05 12 2021

VOL. 18 ISSUE 17

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// 3

NEWS IN BRIEF D.C. judge rules against eviction moratorium

Law is still disputed and ruling may not result in immediate evictions Judge Dabney Friedrich of the U.S. District Court for D.C. threw out on May 5 the federal ban on evictions that has been in place since early in the pandemic and was most recently extended until June 30.

The Department of Justice immediately appealed the ruling and is seeking a stay of the order.

The ruling will not affect tenants in D.C., where there is still a local comprehensive ban on evictions. Renters in Maryland and Virginia may be affected depending on where their landlord chooses to file the case.

This ruling is the latest of several conflicting court decisions on the federal eviction moratorium. Federal decisions in cases like this can influence local judges’ decisions but are not enforceable rulings.

Tenants Rights Tuesdays

D.C. Council votes to advance Comp Plan amendment

Tuesday, May 18, 12 p.m. // Online Are you worried about your housing situation? Wondering what will happen after the public health emergency? Are you confused about what your landlord can and cannot do? Attorneys from Neighborhood Legal Services Program will provide you with information about your rights as a tenant all the time and during the public health emergency. We will also discuss what is happening at landlord tenant court during this time. NLSP will host the workshop on Webex with the password “knowledge”.

Register at: tinyurl.com/nlsp-clinic WEDNESDAY, MAY 12

Environmental Justice: Energy Equity and Transitions 12 - 1 p.m.

Resources for the Future and the Urban Institute will host the second event in Exposure, a six-part webinar series on environmental justice. A panel of experts will address issues of energy justice, energy poverty, green jobs, and energy transition communities.

Register: tinyurl.com/energy-justice-panel

UPDATES ONLINE AT ICH.DC.GOV

THURSDAY, MAY 13

Housing Solutions Committee May 17, 3 -4 p.m. // Online via WebEx

Knowing Our Past, Creating Our Future: Food Sovereignty in the Past, Present, and Future of Washington, DC

D.C. Interagency Council on Homelessness Meetings

***For call-in information, as well as meeting info for unlisted working groups, contact: ich.info@dc.gov.

6:30 - 8:30 p.m. // Online An intergenerational conversation with Washington, D.C. food system creators — past and present — about their work and the legacy and lineage of food sovereignty activism in D.C. Register: tinyurl.com/food-sovereignty-event

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AUDIENCE EXCHANGE DC Environmental Film Fest @dceff_org

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Great in-depth article from @streetsensedc on @RodneyStotts1, subject of 2021 Festival favorite THE FALCONER (@FalconerFilm). https://www.streetsensemedia.org/article/rodneystotts-falconry-students-dc-covid/#.YJQ-orVKiUm

“We have multimillionaires paying a tax rate on added earnings that is just slightly higher than the rate for teachers and nurses earning $60,000 a year,” - @TazraMitchell. Read more from her interview with @mattygannon_ in this @streetsensedc article! tinyurl.com/dcfpi-tax-rate

11:58 AM · MAY 3, 2021

12:00 PM · MAY 1, 2021

The D.C. Council approved the latest changes to the Comprehensive Plan in the first of two rounds of votes on May 4.

The Comp Plan guides growth in D.C. and influences how much housing developers can build and where they can build it. It has become the subject of intense debate since this current round of amendments began in 2016, with many advocates raising concerns that it will enable displacement and gentrification.

The text voted on on May 4 included amendments from Council Chair Phil Mendelson to address the concerns. Although councilmembers were generally supportive, some advocates say the changes don’t go far enough.

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CORRECTIONS The story “Changing people’s lives one bird at a time: Rodney Stotts uses falconry to reach youth” has been updated online to correct the caption under the video of Stotts releasing a bird, Keisha, in the trailer for his children’s book. The caption had previously said it was the first bird he ever caught, but Keisha was the first bird he had trapped that year. The first bird Stotts ever caught was Monique, a North American Kestrel.

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NEWS

New Heights program helps teen parents succeed at home and at school And after several years of proposed cuts, it’s budget grew

BY MONIQUE WILSON Editorial Intern

S

ince the 1990s, an instrumental part of decreasing teen pregnancies in Washington, D.C. has been the New Heights program. However, in recent years, the program has faced uncertainty due to proposed budget cuts and reorganization. It’s remaining staff have shown resilience, increasing the number of schools and members each person supports.

New Heights is available in 13 of the District’s 21 high schools, focused on those that primarily serve low-income teenagers. “We also support middle school students as needed,” wrote Program Manager Adia Burns in an email to Street Sense Media.

The goals of the program is to prevent repeat pregnancies and increase graduation rates and improve school attendance for parenting highschoolers, male or female. Once the child is born, students are able to receive resources which include daycare, government financial assistance, and career planning.

The program’s approximately $1 million annual budget allows all services to be free for students: approximately 130 parenting teens thus far in 2021, according to DCPS. Three decades ago, there was a concerning rise of teen pregnancies across the nation. Adolescent pregnancies reached their peak in 1991 with 175 pregnancies per 1,000 18-19 year olds. According to a 2007 study, “teen pregnancy and parenting is the leading cause of high school girls dropping out of school, representing 30 to 40% of all female dropouts.” The pregnancy rate for teenagers in D.C. has fallen over 85% since then, partially due to programs like New Heights. The program started in the 1990s, as a partnership with the D.C. Department of Human Services, serving only two schools and funded by DHS’s Temporary Assistance For Needy Families funds. With the help of a 2010 federal grant, it dramatically expanded to all of the District’s large comprehensive high schools in time for the 2011-2012 school year.

LaShawn Jones, a New Heights program coordinator since 2011, said that along with aiding students with employment and career counseling, the program’s goal is to ensure graduating seniors have a plan for after high school.

“If we can help support them, whether that’s doing resume writing, or trying to help them do an application or even prep for an interview, just the basic steps, we help to try to guide that process,” Jones said.

A core part of New Heights that differentiates it from other programs are the resources provided for the newborn or infant.

These resources include but are not limited to: diapers, wipes, toys, and learning books.

