Hi. My name is Christian V. This is my third year on YNIA and it’s been such an awesome experience so far. This week I’m working at an organization called New Community Shelter. The mission of the shelter is to provide housing and aid to homeless members of the community in Green Bay. They have classes and programs set to aid those in need and teach them valuable life skills which they may not possess. This includes things as basic as doing one’s taxes and things as complex as applying for jobs. The work here has proven to be profoundly beneficial for those in the community struggling with homelessness. The success stories I’ve heard while working at this site are amazing and awe-inspiring.
One of these success stories is a woman named Rory. After surviving intense trauma, Rory spent a large part of her life running away from her problems. In these years of running, she became ensnared by a life of struggle, substance abuse, and incarceration. One of her main issues that everywhere she turned the issues she faced were criminalized. Instead of receiving help for her mental health issues or drug related problems, institutions looked past her humanity. They saw her as a criminal, a mental health statistic, or someone who just had to many problems to help. New Community Center saw her as a person. They helped her get back on her feet, and she now lives a stable life and volunteers frequently at the shelter. One point she made that stuck with me though was how afraid she was to walk through the doors of the shelter. Entering a shelter takes courage. So often only the negatives of homelessness are shown, and the humanity of these people is left behind. People like Rory are immensely courageous in facing their own traumas boldly defy the stereotypes of homelessness.
People such as Rory and organizations like New Community Shelter are intensely inspiring, and show the true nature of things that we as a collective society so often brush aside. Seeing a homeless person on the street, we may look away, or think, “Oh if I give them money all they’ll do is squander it on drugs.” That line of thinking is harmful. Homeless people are people. Not a stereotype, not a statistic, not anything else but living and breathing people, all with their own problems and their own stories. I’m sure there are many more people like Rory out in this world, and they give me hope.
You're right. We must see everyone as we want others to see us: as unique in our histories and passions, in spite of the current needs they may have. Most of us take for granted the stability and support of family and friends, things that some of these people just never had.
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