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Friday, April 29, 2011

Homeless to Front-Row Seat

London’s Daily Mail recently reported that barely a year ago, a young woman by the name of Shozna was living a desperate existence, sharing homeless shelters with drug addicts while recovering from a serious stroke. But today, she took her place alongside royals, A-list celebrities and foreign dignitaries after getting an invitation to the royal wedding.

Prince William and Kate Middleton invited the former homeless teenager to Westminster Abbey after she was rescued from destitution by Princess Diana’s homeless charity, Centrepoint. William, 28, followed in his late mother’s footsteps by becoming patron in 2005 and spent a freezing winter’s night sleeping rough in support of their plight two years ago.

At a charity gala last summer he heard Shozna, now 20, tell her story of how the bright, bubbly, 5ft 2in teenager was made homeless after having major heart surgery and faced the prospect of life on the streets. William was so moved that he broke royal protocol by giving her a hug. Now, he handpicked her for font seat at the wedding ceremony.
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Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Teens for Jeans Rocked it Out!

Matt Lanter (photo) recently announced on behalf of Aeropostale that the 4th Annual Teens For Jeans drive has now ended - and the youth at various high schools around the country rocked it out. The organizers we're completely blown away by all the hard work these kids put in on behalf of homeless teenagers living in North America. In just four weeks, the high schoolers collected 542,411 pairs of jeans. So far the campaign has collected over one million pairs of jeans - that's enough to clothe all the homeless teens in the US and Canada!

Got Questions? Email teensforjeans@dosomething.org

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Sunday, April 24, 2011

Easter is a Time of Hope

By Edward Grinnan

A few days ago on April 1, Millie turned two. She’s a teenager in Golden Retriever years. By the way, I’m about 300 in dog years.

Last year right around the time she turned one, a homeless woman appeared on our block at the shelter right around the corner. The first time she encountered me and Millie on our morning walk she shrank back in terror. I can understand being afraid of dogs. . . but afraid of Millie? The sweetest-looking (and sweetest) dog on the planet? The quintessential Golden Retriever? Loyal, kind, affectionate to a fault?

Well, I thought, easing Millie away from the woman, maybe she had a bad experience with a dog when she was little. “It’s not your fault, Mil,” I said. She looked genuinely hurt. No one had ever been afraid of her. As we walked away she kept looking over her shoulder at the woman as if she wanted to make things all right.

On later encounters we would quietly cross the street to avoid any unpleasantness. But this being New York that kind of evasion isn’t always practicable in tight urban quarters. One day the woman and Millie came face to face. They both stopped and stared.
Finally the woman asked, “Do she bite?”

“Never,” I said, patting my dog’s flanks.

That was that and we went our separate ways. Until one walk when I had stopped to chat with a neighbor. Millie was sitting politely behind me. A little too politely. I turned to see the woman petting Millie’s head awkwardly, Millie obliging happily.

The next time we saw her she tried to share a piece of bologna sandwich with Millie until I explained that it might not be good for dogs. I brought treats along for the next time we met so she could give Millie something. What a huge smile that encounter brought forth from both the woman and Millie.

A little earlier this spring the woman stopped us one day on our morning walk. “I’m getting my own place,” she said, more to Millie than to me. “I got approved.” It was the perfect time to let Millie give the woman a high five. The woman was duly amazed by this little trick. Then she said, “I’m thinking of getting a dog…one of them shelter dogs, a stray, kinda like me.”

I’m writing this on Easter weekend because it is the time we celebrate resurrections. Yes, the celebration of the historic resurrection of Christ above all. But also all the other resurrections in our lives—resurrections of faith, family, health, finances, dreams and above all, the resurrection of hope.


Edward Grinnan is Editor-in-Chief and Vice President of GUIDEPOSTS Publications.
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Thursday, April 21, 2011

Why the homeless may be closer to surrendering than the rich and powerful . . .

Why did Jesus have to die?
by
C. S. Lewis

We are told that Christ was killed for us, that His death has washed out our sins, and that by dying He disabled death itself. That is the formula. That is Christianity. That is what has to be believed. Any theories we build up as to how Christ's death did all this are, in my view, quite secondary: mere plans or diagrams to be left alone if they do not help us, and, even if they do help us, not to be confused with the thing itself. All the same, some of these theories are worth looking at.

The one most people have heard is the one about our being let off because Christ volunteered to bear a punishment instead of us. Now on the face of it that is a very silly theory. If God was prepared to let us off, why on earth did He not do so? And what possible point could there be in punishing an innocent person instead? None at all that I can see, if you are thinking of punishment in the police-court sense. On the other hand, if you think of a debt, there is plenty of point in a person who has some assets paying it on behalf of someone who has not. Or if you take "paying the penalty," not in the sense of being punished, but in the more general sense of "footing the bill," then, of course, it is a matter of common experience that, when one person has got himself into a hole, the trouble of getting him out usually falls on a kind friend.

