Reaching Out to the Homeless

When I was young, walking up and down the streets of cities like San Francisco, I would see homeless people and wonder what had gotten them to that point.  My heart always ached for these individuals.  I’d invent stories in my mind as to what they’d gone through to find themselves in that position.  I always wanted to give my allowance to these people, so I’d go to a store and break my allowance down into dollar bills and pass them out.  I was always disappointed when I ran out of dollar bills, because there were always more people to help.  I was always hurt that I couldn’t help them all.


One time my mom and I went grocery shopping and passed a homeless family on our way.  We went inside, bought some extra groceries, and gave it to them.  I remember their faces, and their exuberant “Thank you”.   We still talk about that day, as it benefitted us more than it benefitted them!  A simple bag of groceries did so much!


As I’ve grown, I’ve realized that giving money to the homeless isn’t something I’m willing to do.  So, instead, if I see a homeless person I’m impassioned to help, I offer to buy them a meal, get them some food from a local grocery store, or if they need anything specific I can buy for them.  I always try to be respectful of them.  Look them in the eye, treat them as I would like to be treated.  We never know what leads to these people becoming homeless.  These individuals are someone’s child, someone’s sister or brother, or someone’s mother.  They are still human beings, and still deserve to be treated with respect and dignity.

Once a year I help out with a local pancake breakfast for the homeless.  Thanks to shelters and kitchens, with the assistance of homeless sheltersoftware, they are able to track and care for homeless people.  Volunteering my time is free.  Helping a kitchen serve a few hundred meals is easy and very rewarding.  Many organizations go beyond just feeding the homeless.  They offer women’s services, care for homeless children, and much more.  If you’re a professional, some organizations offer haircuts, medical care, job training, interviews, and dental work to the homeless.  You can help enrich the lives of many homeless people with just a few hours of your time.  Just because they don’t have a home doesn’t mean their medical issues don’t bother them any less.

Instead of giving your unwanted items to goodwill, call your local homeless shelter.  Here’s a searchable directory of homeless shelters: http://www.homelessshelterdirectory.org/.  They are always in need of items.  You can donate anything to these organizations.  Many coupon users donate their extra toiletries to shelters. 


The homeless epidemic is widespread.  From major cities, to small rural areas, there are individuals facing homelessness everywhere.  It’s all too easy to ignore this issue, but with more homeless people every day, chances are you know someone who’s homeless, or very close to it.  If everyone would donate just a few hours of their time, our programs to assist these people would go so much farther.  The biggest misconception is that you can’t do anything about it.  We can each do something, one homeless person in need at a time!