Maia Schafer, a program coordinator at Anacostia High School, said, “First and foremost, we offer our students tangible items that they need in an effort to relieve stress while they’re trying to finish school … anything you can think of that the baby may need.”

Many young parents need these supplies for their children.

For many of these teenagers, New Heights may be the only accessible place that can provide these resources..

Nataly, an alumni of the New Heights program, said she is thankful for the support she received from the coordinators while pregnant and afterwards.

“During that pregnancy, I was going through a hard process, because I thought that being pregnant was gonna get in between my school, like, getting my education. And I thought of dropping out of high school. But then, with the support of Ms. LaShawn and my parents — that kept me inspired to continue high school.”

The interactions between New Heights program coordinators and the participants is analogous to a parent-child relationship.

Jones occasionally refers to Nataly as her child, pushing the idea that she cares for all New Heights participants as family — and wants the best for them.

Learning to pivot during the pandemic Jones, along with her New Heights colleagues, had to learn new ways to continue providing the necessary support for participants during the COVID-19 pandemic. This meant using FaceTime, Zoom, Microsoft Teams — whatever platform that was available to keep in touch with the young parents.

Jones encourages the young people she supports at Cardozo Education Campus, Eastern High School, and Dunbar High School to reach out to her and keep in constant communication.

“Call me, let me know what’s going on so I can know how to support you in this process, because this is not our normal — but we need to still function, especially because now you’re supposed to graduate,” Jones described her message for her students. “We really need you to attend classes, I need you to log in, I need you to turn in work so we can make sure that you’re still on task.”

One method the New Heights program implemented across D.C. Public Schools is a newsletter.

“We send out every two weeks to our students,” Jones said.

“We’re celebrating them or providing them with resources and information. There are articles or recipes, and what to do with your child while you’re at home. Just really understanding what they were going through.”

As the pandemic stretched on, operations were shaky.

The program had to keep finding innovative ways to ensure participants received all the necessary resources and supplies.

“That’s when we developed the first drop off,” Jones said “We will either find out which addresses or time [the parent]’s gonna be home, and then try to do those deliveries of supplemental supplies that you were regularly getting in person. Like diapers, wipes, sometimes formula - if we can get our hands on it.”

The importance of community organizations During the pandemic, the New Heights program has been unable to be the sole provider of certain resources. They rely on partners like the Greater D.C. Diaper Bank and many more to provide for the community.

Partners are critical even in good times. “The idea was to place a coordinator in the schools, rather than a program. The person was going to be the link to already existing programs,” said Megan Moore, a New Heights coordinator for a D.C. public charter school, in a 2016 documentary about the program.

Similar to the New Heights program and the Greater D.C. Diaper Bank, there are more organizations in the region doing work for young people around pregnancy prevention and safe sex. Organizations like Young Women’s Project and Sasha Bruce are not formal partners with the New Heights program but they, too, have a profound impact on youth in need.

Olaiya’s Cradle, a program within the youth homelessness nonprofit Sasha Bruce, aims to support young mothers without homes, providing them with counseling and infant health care.

“Our outcomes are to reduce risky behaviors, including teen pregnancy, course failures, suspension rates,” said Courtney Gibbs, a teen outreach program manager.

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Comparable to Olaiya’s Cradle, the Young Women’s Project centers teen women and youth in the foster care system by equipping them with comprehensive sex education and adequate reproductive health care, as well as encouraging the teens to become peer educators in their community.

“What that program does is [provide] quick tools for high schoolers in their communities to actually distribute sexual health resources and become resources for when students have questions about sexual health,” said Chika Onwuvuche, a senior program manager for Young Women’s Project. “So that can be anything from pregnancy to STDs to the menstrual cycle to sexual harassment. And so they are really equipped with trying to decrease the teen pregnancy rate.”

Akin to the New Heights program, the Young Women’s Project and Olaiya’s Cradle work across the community to ensure underresourced young people have access to pregnancy prevention, health care, and therapy. By tapping into organizations across the District for resources, these programs are able to provide the best services for low-income and marginalized youth.

Lack of access and education for poor youth While nationwide teen pregnancy rates have decreased over the past three decades, the statistics for teenagers of color are disproportionately higher than for white teenage girls.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2017, rates were two times higher for Hispanic and non-Hispanic Black teens compared to non-Hispanic white teenagers.

Research has found that socioeconomic issues like low education levels, racial segregation, and poverty contribute to In 2017, an independent evaluation for the U.S. Department of Health higher levels of teen pregnancy. These problems are widely spread and Human Services concluded “the New Heights approach is filling across D.C.’s predominantly Black and brown neighborhoods. a pressing need in Washington, D.C., in helping parenting females remain in school and make progress toward completion, which in This year, the median income for Black residents in Washington turn can lead to improved long-term outcomes for both mother and D.C. is $46,301 in comparison to $143,150 for white residents. child.” COURTESY OF THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Disparate levels of poverty for the Black D.C. community are compounded by racial segregation across the District. In 2021, D.C. Health Matters, a project of the National Institutes for Health, The battle to keep New Heights funded reported that the majority of Black people live in wards 5, 7 and 8. Black residents are being pushed east of the Anacostia River into areas that are food deserts and have low-rated public schools.

Despite its success, New Heights seems to have only recently Gibbs, who works predominantly in wards 7 and 8, said, overcome a multi-year battle to remain funded.

“They may not be able to articulate what exactly is going on, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser included a $420,000 cut to the but they know that they don’t have the same access as other program in her fiscal year 2019 budget proposal. At the time, people across the city.”

Amanda Alexander, interim director of DCPS, said some of According to the D.C. Policy Center, more than half of the food the responsibilities of New Heights coordinators would shift deserts in Washington D.C. are located in Ward 8. A food desert to existing DCPS school-based social workers and counselors. is defined as an area with limited access to a supermarket, high The move prompted a backlash from staff as well as the poverty rates, and low car access. students they served, many of whom testified to the D.C. Council Along with a high number of food deserts in predominantly about the positive effects they felt from New Heights.

