Do you know what the reality of homelessness is in Seattle/ King county? On any given night there are approximately 8,000 homeless people in Seattle. Of these 31% are children under the age of 18. 20% of the homeless people are employed in full or part-time jobs. In fact statistics show that 44% of homeless people did some form of paid work in the previous month but did not earn enough to afford rent. Did you know that 40% of people who are homeless are in families? Did you know taht only 8% of homeless people have panhandled in the last month? Looking at these statistics make us have to look a little deeper at the stigmas that we keep in the recesses of our minds. When we think of a homeless person typically we think:
men
addicts
lazy
criminals
mental illnesses
etc.
And although, sometimes those descriptions can be a reality of a homeless persons' life (in some cases mental illness or addiction creates a barrier to housing) we cannot generalize this population. When we generalize it becomes easy for us to make a distinction between 'us' and 'them'. But the reality is this could be any of us-- if our circumstances were different. In my work as a casemanager in transitional housing I frequently heard people tell me that they were homeless because they had lost their job and did not have the support through friends, family or community to maintain and stay on their feet. In fact, a man I met who lived in our housing had shared that he lost his job twice and had exhausted the resources in his savings and unemployment benefits which forced him to move out of his apartment which he had lived in for 20 years!
If you have family, friends or a community you are blessed. It is through that network that you have a safety net to keep you protected from being on the streets. I know that if there was ever a time in my life where I lost my job and couldn't find another job I would have the help from family and friends until I could get back on my feet. That is why Quest strives to be a community to the community-less. 'To the Streets' started with the desire to come along men, women and children in difficult circumstances such as homelessness to bring light to dark places, hope to hopelessness and grace to the harsh realities of our world. We do that through the venue of giving out practical resources like soap and blankets, but above all we want to extend our hearts in friendship and humility. We hope you can join us some third Saturday of the month!
