A couple in their late-thirties wanted to come for a tour. I don’t fully remember their story, but I do know that they wanted to come in on a Saturday around 10 am. They were perfectly pleasant and very personable, which (take note) generally makes it much easier on the tour guide. In my attempt to have them truly grasp the issues, I tried to turn things around with the 'ol switcheroo and have my new friends mentally place themselves in the shoes of those who find themselves at our doors. Something that people don’t really think about is what they would do if it ever happened to them. Well, of course it never would, because those experiencing homelessness are a different, unfortunate brand of human being and share no similarities with regular people like you and I, right? Wrong. Clearly.
We eventually reached the doors of our former “Step Up Housing,” which was a dorm-like housing program that housed 22 men and four women. Usually all who called Step Up "home" were required to be out of the building during certain hours, with the theory that those in the program couldn’t simply sit around all day. Exceptions were made for weather, those working nights, working shift work, or those who were sick – and, I’m sure, other valid reasons. Since it was a Saturday, people were milling about in the building, but the room was nearly empty. I was at the end of my “it can happen to anyone, and I truly mean anyone. Really,” spiel, which I think was falling on not-quite-deaf-but-pretty-close ears when I explained what Step Up was, and we went in to tour around. I was in the middle of describing the program when the dad looks at the one man in the room, a guest of ours, and nearly falls over. “Doug?!,” he asks. “GREG?!” Doug responds as the two men look wide-eyed at each other. The wife and I look at each other, completely befuddled, and back slowly out of the room to give the two men some room to speak.Greg joins us in the hallway after a few minutes, looking like he’d seen a ghost.
“I saw Doug two years ago. I worked with him. He was fine.”And with that, Greg and Doug had proved my point, far more powerfully than I ever could have. It truly can happen to all of us. And it can happen to those we love. The rest of the tour was pretty quiet and, when they left, I truly felt I'd done my job. But, in actuality, someone much more important had done it for me.
- Sarah
Follow Sarah on Twitter @ispeakcanadian
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I wish this post would have provided more details as to how Doug went from working with Greg, to the siuation he is in now.
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by the blog! I'm with you - I wish I had gotten more information at the time! Maybe that's why I'd never make a good reporter!
DeleteAnonymous, unfortunately that happens all too easily. I can tell you how it happened with my husband. His drinking and cocaine use went from occasional weekend partying, to 3-4 day benders. A likeable, fun, hard-working guy, he missed work more & more and finally got fired. His using continued, supported by illegal activities. He began to feel trapped and hopeless and literally began to lose his mind. Hallucinations, manic behaviour. I packed up the kids and moved us out. No one knew what was going on, we had kept it secret as possible from everyone. When he finally decided he needed help, he heard about the stabilization program at the Ottawa Mission, spent some time there getting his head clear and then entered treatment. Upon completion, we reunited. Last week he celebrated 6 yrs of sobriety. He is one of the few.
ReplyDeleteVikki this is a very sad story but I am so happy to hear it has a happy ending. Thank you for sharing and for reading!
DeleteThis was an intense post. I'm very thankful for the reminder. It is true that there are countless, real, everyday kind of reasons for homelessness. As frontline staff at the Seed I know many different kinds of stories. One that comes to mind: I know a gentleman who has always been straight and sober. He is homeless because his wife was abusive towards him and his children. When he finally took his kids and left her, the legal bills for their divorce just became too much. With time he lost his vehicle, small business and his home. And, in turn he lost possession of his kids. And, this man is definitely a hero of mine. He has taken all of his knowledge and experience with the legal system to help others like him navigate through the endless ins and outs of many government programs, so that they can get off the street.
ReplyDelete