Black areas, Ward 7 and 8 hold half “A budget cut a few years ago of the District’s lowest-performing resulted in losing three staff and schools. In 2017, according to a star supply money,” testified Beth Perry, rating system, the Office of the State during a D.C. Council hearing on Superintendent of Education found the budget at the time. “We adjusted that five of the bottom schools in without compromising services by D.C. were located in Ward 8. doubling up schools and sharing While more recent information supplies. Last week, the entire hasn’t been published by the program was cut. I am not sure why.

Office of the State Superintendent I can only think, perhaps, people do due to COVID-19, School Digger not know what we do.” compiled data from a variety of At-large Councilmember Robert White Nataly, New Heights alumna education bureaus for the 2018eventually succeeded in finding enough 2019 school year. According to the funding to keep the program afloat. site, the top elementary schools are in the Northwest region However, the next year, the New Heights budget was of D.C. — which holds a large portion of the wealthiest completely eliminated in Bowser’s fiscal year 2020 proposal, residents in the District. again triggering pushback from the community it serves.

Combined, these factors can result in higher levels of “First, I’ll start off by saying that New Heights isn’t only a teen pregnancy. Without adequate resources, education, and program, but it’s a home,” said Inesha Andrews, then a student income, Black and brown teenagers aren’t equipped to know at Anacostia High School, in a D.C. Council hearing. about preventative pregnancy measures or resources to take “Throughout the program we just learned so much about care of their child. being young adults and how it is to be in the real world.”

Based on her work at the New Heights program, Shafer Ward 1 Councilmember Brianne Nadeau ultimately intervened said, “If you have money, you can afford an abortion. If you and the program received supplemental funding to bring its are educated, then nine times out of ten, you can put your budget for FY2020 back up to approximately $1 million. daughter on birth control.”

This recurring fight changed in the development of the fiscal

“I thought of dropping out of high school. But then, with the support of [New Heights] and my parents — that kept me inspired to continue.”

Two Cardozo Education Campus students who enrolled in New Heights after their child was born, graduated, and went on to study at the University of the District of Columbia.

PHOTO COURTESY OF NEW HEIGHTS PROGRAM PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS

year 2021 budget. New Heights transitioned from being jointly funded through DHS and DCPS to being solely funded through DCPS and its budget was increased.

The program will presumably also have stable funding this year. “No DCPS school will experience a reduction in their FY22 budget,” Mayor Bowser declared in a press release last month, thanks to federal recovery funds. “All schools will have a FY22 budget that at least matches FY21 funding levels.” Her fiscal year 2022 proposed budget is expected to be released on May 27.

People touched personally by New Heights continue to champion it as one of the best options for teenage parents in the DCPS system.

Schafer referred to the program as, “the only place in the building that is tailored for [pregnant students.] They’re the most unique group in the building. It’s the most stigmatized group. So they have got our place where they can come, they don’t feel stigmatized.”

It’s important that teen parents know there is a place that welcomes them since that may not be in the case in their home life.

Former At-large Councilmember David Grosso, who chaired the Education Committee during the budget debates over the past three budget cycles, told Street Sense Media, “Just because you’re having a baby doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be welcomed in school, and so I think what they do is really give an opportunity to welcome teen parents into school. Make them feel comfortable and engaged and give them a chance to really excel in school.”

The New Heights program has overcome many challenges in the past year. A core part of the program is face-to-face interaction with young parents and daycare assistance. Program coordinators like Maia Schafer and LaShawn Jones have had to get creative to maintain contact with the participants. Even with this work, there is more to do for the New Heights program and young parents across the District.

As the city moves forward, Grosso said more funding should be dedicated to supporting students who face the most adversity. Childcare-focused partners like New Heights are essential to give students the capacity to focus on learning supports such as tutoring.

“The child is also important to the parent,” Gross said. “So you don’t want to just remove them from each other, you have to do it in connection with each other.”

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NEWS

Tech issues hobble U.S. tenants fighting eviction in remote hearings said Judith Goldiner, attorney-in-charge of the civil law reform unit at the Legal Aid Society in New York City.

"A lot of it has to do with difficulty accessing the courts at this time."

New York courts have opened phone lines for those struggling to get online, but Goldiner said those are frequently overloaded.

"That system has totally broken down in a way that could lead to massive evictions," she said.

The New York State Unified Court System did not respond to a request for comment.

"There doesn't seem to be a plan in place to address those issues, e.g., public Wi-Fi, device distribution, or shifts in the procedure," said Debra Puzzo, co-director of the housing program at the Tenant Resource Center in Madison, Wisconsin.

"There are dropped calls, struggles with Zoom, and connection issues for the court officials themselves, sometimes resulting in a confusing cacophony," she said in an email.

Those issues have been especially problematic for nonEnglish speakers, she noted.

The number of people who have lost housing due to simply being unable to connect to their eviction hearings is unknown, Puzzo added.

Case workers German Miranda (L) and Amber Perez (C) review notes about residents facing eviction with Director of Policy and Organizing Norieliz DeJesus at La Colaborativa in Chelsea, Massachusetts, U.S., March 23, 2021. PHOTO BY BRIAN SNYDER / REUTERS

BY CAREY L. BIRON Reuters

L

ori Livingston had been waiting for an eviction hearing since last May, when her original date was postponed as the coronavirus pandemic forced Philadelphia's courts to close.

But when proceedings recently started up again, the disabled 66-year-old was surprised to get a court summons late in the day on March 12, a Friday, for a remote hearing early the following Monday.

"I got a one-day notice," she said by phone, hours after her hearing took place.

The judge and landlord participated by videoconference, but the camera on Livingston's computer was broken and she could not get a video connection on her phone, so she had to call in.

She also did not have time to get formal legal representation, and the e-filing system she was supposed to use to submit her evidence was down throughout the weekend, she said.

"It feels like I didn't have a voice. I might (as well) have not even showed up," she said.

Legal aid workers say the problems Livingston faced are affecting eviction hearings across the country as courts move proceedings online, making the process slower and more confusing, and further weakening the tenant's voice.

Hilda Chan, a staff attorney at Bay Area Legal Aid in California, said the shift to remote hearings automatically puts tenants at a disadvantage.

"Landlords have resources. They have easy access to their own attorney, but also a laptop, internet. Those are a given for the landlord but not for tenants who are struggling to maintain rent," she said in a phone interview.

