, job and housing counseling

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Academy of Hope GED Center 601 Edgewood St NE 202-269-6623 www.aohdc.org Bright Beginnings Inc. 128 M Street NW, Suite 150 Washington DC 20001 (202) 842–9090 www.brightbeginningsinc.org Child care, family services Catholic Community Services 924 G Street, NW (202) 772–4300 www.ccs–dc.org umbrella for a variety of services D.C. Coalition for the Homeless 1234 Massachusetts Avenue, NW (202) 347–8870; www.dccfh.org housing, substance abuse treatment, employment assistance DC Food Finder Interactive online map of free and low cost resources. www.dcfoodfinder.org Community Family Life Services 305 E Street, NW (202) 347–0511

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www.cflsdc.org housing, job and substance abuse counseling, clothes closet

MARYLAND

VIRGINIA

SHELTER

SHELTER

Foundry Methodist Church 1500 16th Street, NW (202) 332–4010 www.foundryumc.org ESL, lunch, clothing, IDs

Comm. Ministry of Montgomery Co. 114 W. Montgomery Avenue, Rockville (301) 762–8682 www.communityministrymc. org

Alexandria Community Shelter 2355 B Mill Road, Alexandria (703) 838–4239

Hermano Pedro Day Center 3211 Sacred Heart Way, NW (202) 332–2874 http://www.ccs–dc.org/find/ services/ meals, hygiene, laundry, clothing JHP, Inc. 1526 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE (202) 544–9126 www.jobshavepriority.org training and employment Jubilee Jobs 1640 Columbia Road, NW (202) 667–8970 www.jubileejobs.org job preparation and placement National Coalition for the Homeless 2201 P Street, NW (202) 462–4822 www.nationalhomeless.org activists, speakers bureau National Student Partnerships (NSP) 128 M Street NW, Suite 320 (202) 289–2525 washingtondc@nspnet.org Job resource and referral agency Samaritan Ministry 1345 U Street, SE , AND 1516 Hamilton Street, NW (202)889–7702 www.samaritanministry.org HIV support, employment, drug/ alcohol addiction, healthcare St. Luke’s Episcopal Church 1514 15th Street, NW (202) 667–4394 http://stlukesdc.edow.org food, counseling St. Matthew’s Cathedral 1725 Rhode Island Avenue, NW (202) 347–3215 ext. 552 breakfast, clothing, hygiene Travelers Aid, Union Station 50 Mass. Avenue, NE (202) 371–1937 www.travelersaid.org/ta/ dc.html emergency travel assistance Wash. Legal Clinic for the Homeless 1200 U Street, NW (202) 328–5500 www.legalclinic.org

The Samaritan Group P.O. Box 934, Chestertown (443) 480–3564 Warm Night Shelter 311 68th Place, Seat Pleasant (301) 499–2319 www.cmpgc.org

FOOD Bethesda Cares 7728 Woodmont Church, Bethesda (301) 907–9244 www.bethesdacares.com Community Place Café 311 68th Place, Seat Pleasant (301) 499–2319 www.cmpgc.org Manna Food Center 614–618 Lofstrand Lane, Rockville (301) 424–1130 www.mannafood.org

MEDICAL RESOURCES Community Clinic, Inc. 8210 Colonial Lane, ilver Spring (301) 585–1250 www.cciweb.org Mobile Medical Care, Inc. 9309 Old Georgetown Road, Bethesda (301) 493–8553 www.mobilemedicalcare.org

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Catholic Charities, Maryland 12247 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring (301) 942–1790 www.catholiccharitiesdc.org shelter, substance abuse treatment, variety of other services Mission of Love 6180 Old Central Avenue Capitol Heights (301)333–4440 www.molinc.org life skills classes, clothing, housewares Montgomery County Coalition for the Homeless 600–B East Gude Dri Rockville (301) 217–0314; www.mcch.net emergency shelter, transitional housing, and supportiveservices

Carpenter’s Shelter 930 N. Henry Street, Alexandria (703) 548–7500 www.carpentersshelter.org Arlington–Alexandria Coalition for the Homeless 3103 Ninth Road North, Arlington (703) 525–7177 www.aachhomeless.org

FOOD Alive, Inc. 2723 King Street, Alexandria (703) 836–2723; www.alive–inc. org Our Daily Bread 10777 Main Street, Ste. 320, Fairfax (703) 273–8829 www.our–daily–bread.org

MEDICAL RESOURCES Arlington Free Clinic 3833 N Fairfax Drive, #400, Arlington (703) 979–1400 www.arlingtonfreeclinic.org

