Advice from The Homeless Guy
November 20, 2009Jon Brooks 1 Comment »Kevin Barbieux of Nashville writes a blog called The Homeless Guy. Barbieux describes himself as “chronically homeless,” as defined by HUD. “I became homeless for the first time in February of 1982,” he writes. “I have been in and out of homelessness ever since, experiencing about 13 years worth of literal homelessness.”
In this post, he gives advice to a Nashville religious organization that administers to the homeless, offering a trenchant first-person account of the homeless life.
• When the homeless arrive at your church, they are tired.
It may seem that being homeless means being without things to do… Nothing could be further from the truth. While on the street, there is no place for a homeless person to get real rest. Being constantly in the public sphere prevents homeless people from achieving the kind of rest that only comes with privacy. When you are in your own place, you can let down your guard, and you don’t have to entertain anyone or anything. In your own place you don’t have to worry about what you look like, what other people are thinking of you, or if the police or other “concerned citizens” will find fault with you and decide to investigate your actions. The other 30 to 50% of the homeless population will have spent the day working, mostly in labor-intensive jobs.
Nearly all homeless people suffer from sleep deprivation. Everyone knows how getting to sleep in an unfamiliar place can be difficult. Just imagine being in a different place every night. And none of the places you find to sleep are comfortable, or anything near conducive towards real sleep and rest. When I slept outside I constantly worried about being attacked, so I awoke at every seemingly threatening sound…
As you can imagine, any person, homeless or not, would become irritable when so tired and having to go through so much just for a place to sleep. Because of all this, please be mindful that some of the homeless people coming to your church will only want to get to sleep, and for the most part to be left alone.
A note about the van ride to and from your church: The driver of the van may think he/she is doing the homeless a favor by running the heater. The thing is, these homeless people piled into the van, shoulder to shoulder, are naturally generating their own body heat, which in a van filled with 12 to 15 people can warm up the van all on their own. Also consider that these homeless people are also wearing many layers of clothing, plus sweaters, jackets and coats. Throughout the winter, the homeless are dressed to keep themselves warm while outside. So in your church van there is little need for auxiliary heat. In many cases it may even be necessary to crack a window to alleviate over-heating and stuffiness. Besides, some of your guests might not have showered in a while, and the other homeless would appreciate some fresh air during the ride.
There is certainly a trade-off to consider. Although it is a good thing to try and take in as many homeless people as possible, the more people you take in, the less care you can provide to each of them.
• Homeless people want to have as much space as you can afford to give them.
Being around homeless people all day, everyday, is not always fun. For the many problems they are dealing with, homeless people are not always the easiest people to be around…At the mission, there is one waiting room, one dining room, and two main sleeping dorms with about 150 beds in each. Living at the rescue mission feels much like being warehoused… many of the churches doing the program will insist on having their dozen homeless guests occupy a very small space, sometimes with sleeping mats placed only inches apart from each other. If a church has facilities available they should allow the homeless to spread out some. This gives the homeless people the dignity of their own space. This would also alleviate concerns about hygiene, as well as the potential spread of colds and the flu among the homeless. Colds and the flu spreads quickly within the homeless population, in much the same manner as they spread in a day care. But with limited resources, homeless people have a much more difficult time overcoming these things once infected.
• Most homeless people would rather you not preach to them.
Some people assume that if taking one aspirin is good for you, then taking 20 must be great. Well, I wouldn’t recommend it. Some people view Jesus the same way. I wouldn’t recommend that either.
Proselytizing is very very common on the street, and is considered to be a irritating necessity to be tolerated in exchange for the care they need to survive. It is a welcome break to not be forced to attend church or to participate in a bible study. You may think that what the homeless people need most is a relationship with Jesus. Trust me, they get plenty of Jesus and the Bible as it is. Just how many times a day would you willingly tolerate people challenging your beliefs and relationship with God, especially when you are already secure in your faith, and especially when others of the same faith constantly assume that because you are homeless that somehow your relationship with God is less correct than theirs?
Some of the homeless people coming to your church may initiate a conversation about God. That is a good thing, and an opportunity to witness. But know that many homeless people have learned that doing so is like currency that will afford them some residual benefit. They know that developing a relationship with a Christian who is desirous of sharing the Word will often result in receiving cash, food and other material things. So, they may talk the talk, though with ulterior motives.
• Homeless people have standards.
…the truth of the matter is some church programs are so pathetic as to be despised by the homeless. The homeless would much rather stay at the rescue mission, or stay on the streets for the night, than go out to these churches. Only because they fear being banned from the program altogether do they submit themselves to a night at these undesirable places. Of the 150+ churches in the program there are perhaps a dozen of these churches. The overall objection the homeless have of these churches has to do with a feeling that these churches are not treating the homeless with any kind of real respect.
• Engage homeless people when appropriate.
Although volunteers should be sensitive to those homeless who want to be left alone, they should also be aware of those homeless who want someone to talk to. There are some churches that have a good number of volunteers showing up to do the work of the church, but they keep a considerable distance from the homeless. During the meal, while the homeless ate, they would all huddle in the kitchen and talk and laugh amongst themselves. This only adds to the feeling of being ostracized. I highly recommend that church volunteers join the homeless for dinner. Sharing a meal together can be a great ice breaker and a very memorable experience. And is the easiest way to engage the homeless. That is, as long is the meal is a casual affair. On the other side of this are the churches that make too big a deal of the entire event. One church in particular has every minute of the entire stay with them formally orchestrated, including a required full hour of proselytizing. This allows for absolutely no time for the homeless person to relax and have a moment to himself. I understand some believe that all of this will somehow benefit the homeless person. But really, sometimes doing nothing at all the best thing possible.
• What you have the homeless sleep on makes a difference.
Many churches use Army cots for the homeless to sleep on. In an emergency, and for short time use, Army cots are convenient. But they are uncomfortable, and difficult to sleep on. Especially in the winter, and in church facilities where heating is not often utilized, and given the one thin blanket provided, it is hard to maintain one’s body temperature at a level comfortable enough to promote quality sleep. Churches that continue with program often upgrade to sleeping mats or mattresses, after a year or two, but not all do. But mats on the floor have problems too. Some mats use offer little protection or support from the hard floor. And being on the floor keeps people in cold building drafts, making them more susceptible to catching colds.
And a note about catching colds: It is true that a low temperature does not directly cause colds, because colds come from viruses. But it is also true that cold air does weaken a person’s immune system, making it harder for them to fight off viruses. So keeping a place warm, where people are spending the night, does promote good health.
December 29th, 2009 at 3:53 pm
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