Chan said she and her colleagues work with some clients who do not have cell phones and whose only point of contact is often a social worker.

"How can they successfully present themselves in a virtual jury trial?" she asked.

A spokesman for the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania confirmed that part of the computer system for the Philadelphia courts was down over the weekend.

The judge in Livingston's case gave her 30 days to vacate the property, though she is looking into her legal options.

A spokesman for the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) was not available to comment.

Constitutional concerns

There may also be constitutional concerns in remote eviction hearings, according to a case filed in St. Louis, Missouri, by ArchCity Defenders in August.

Eddie Logan, a veteran, lost an eviction trial by phone after being Evictions during the pandemic have been governed by a muddle unable to submit evidence or access hearings by videoconference, of rules and bans at the local and federal levels. said Lee Camp, a staff attorney with the legal aid charity.

Some groups, including the Aspen Institute think tank, have "He couldn't see the judge, the landlord, the opposing estimated up to 40 million people are at risk of eviction in the attorney," Camp said.

United States.

"That puts you at a disadvantage to fully interrogate the The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on evidence brought against you, to cross-examine the opposing Monday extended through June 30 a nationwide order to party, to let the court judge your credibility by looking at you." prevent millions of U.S. renters from being evicted amid the Eventually, Logan's case was overturned, Camp said, economic fallout from the COVIDbut only after multiple attorneys 19 pandemic. assisted Logan for over a month "Landlords have resources.

While the eviction freezes "a massive amount of resources for outlawed the physical expulsion of one individual to ensure they had a They have easy access to their most tenants, they did not halt the fair day in trial." own attorney, but also a laptop, filing of evictions and the related The U.S. constitution mandates legal process. that people have a right to a full and "The pandemic has forced the justice internet. Those are a given for the fair trial before the government can system to reimagine how we conduct landlord but not for tenants who take away property, Camp said, and court hearings and has accelerated the "it is impossible to have that full, use of new technologies," Patricia Lee are struggling to maintain rent.” fair and meaningful hearing through Refo, president of the American Bar this virtual court."

Association, said in emailed comments.

But there are also problems with the Remote judicial access can be a main alternative: in-person hearings. boon to marginalized communities by Pre-pandemic, housing court was Hilda Chan, Bay Area Legal Aid ensuring people do not have to travel typically a crowded, chaotic place, long distances or wait in crowded said Chan of Bay Area Legal Aid. courthouses, Refo said.

"You have whole families, babies, folks in walkers, attorneys "But we need to be vigilant about the unintended problems going back and forth," she said, noting jury trials require 20 that are inherent to virtual proceedings – starting with the people from different households to congregate in a courtroom reality that many people lack ... reliable internet access." for days on end.

Many tenants are not even getting to that point, however.

"What we really think should be happening now is for all "We have 40,000 tenant households who have not answered eviction cases to be stayed and pushed until we can do these their proceedings, and not answering means they're on track to safely," she said. have a default entered against them and proceed to a warrant,"

‘Broken’ system

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

// 7

AT A GLANCE

D.C. Inspector General will audit Department of Employment Services over late and missing unemployment payments

BY ALLY SCHWEITZER DCist

hang up on me,” testified Brittany Goddard, a recent graduate of Howard University who lost her catering job during the health crisis, and has never received benefits despite months D.C.’s Office of the Inspector General said it will audit the of phone calls and emails to the agency. “It’s been over a year city’s Department of Employment Services following months at this point, and I haven’t gotten a single dime yet.” of delayed payments and technical glitches that have left many Michael Haresign, chairperson of the D.C. Bar and unemployed workers without income.

Restaurant Workers Alliance, said an audit “is necessary to D.C. Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I-At Large) understand why DOES has been unable to fulfill its mandate.” announced the audit during a joint oversight roundtable of the He added that problems with benefits have eroded the public’s agency Wednesday morning. trust in the city’s safety net, and “an independent audit… is the OIG sent a letter on May 3 informing DOES Director Unique first step to restoring that trust.”

Morris-Hughes that the audit’s objectives will be to assess According to DOES, more than 143,000 new claims for the agency’s responsiveness in processing unemployment unemployment benefits were filed in D.C. between mid-March claims and “controls over the and mid-September. That’s accessibility, availability and more than five times the number reliability of the UI systems.” filed in all of 2019, according to OIG said preliminary audit federal data. fieldwork will begin on or about In F e b r u a r y, t h e c i t y May 12, 2021. Audits by the announced it was investing agency can take months, and may an additional $11 million into or may not result in legislation DOES after the coronavirus or administrative changes to exposed major shortcomings fix any issues that are found. in the system. But workers A spokesperson for DOES did testified that they’re still not immediately return DCist/ experiencing delayed payments WAMU’s request for comment. and confusing or nonexistent Brittany Goddard Members of the D.C. Council communication from agency took testimony Wednesday from staff about their claims. unemployed workers who have struggled to collect benefits “‘There’s a glitch in the system’ can’t continue to be their from the agency, which was overwhelmed by new claims at excuse,” testified Jesus Campos. the onset of the pandemic, and continues to experience delays Another oversight hearing is scheduled for May 12. Morriswith no clear resolution in sight.

Hughes is expected to testify, along with the contractor that “I was always on hold for at least an hour, and they would operates the agency’s unemployment benefits website.

This article was originally published by DCist on May 5.

“I was always on hold for at least an hour, and they would hang up on me. It’s been over a year at this point, and I haven’t gotten a single dime yet.”

Conrad Cheek Jr .

BIRTHDAYS Conrad Cheek Jr. May 15 ARTIST/VENDOR

VENDOR EMPLOYMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS • A vendor meeting will be held on Wednesday, May 12 at 2 p.m.

• May 14 will be the last day to take the vendor survey and receive 10 free papers • Vaccinated vendors can receive 15 free papers for showing their CDC card

An independent audit of the troubled agency will help “restore public trust,” one worker testified before D.C. lawmakers Wednesday. SCREENSHOT OF DOES WEBSITE COURTESY OF DCIST

• There will be a vaccine Q&A with George Washington University medical students on Wendesday, May 19 at 2 p.m.