Now what was the sort of "hole" man had gotten himself into? He had tried to set up on his own, to behave as if he belonged to himself. In other words, fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who needs improvement: he is a rebel who must lay down his arms. Laying down your arms, surrendering, saying you are sorry, realizing that you have been on the wrong track and getting ready to start life over again from the ground floor - that is the only way out of a "hole." This process of surrender - this movement full speed astern - is what Christians call repentance. Now repentance is no fun at all. It is something much harder than merely eating humble pie. It means unlearning all the self-conceit and self-will that we have been training ourselves into for thousands of years. It means undergoing a kind of death. In fact, it needs a good man to repent. And here's the catch. Only a bad person needs to repent: only a good person can repent perfectly. The worse you are the more you need it and the less you can do it. The only person who could do it perfectly would be a perfect person - and he would not need it.

Remember, this repentance, this willing submission to humiliation and a kind of death, is not something God demands of you before He will take you back and which He could let you off of if He chose: it is simply a description of what going back to Him is like. If you ask God to take you back without it, you are really asking Him to let you go back without going back. It cannot happen. Very well, then, we must go through with it. But the same badness which makes us need it, makes us unable to do it. Can we do it if God helps us? Yes, but what do we mean when we talk of God helping us? We mean God putting into us a bit of Himself, so to speak. He lends us a little of His reasoning powers and that is how we think: He puts a little of His love into us and that is how we love one another. When you teach a child writing, you hold its hand while it forms the letters: that is, it forms the letters because you are forming them. We love and reason because God loves and reasons and holds our hand while we do it. Now if we had not fallen, that would all be plain sailing. But unfortunately we now need God's help in order to do something which God, in His own nature, never does at all - to surrender, to suffer, to submit, to die. Nothing in God's nature corresponds to this process at all. So that the one road for which we now need God's leadership most of all is a road God, in His own nature, has never walked. God can share only what He has: this thing, in His own nature, He has not.

But supposing God became a man - suppose our human nature which can suffer and die was amalgamated with God's nature in one person - then that person could help us. He could surrender His will, and suffer and die, because He was man; and He could do it perfectly because He was God. You and I can go through this process only if God does it in us; but God can do it only if He becomes man. Our attempts at this dying will succeed only if we men share in God's dying, just as our thinking can succeed only because it is a drop out of the ocean of His intelligence: but we cannot share God's dying unless God dies; and he cannot die except by being a man. That is the sense in which He pays our debt, and suffers for us what He Himself need not suffer at all. Excerpted from, C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, Chapter 4, The Perfect Penitent.
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Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Nobody Don't Love Nobody

At a time of state and federal budget cuts for education, Hallmark aired on CBS an uplifting, feel-good movie about how one compassionate and dedicated teacher can make a difference in children's lives.

"Beyond the Blackboard," (photo) debuted this past Sunday night. Based on a true story, it stars Emily Van Camp as a first-year teacher in Salt Lake City who is assigned to instruct homeless children.

The events took place in 1987 when real-life teacher Stacey Bess was 24 and starting her teaching career. She was assigned to homeless children in a makeshift classroom under a freeway viaduct that had no books, no desks, no custodian and almost no support at what was known as "The School With No Name." Her students, in grades one through six, were all from the streets.

Stacey Bess has said that she originally had signed on for six months hoping that when it was over she would be relocated to a school in a nice neighborhood. But she discovered that these children needed her and she could have an impact on their lives. She stayed for 11 years.

The movie was inspired by Bess' 1994 book "Nobody Don't Love Nobody," which recounts how she took a compassionate and nonjudgmental approach, giving the children unconditional love.
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Friday, April 15, 2011

Conquering the Devil

"The most powerful weapon to conquer the devil is humility. For, as he does not know at all how to employ it, neither does he know how to defend himself from it. You will find out that Charity is a heavy burden to carry, heavier than the kettle of soup and the full basket. But you will keep your gentleness and your smile. It is not enough to give soup and bread. This the rich can do. You are the servant of the poor, always smiling and good-humored. They are your masters, terribly sensitive and exacting master you will see, and the uglier and the dirtier they will be, the more unjust and insulting, the more love you must give them. It is only for your love alone that the poor will forgive you the bread you give to them." Anonymous

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Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Prayer of a Homeless Son

"Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head." (Luke 9:58) Father, my heart is heavy today . . . My spirit is crying inside I’m looking for a place I can run away to . . . I’m looking for a place to hide. I’m dreaming of Your perfect heaven. Just how nice it’s going to be . . . To never feel pain and sorrow again . . . Once and forever, I’ll be set free. Free from these pains of hunger . . . Seems I never find enough to eat . . . Free from the damp that chills to the bone. How I long for a warm place to sleep. Free from the dust and dirt on my skin . . . Can’t remember the last bath I had . . . Free from the looks I get on the street Lord, do I really smell that bad? Father, my heart is heavy tonight . . . It’s been a long and very trying day . . . Thank you for guarding and watching over me . . . And for each blessing that You sent my way. (By Frog, at http://www.thestarlitecafe.com/)



