COVID-19: One Year Later

One year ago this month, all of our StreetWise Magazine vendors lost their jobs. But these aren’t typical jobs with unemployment benefits; these are small businesses they are managing, at which they earn an income with dignity. With empty streets and shuttered buildings, their small businesses folded with little hope for a swift return to pre-COVID sales anytime soon.

This issue marks the one-year anniversary of pulling magazine vendors off of the streets, publishing only the digital version of our magazine, and turning our mission “a hand up, not a hand out” on its head as we prepared to provide emergency financial support to our vendors for the next 10 weeks.

Unfortunately, this sudden loss, sudden change, and sudden shift to a new normal, is well, normal for many of our vendors. However, they are resilient, resourceful, and innovative in how they manage the systemic and situational barriers to their success.

“I am getting most of my meals here so I can save the money to pay rent.”

“This cash assistance means the difference between sleeping in a bed and sleeping on the street.”

“It’s scary out there. I gotta have a mask so I don’t get sick. I’m so thankful that I can get a supply of masks each week.”

“I was so happy to get back to work doing the census until I could go back out and sell the magazine.”

Because of you - our readers, supporters, and loyal customers - our vendors ARE STILL HERE! They have felt your support through digital purchases, annual subscriptions and donations to StreetWise that allow us to provide access to critical resources when so many other doors were closed.

In the following pages you will read testimonials from vendors about how they coped with the pandemic and reestablished their businesses. They rely on all of you to continue to give them a hand up on their journey toward self-sufficiency. So please remember to BUY the magazine, TAKE the magazine, and READ the magazine. Their businesses depend on it.

Thank you again for your continued support.

Warmly,

Julie Youngquist

[Executive Director] StreetWise

May 18, 2020 Vendors returned to work, doing U.S. Census outreach with homeless people throughout the City