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ART

Random Acts of Kindness: Checking New Orleans off my bucket list

Jackson Square, a historic park that is well-kept for tourists in New Orleans. PHOTO BY WENDELL WILLIAMS

BY WENDELL WILLIAMS Artist/Vendor

T

his last year or so has been challenging, to say the least. My health is deteriorating so quickly, it seems. It's been one issue after another. My friends tell me that I am being pessimistic when I talk about the feeling of being at the end of my life's journey, but it's true. I've reached this point where I can clearly see that my time remaining here on this planet is shortened by medical concerns that never seem to stop popping up.

My grandkids are 18 months and 50 days old, respectively, and the reality is it's highly improbable that I'll see them graduate high school, let alone college, which saddens me. A friend once predicted I had another 25 years in the tank. Maybe, but after these last two years or so the odds have shifted and now I wouldn't even take that bet.

As the coronavirus has taken more and more people’s lives who are younger than me, I've started to wonder about my lifelong propensity to always be long-range planning for everything in life. It hit me that those half million people who died so far had long-range plans, too, that unfortunately they won't get to see fulfilled.

So after thinking about the movie, “The Bucket List,” I decided to make mine, but I've had to accelerate the timetable because of my fear of the end. At 70, does it make sense to say in 2025 I want to go to Africa or China? When I was 25, 35, 45 or even 55, that kind of strategy would make more sense.

But now, after seeing the world from a senior's point of view with health issues including surviving a severe bout of COVID, my thinking has shifted to, “The future is now.

And part of that shift is not delaying anything that I dreamed of doing. One of those lifelong dreams was to visit all 50 states by the time I am laid to rest. After doing a count, I realized I was way behind with no hope of catching up.

I didn't know it, but a random act of kindness was on the way: a new/old friend stepped in. We had gone to the same high school with about 4,000 students here in D.C. and graduated the same year, but we never met until the night of our 50-year class reunion.

As I wrote about in “A Valentine for Valerie, One year later,” we ended up driving to Baltimore after the reunion for dinner after midnight to continue to catch up like we were long lost friends. (There’s no late-night dining in D.C. except fast food.)

Along the way we talked and I found we shared the loss of a loved one recently. Me, my great friend and uber-supportive Valerie and her, her beloved Sherman. They were together for what, after listening to her, seemed like many happy years and almost the same amount of time as me and Val. Both died suddenly at home from strokes.

We traded loving stories about each of them and how crippling the loss still was. We both found solitude in meeting someone who completely understood that hole in our hearts that can never be filled. We rode around that city till almost

Photo of the 1970 graduating class of Eastern High School. Wendell Williams is second row from the bottom, far left (in a dark jacket).

The woman he travelled with is fourth row from the bottom, second from the left. PHOTO COURTESY OF WENDELL WILLIAMS

daybreak before returning to the reunion site in Greenbelt for her car. It was as if I'd known her all along.

A few weeks later, she accepted my invitation to ride with me for support as I headed out to Skyline Drive to release balloons on Valerie's birthday, as I have done each October 2nd since her passing. Along the way, I shared how Val and I planned to pool our resources and go places when she retired — never thinking I'd have to go it alone. Then I found out that when it comes to travel, my new friend was in another league. She has been to all 50 states, territories and most other countries around the world, some places multiple times. I was thinking, “Wait a minute, how could this be? I thought you were from a similar background as me.” Her dad was working class like mine, but she worked in historic preservation and urban planning and it took her to places I could only dream about.

So I began to intently listen to her travel stories as I asked hundreds of questions about places I never thought I'd see.

When I was young I read atlases, encyclopedias (remember those?), and travel books about far off places. And I got to read more about those places at my work study job in the stacks of my college's library. And her vivid answers had me glued to the IMAX 3D screen of my mind thinking, with my lack of any retirement or savings, I'll still never get to see any of those places.

Once again the universe blessed me with a random act of kindness. She mentioned that she still worked as a consultant and suggested that with the miles and discounts she has access to — with her son and several siblings being high ranking corporate executives — that maybe I could tag along some time. Since October 2019, when scheduling permits, we've hit the road to some fun places that I never thought a formerly homeless person would ever get to see. In the past two years, we've been criss-crossing the country to get me to as many of the 50 states I haven't visited in the time left on my game clock.

And she's kind of taken it on as her mission to get me there.

We were playing what would become our game— travel Jeopardy — when I chose “Famous Southern Cities” for $500

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

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Blocks away from the wealthy Jackson Square area, people suffering on the street have become expected and common place in the French Quarter. During my brief visit, underpasses seemed to be the only public space people expereincing homelessness don’t have to fight for on a daily basis. PHOTOS BY WENDELL WILLIAMS

and mentioned that I'd never been to New Orleans. Of course, she'd been there many times. And just like that she said, “Let's get both our shots and go.”

Then — bam! — in another random act of kindness, a large hotel chain came through with vouchers for a several-day stay from an issue we had on a previous trip to Miami (another place I hadn't been). So we were off! Since we both don't drink or gamble and we both hated the thought of being in big crowds during this pandemic, we set the goal of visiting after Mardi Gras.

In the past, I'd ask my friends and supporters who had the luxury of traveling, like the O'Briens, to bring me a fridge magnet back from each of the wonderful places they'd been.

And they would — it seemed I'd been traveling through them and others. I had a whole section devoted to their family's many travels. But after so many of you helped me get to Scotland for an international awards ceremony where I was nominated for, of all things, my writing, I started to compete for space on that fridge door.

Because of my work and my struggle to stay financially afloat I can't miss many days of work, so we've kept our adventures to three to four days, max. We planned a quick trip so I could check Louisiana off the states list and officially

get that refrigerator magnet, which had become a passion.

I was both excited and anxious about traveling anywhere but the opportunity came and I wanted to see firsthand what Katrina had done to the city and the increase in homelessness it caused. (The official count rose by roughly 10,000 people after the storm, though it is back down to below 2,000, according to the government.)

And it didn't take long. On the way in from the airport I saw the now infamous Superdome. Pictures of homeless people staying there and the inhumane conditions they endured flooded my mind as we rode in the taxi. My friend was pointing out the sights as we took the exit ramp for our downtown hotel.