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Abundant Life Christian Outreach, 5154 Eisenhower Avenue, Alexandria (703) 823–4100 www.anchor–of–hope.net food, clothing, youth development, and medicines David’s Place Day Shelter 930 North Henry Street, Alexandria (703) 548–7500 www.carpentersshelter.org laundry, shower, workshops, hypothermia shelter Legal Services of Northern Virginia 6066 Leesburg Pike, Ste. 500 (703) 778–6800; www.lsnv.org civil legal services

Shelter Hotline: 1–800– 535–7252

S treetS ense.org

June 24 - July 7, 2009

Greg Phillips

Vendor Profile

By John Brandt

The Fortunate Unemployed

By Kayne Karnbach

F

or those of you who don’t know me, my name is Kayne Karnbach and I am a professional fundraiser and volunteer here at Street Sense. For more than two months now, I have been volunteering at Street Sense full-time in order to help raise some much-needed funds. The reason I have been able to spend so much time volunteering with Street Sense is because I have recently been laid off from my full-time job as a fundraiser.

While times have been tough after getting laid off, I have been able to survive because of the strong support system I am fortunate enough to have. My support system here in D.C. includes a small amount in savings that I have been able to build up while employed, and a wonderful girlfriend who has helped me make rent and other expenses when my savings ran out. Furthermore, I always know that I have a loving mom to fall back on in Florida.

In short, I have a lot of options; many are not that fortunate.

Many of the less fortunate include our hundred Street Sense vendors, who know homelessness firsthand, and the thousands of other homeless men, women and children, who live in the District and its suburbs. A great number of them don’t have a support system. And because of that, tough times become the rule rather than the exception.

In light of this, I often wonder where I would be if faced with those circumstances: No savings to rely on, no loving (employed) girlfriend to help pay my bills when I fall short, and no eager family in Florida to come to the rescue if all else fails.

Many of our homeless neighbors are totally and completely on their own. A concept that I believe most of us can’t fully grasp.

Even those of us who consider ourselves self-sufficient have probably had help at some crucial point in our lives.

While it is true that those of us who have been laid off often worry about where we will get the money to pay rent or credit card bills, for the most part we can rest assured knowing that we will not have to endure what our homeless neighbors endure every day.

Greg Phillips was born outside of Washington in Greenbelt, Md., and grew up in the Chevy Chase neighborhood in D.C. He attended the Duke Ellington School for the Arts and the Omega School of Sound Engineering.

Greg first became homeless when he and his girlfriend broke up and he became unable to pay the rent. Greg has lived in several shelters over the years, but is currently staying with his sister. He is still looking to find a more permanent housing situation.

What is your favorite book?

The Bible What is your favorite food?

Any salmon dish, preferably not farm raised. You can taste the difference.

BY JANE CAVE

THe Last Word

What is your favorite record?

Europe – Out of this World What is your favorite movie?

I like comedies like the “Naked Gun” movies.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

Shop | Eat | Explore | for miDCity | Shopto|help Eat | and Explore I would like to work a nonprofit organization people animals. | miDCity | | Eat | Explore | you miDCity | Shop | Sense?

Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | What do like about working for Street First of all it helps provide vendors with an income, and it provides us an opportunity to Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | E present our poems and stories to the public. I recently invited a friend to become a vendor, the paper|helps support ourselves and express our | miDCity |andShop Eatus both | Explore | miDCity | creativity.

Shop | Eat | Explore | City | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miD Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | fashion in MidCity Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | E | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | 1603 U Street|NW City | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity Shop |1736 Eat14th| Street Explore | miD NW www.caramelfashion.com www.circleboutique.com Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity |Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | S Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | E | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | 1338 U Street NW City | Shop | Eat | miDCity | Shop | Eat |Floor Explore | miD 1911 | 9thExplore Street NW 2nd www.lettiegooch.com www.dekkafam.com June 24–July 7, 2009 • Volume 6 • Issue 17 Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Street Sense Nonprofit Org Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | E US Postage Paid 1317 G Street, NW | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | Washington, DC Washington, DC 20005 1512 U Street NW Permit #568 City | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miD www.moojooken.com 1734 14th Street NW www.redeemus.com Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity |S Greg Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | reminds customers to only buy Mail Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | E from badged vendors and not to | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | give to those panhandling with 1528 U street NW 1803a 14th Street NW one paper.

City | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop |afterEat | Explore | miD www.nanadc.com.com shopping MidCity— www.rue14.com unwind at Cafe Saint Ex Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Interested in a subscription? Go to page 2 for more information. www.midcitylife.org | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | E | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | miDCity | Shop | Eat | Explore | caramel