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Saturday, April 9, 2011

Random Acts Of Kindness For The Lenten Journey


  1. Greet a stranger with a wave, a smile, and a sincere "good morning."

  2. Smile and be tolerant of morning commuters in a hurry.

  3. Yield your place in line to someone obviously in a hurry.

  4. After a restaurant meal, seek out your server and offer a generous tip along with your personal thanks.

  5. Pay for the coffee or tea for the person behind you in line.

  6. Leave an inspirational quotation on your bus, train or ferry seat when you exit.

  7. Greet a store cashier warmly and sincerely ask about his or her day.

  8. Spend an hour at a senior's home reading or chatting.

  9. Volunteer at a facility that brings you into contact with people you would not normally interact with.

  10. Leave a positive comment on a website that you enjoy.

  11. Send a thank you email to the author of a book or article that you enjoy. Feed a parking meter that has expired.

  12. Walk through your neighborhood and pick up trash.

  13. Pack an extra lunch and give it to a homeless person.

  14. Stop and chat with a homeless person who's a regular near your work or home.

  15. Don't forget to invite your family and friends to Subscribe! to Homeless In America or join the Followers - right column.



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Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Myths, Misconceptions and Reality

Many goodly-type Americans often maintain misconceptions about the homeless. Here is a list of the top ten homelessness myths, paired with some facts.

  1. They are all men. – For many, the word “homeless” conjures up images of scraggly men standing on street corners holding cardboard signs. Today, that image is simply not reality: the face of homelessness has changed. In fact, the fastest growing segments of the homeless population are women and families with children.

  2. They are all lazy. – A sad reality facing many homeless individuals and families is that even if they work, their income cannot sustain them. As a matter of fact, the majority of homeless people are working or actively looking for work, and yet remain homeless. For instance, in a city like Orlando, Florida, where the service industry accounts for 40% of jobs, the resulting wage is only $8 per hour with limited benefits. The average rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Orlando requires an hourly wage of nearly $18.00, making it almost impossible for a couple to afford, even with both working 40 hours per week at $8 per hour.

  3. Homelessness is a one-issue problem. – Many believe that the homeless “just need to get a job” to fix their situation. If only addressing the needs of the homeless was this easy! The reality is contributors to homelessness can include low wages, lack of affordable rental housing, job loss or underemployment, lack of health care, domestic violence, substance abuse, and mental health issues.

  4. They are all from someplace else. – Again, taking Orlando, Florida as an example, Eighty-three percent of the homeless individuals interviewed had lived in the area for one year or longer, showing that many started out as typical Central Florida residents. The majority were living in the Central Florida area when they became homeless.

  5. Build it and they will come. – Constructing a new facility does not “attract” new homeless people to an area. They are already there. In a city like Los Angeles, California, for instance, the homeless population since 2005 has consistently remained at about 75,000 individuals.

  6. Ignore the problem and it will go away. – According to recent state, local and federal statistics, the number of homeless families with children increased dramatically the past few years since the start of the recession. The economy woes and its real human casualties have no apparent end in site.

  7. Services provided are a hand-out. – Many homeless individuals need a hand up, not a hand-out. Although for the moment they need hydration, food, clothing and shelter. Long-term they need job training, educational opportunities, health care, mental health counseling, and life skills like budgeting and savings in order to assure self-sufficiency.

  8. It is a lifestyle choice. – In one study, 84% of those interviewed listed issues such as employment, housing, disabilities, family problems, forced relocation, natural disasters, and recent immigration as the cause of their current state of homelessness. These individuals did not choose to be homeless and are trying desperately to return to self-sufficiency.

  9. God is on the side of people who work for a living. - “For thus says he who is high and exalted, living eternally, whose name is the Holy One: On high I dwell, and in holiness, and with the crushed and dejected in spirit, To revive the spirits of the dejected, to revive the hearts of the crushed.” Isaiah 57:15

  10. It will never happen to me. – Don’t believe homelessness can happen to anyone? According to federal statistics, the majority of Americans income to credit card debt ratios, most are a just a pay check or two away from homelessness. This scenario is most likely in the case of an unforeseen emergency such as a natural disaster, major health problem or accident.


  • Has something been missed that you think should be added to the list? Feel free to share your own myths about homelessness by clicking on comments below!

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Sunday, April 3, 2011

Drugged and Placated

If we cannot see the wretchedness of another, it means we cannot see our own pitiful misery and personal emptiness. Lost in unawareness because of greed and selfishness, but bathed in the wealth of our temporal comforts, we are drugged and placated, all the while destined for hell itself. St. Jerome has more to say . . . “Lazarus, the beggar, is called by his name because he was a saint, but the man who is rich and proud is not deemed worthy of a name . . . “The meaning of Lazarus’ name is [Greek] boethoumenos, one who has been helped. He was a poor man and, in his poverty, the Lord came to his assistance. “Who lay at his gate, covered with sores.” The rich man, in purple splendor, is not accused of being avaricious, not of carrying off the property of another, nor of committing adultery, nor, in fact, of any wrongdoing; the evil alone of which he is guilty is pride. Most wretched of men, you see your own body lying there outside your gate, and have you no compassion? If the precepts of God have no meaning to you, at least take pity on your own plight, and be in fear lest you become such as he. Why do you save what is superfluous to your pleasure? Give in alms to your own member what you waste . . .” (Saint Jerome (+419) was a hermit and Scripture scholar.)

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