Then I started to see what I was looking for.

The tents of the homeless residents met us before the bottom of the exit ramp.It seems under the freeway was now the only prime real estate that homeless people didn't have to battle developers for in the Crescent City.

As she took me around the area, in some places it looked as if Katrina had just left. I couldn't believe that after this long of a time, select parts of the city weren't getting the attention they obviously needed. Outside of tourist destinations like the French Quarter, I saw houses as well as large apartment buildings that were leaning over so far that I could get out the

A sculpture at Congo Square, at one point the only place slaves were allowed to gather (on one day per week) in New Orleans, now located within the expansive Louis Armstrong Park. PHOTO BY WENDELL WILLIAMS

car and push them over myself. I wondered, “Why hasn't the rest of the city rebounded?”

The answer seems quite obvious to me. Katrina is another tool in what has become the gentrification playbook in most cities today, big or small. It was the natural disaster version of a business improvement district and much quicker, moving up the change-time by many years. I think the storm saved developers millions in demolition costs. And then it hit me: Where'd the people go? Shipped all over the country was the answer, even to D.C., where many stayed at the National Guard Armory near RFK for months.

But a significant number of the working poor stayed and some joined the ranks of the homeless. You could easily see them living outside in tents everywhere, especially under the freeways dissecting the city.

So I had a chance through this random act of kindness to see an undoubtedly beautiful city and its many cultural sites. And I had unbelievable experiences. But what I couldn't get out of my mind and what I took home with me is the vision of the many suffering homeless people who seem to be both invisible, and sometimes entertainment, to most tourists I encountered on my trip to the Big Easy.

Statue of jazz musicians in Louis Armstrong Park, New Orleans. PHOTO BY WENDELL WILLIAMS

1 0 // S T R E E T S E N S E M E D I A // M AY 1 2 - 1 8 , 2021

OPINION

MoCo weighs panhandling permits for “safety”

BY LIBBY SOLOMON

This column was first published by Greater Grater Washington on April 29.

A bill introduced by Montgomery County Councilmember Craig Rice on April 20 would require a permit to solicit money or donations from vehicles on high-speed roadways. The legislation opens with a section on pedestrian safety, saying the county’s Vision Zero action plan “requires greater safety measures related to the dangerous activity of pedestrians soliciting and collecting items from the occupants of vehicles in roadways.”

But critics in Montgomery County are calling Rice’s legislation an “anti-panhandling initiative,” saying it isn’t about traffic safety but rather about “criminalizing unhoused communities.” Rice responded, saying he works closely with people experiencing homelessness and has supported services for them.

“It’s not anti-panhandling,” Rice wrote on Twitter. “It’s pro-safety. It’s Vision Zero.

I pray you care about the safety of ALL of those in our roadways like you say you do.

Keep in mind the majority of those who are experiencing homelessness are Black. Let’s show we care about them and their lives.”

But Miriam Schoenbaum, a board member for the Action Committee for Transit (ACT), a Montgomery County advocacy group, said the bill as introduced doesn’t align with Vision

Zero goals and doesn’t have much potential to improve pedestrian safety. “If I were going to introduce pedestrian safety bills, they wouldn’t focus on people panhandling in medians,” Schoenbaum said.

The effort has a history. In 2013, Montgomery County launched a campaign to try to discourage people from giving money to panhandlers. A task force had originally considered banning the practice, as has been done in other counties, but the county wanted to allow firefighters to raise money with their “Fill the Boot” campaign for muscular dystrophy; a state attorney general’s opinion concluded that banning some forms of roadside solicitation but not others could violate the First Amendment.

The campaign encouraged people to donate to organizations providing homeless services instead of handing out cash, but reports at the time questioned its efficacy. That messaging still exists on the county’s website, urging people to “give a hand up, not a handout.”

Rice first proposed a bill banning panhandling outright in Montgomery County in late 2017. That bill also drew opposition because of the Fill the Boot campaign.

The legislation introduced would require people to get a permit to solicit in roads with speed limits faster than 25 miles per hour.

The permit, available in homeless shelters and cooling and heating centers, would be free

and would ask for but not require a name and address. The permit would include “educational materials” on roadside safety and require people to not enter the roadway unless the light is red, leave the roadway when traffic signals allow traffic to move, and avoid soliciting after dark.

Those without permits won’t be punished, and it’s not clear how or whether the law would be enforced. The bill as introduced authorized county police to “instruct” people soliciting in the roadway that they need a permit. But after people on Twitter raised concerns about encouraging more interactions with police, Rice said he would remove all references to police in the bill, the Bethesda Beat reported.

It’s not yet clear what the amended bill will say about enforcement.

Rice said in 2017 he was inspired to introduce the bill banning panhandling after Richard Lee Cooper was struck and killed by a driver while panhandling on Middlebrook Road in Germantown in June that year. But the current legislation’s safety guidelines, which require permit holders to stay out of the road until traffic is stopped, wouldn’t have saved Cooper’s life. Cooper was killed while standing in the median along Middlebrook Road after a driver lost control.

Schoenbaum, of ACT, said that though the bill is justified by pedestrian safety concerns, it doesn’t actually address the pedestrian safety

problems that are leading to most deaths in the county. At least 59 non-motorists have been killed in traffic crashes in the county since Cooper’s death. One of them, a pedestrian trying to cross the street, was killed just blocks up Middlebrook Road from where Cooper died. He wasn’t panhandling.

Though Rice is justifying the bill with Vision Zero, the county’s Vision Zero framework isn’t geared toward affecting pedestrian behavior.

Instead, its goal is a transportation system “designed for speeds that protect human life.”

According to the Vision Zero website, the framework requires a “systems-based approach” focusing on the ways the built environment puts people at risk, and a key component is equity: the idea that “all people have the right to move about safely.”

“You don’t make roads safe by removing non-motorists from the road,” Schoenbaum said, saying that while safe pedestrian behaviors are important, most people who stand near fast moving two-ton vehicles are aware of the risks. A Vision Zero approach, she said, wouldn’t make pedestrians aware of the risks; it would reduce them.

“You can reduce your risk from getting killed as a pedestrian by never walking anywhere,” Schoenbaum said. “But that’s not Vision Zero.”

Libby Solomon is a writer and editor for GGWash.

Panhandling permits are a bad idea

BY JEFFERY MCNEIL

The Nanny State is in full effect in Montgomery County.

Montgomery County Councilman Craig Rice has introduced a bill that requires panhandlers to get permits before soliciting on highways.

The councilman said he wants to help those in need to connect with service providers, according to FOX 5. But it’s naive to believe those panhandling on highways, are unaware of the risks of panhandling on busy highways or what resources are available to them.

Advocates told FOX 5 that having police enforce permits could make it worse for people in dire straights. In some ways, I agree with the claim; criminalizing panhandlers makes it ripe for a situation such as George Floyd or Eric Garner.

While I oppose panhandlers getting permits, I also disagree with the contention from advocates such as Betsy Bowman, director for adult and community services at "EveryMind," who spoke with FOX 5. She argues instead that we can enforce safety through providing services and educating people.

I yearn for the middle ground over either extreme, such as Texas wanting to ban homeless encampments which will have the unintended consequence of criminalizing people for nonviolent offenses. Or advocacy, where it seems

the only people that benefit are poverty grifters: lawyers, lobbyists, and Democratic politicians that claim to be for the little people but drive fancy cars, wear top-of-the line clothing, and have homes in Montgomery County, where the people they claim to speak for never seem to get housing or improve their lives.

Montgomery County is one of the wealthiest counties in the country, where the average median income per capita is $99,439. The fact that a county with great wealth has so many residents reduced to panhandling is a disgrace.

Instead of demonization, we need to look at what policies have led to living in shelters, dependent on social services, and forced to panhandle rather than seek meaningful employment. The issue isn’t panhandlers but incompetence and mismanagement by the residents and the people they elect!

I’m so fed up with politicians who blame the homeless and those who claim to be their voices, and never miss paychecks but show no improvement in the lives they claim to help!

Homelessness never gets reduced but seems to always flourish despite billions invested in social services. Panhandlers are not the issue. Poverty and homelessness have become a cottage industry for ambitious politicians and those whose livelihoods depend on homelessness.

We don’t need to waste another minute debating about panhandling on highways when the solutions are simple. We know the causes: Mental illness, a poor economy, and the lack of affordable housing. Some people need to stop the virtue signaling and rhetoric, and realize their promises to people who are homeless. Try canceling those that want to censor the primary reason people panhandle.

The hard truth is more than a few panhandlers can earn more money with their hand stretched begging for change than those who live by the norms of the bourgeois society.

Selling Street Sense, I tried pitching to panhandlers to sell newspapers as an alternative to panhandling. I also tried helping panhandlers get jobs, stop using drugs and alcohol, find shelters and other services, and find aid such as ID or legal services. The homeless know that S.O.M.E, CCNV, Miriam’s Kitchen, and Bread for the City and even Street Sense have social workers that are patient in helping troubled people get the help they need. I learned nothing will change when those that have power only see feel-good, one-size-fits-all solutions rather than treat each homeless person as an individual.

Some can work and find affordable housing, while others have too many issues physically and mentally to be on their own.

A better solution is de-stigmatization.

The reason people chronically panhandle is panhandling pays. Begging has been around since man itself. So instead of criminalizing panhandlers, why not treat them as independent contractors such as cab drivers or servers? We need to get out the mindset that panhandling is immoral and find creative ways to eliminate misery and poverty. Maybe through universal basic income, or treating panhandling as one does cab drivers or waiters, have them file taxes. Instead of burdening communities, they will be seen as contributors.

I know some of my proposals will be met with resistance by those that benefit. But we need to try something different than what’s been tried for the last 60 years. This back-andforth between the two extremes of Democrats and Republicans never reduces homelessness or poverty. I’m so tired of the Republicans implying that the homeless are dregs of society or Social Justice Warriors implying that they are victims that need to be pitied.

I close by saying permits are a bad idea which policing will lead to more George Floyds and Eric Garners.

Jeffery McNeil is an artist and vendor with Street Sense Media.

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ART

W

was: looking e, she was smokin’! There she hen I first laid eyes on this dam ed Newport . She was from a Kool town call alluring in a smoke-filled room gold-diggin’ who would’ve deemed that this Salem...a dive of coffin-nails; Yet trickster could be so deadly? me. She way. That greedy girl didn’t love I guess I just had to learn the hard it. get to it meant killing me just wanted my money. Even if

WRITTEN AND ILLUSTRATED

BY PIERRE JOHNSON Artist/Vendor

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1 2 // S T R E E T S E N S E M E D I A // M AY 1 2 - 1 8 , 2021

ART Waldon Adams, a longtime homeless advocate at Miriam’s Kitchen, Friendship Place, Pathways to Housing, and the D.C. Interagency Council on Homelessness — as well as with the People for Fairness Coalition, where he volunteered alongside author Queenie Featherstone — was killed by a vehicle on April 24 while walking at Hains Point with Rhonda Whitaker, another advocate.

Waldon Adams

BY QUEENIE FEATHERSTONE Artist/Vendor

What spring is like for me

DC’s budget

BY BRIANNA BUTLER Artist/Vendor

The D.C. budget priorities after recovering from the pandemic should be determined by what can be done for the city’s plan of reopening. It’s good that vaccinations will help thousands of people, with more indoor activities on the way. I’ve been hopeful of doing more during the holidays and seeing newer people which will allow me under these pandemic restrictions to move more Street Sense to more customers, new and old. I look forward to the simple pleasure of meeting people every day.

Spring is a time to have fun and relax. So let go of your coats and stroll through a pathway filled with colorful, aromatic flowers. Then let your hair down and get cozy under a shady tree with your friends and family. Have a bag full of your favorite things to eat until your stomach is full, then have some ice cream! Have fun by playing baseball, basketball, volleyball or just throw a ball with some friends. Have lots of fun and excitement! Always remember that you’re blessed that you have family and friends to chat and enjoy life with.

Willing always Admired Loved to serve Dynamic leader Ostracized at times Not afraid Afflicted himself Dedicated to the cause Allowed others to be first (often) Managed Shared his story

BY CARLTON JOHNSON Artist/Vendor

Waldon Adams completes his 13th marathon, a habit he picked up after stabilizing his life in permanent supportive housing.

2015 PHOTO BY MATAILONG DU // WWW.MATAILONGDU.COM

Listen to your mother

BY MARCUS MCCALL Artist/Vendor

My mother was my best teacher. She never lied to me when she spoke because I think she always wanted me to know the real.

Even when she acted out she moved real. I mean there is a saying that goes, it’s not what you do but how you do it.

The way people handle other people, treat others, I like to say some people’s actions speak louder than words. Like they say there is a time and a place for everything, sometimes I feel like there is a lot of young people whose mother did not teach them things like respect. Covid-19 has shown me that people now just lose respect because you homeless and trying to do right by keeping honest and staying to yourself and staying in your lane.

My mom was big on protecting herself when she was with me. Yes, I had to say it like that because she taught me how to be a very respectful young man and stay safe. I mean from eye contact to the power of a handshake — just from the way a man shakes your hand you can tell from the grip and the firmness of the shake if that man has any type of respect for you.

There is a big spiritual gap between the 80s, 90s, and 2000s babies. Even though my mother ran the streets and did what she did with me around she always showed respect and genuine kindness to others. Even if they did not like her she showed love.

She only changed when she went into drug programs, like she

learned a thing or two about herself and others.

I remember one time when she came out she said, “Everything I taught you every man will hate. The way you move, every man moves different, but I taught you how to be wise and think for yourself. Don’t let no man alter what’s real from fake. Some men don’t have the balls to stand up for themselves. So they let others tell them what to do or even how to live.”

She never ever told me a lie since she was alive. They really hate that she did what most moms don’t do now — she kept me away from fake vibes and dumb people by being hard on me like a father, kept it real like men should 100%. No half nothing..

I know this for sure: Being genuine and respectful can open up a lot of doors. Young people, try it. A hard head makes a soft ass. I had plenty of uncles — my mother’s brothers — they did a lot of 1-on-1 training with me, from thinking with your brain to how to read. I also developed that skill in jail. My uncles acted like my father but never showed no half-fake nothing. I know there is a Spirit watching over me I can feel MY TEACHER !

I’m happy to be a mother

BY LATISHIA WYNN Artist/Vendor

When I was young I had my first child. I was 19 years old. And when I was 21 I had my second child. And when I had my third child I was 23 years old. When I had all my three kids I was thankful. My kids’ names is Tiffany and Darrell and my last kid’s name is Joy. All my three kids are grown up living they own life.

My older girl is happily married. My second child is a boy living with a friend. My third child is a girl. She has her own place and she has a job working at Reagan Airport. So being a mother is a wonderful feeling. When I was young I told my mother when I grew up I wanted to be a mother too.

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

God’s Part

BY RITA SAULS // Artist/Vendor

Why try so hard to do God’s part?

You’re not that smart with the art.

Your contributions is just a dart On a never ending chart of accomplishments.

So let’s pretend this is the end of us trying to do God’s part again.

Let us begin to hold within that Godly part, that makes one nod their head yes, you are now at your best to pass every test.

God insists we be of a good heart But don’t ever do God’s part Cause you’re just a human.

Why are you here?

BY MARCELLUS PHILLIPS Artist/Vendor

Why are you here? Is it to help the people or is it to help yourself?

Why are you here? Is it to make money or is it to transfer wealth?

Why are you here? Is it to help the homeless or do you just seek blessings from help?

The answer for each question gives a description of what type of person you may be, But those who can’t answer must be set free.

The laws I live by are meant to help those that are willing to help themselves.

My reason for my actions is to repay the world for all of its help.

If this may seem confusing, now is the time to ask for help.

I pour my feelings into all of my work and my answer to all questions is that I’m here because I’m supposed to be.

Strive

BY CARLOS CARLOLINA // Artist/Vendor

Everything you do in life you gotta do your best Even though it cause grief And a lot of stress I know sometime it seems as though you can’t complete your goals Because the game plan we use sometimes just get so old.

Sit back, be blessed, and let life’s plans unfold Just use your faith It’ll make you great Just use your heart and soul Strive.

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Racism

BY AIDA PEERY Artist/Vendor

My head is spinning Out of control.

I want to retaliate Without consequences Born into Racism not Sin! Tired of race talks Does no good anyway.

They know what they Are doing for the First 65 years of My lifetime and beyond.

Some know good/bad Intentions while Never experiencing A day of Racism.

So, how do you know If you aren’t a racist?

Wishing for some Wings to fly away Even a row boat With lots of flex glue Would do.

Good news for feet

BY JOHN LITTLEJOHN Artist/Vendor

First of all what is the definition of “feet?” Well one definition is, “the lower extremity of the leg below the ankle on which a person stands or walks.”

The Holy Bible talks about feet in the Book of Ephesians 6:15 and it says, “And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace.”

The Holy Bible talks about feet again in the Book of Psalms 116:8-9 and it says, “For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from failing. I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living.”

Imagine the smile on his face when Jesus healed the feet of a man who hadn’t been able to walk for 38 years in the Gospel of John 5:1-5:15. Jesus found him at a pool in Jerusalem called Bethesda and ordered him to walk. The man, who was paralyzed before then, got up and was suddenly able to walk.

The Holy Bible talks about feet once again in the Book of

Psalms 119:105 and it says, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Amen!

Glory be to the lord! Have mercy on me, when it comes to giving or receiving donations large and small. Amen!

It is truly a blessing when we can give cheerfully to those in need and receive cheerfully from those who just might have more than they need. Amen!

The Holy Bible talks about feet once again and it says in the Book of Luke 7:38: “And stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them with the ointment.”

The temple officials weren’t impressed by Jesus’ care for the feet or heart of the paralyzed man who had gone without help for so long. Imagine the look on their faces.

They accused the man and Jesus of breaking religious law

that allows no work to be done on the Sabbath. They saw rules where Jesus saw the need for mercy.

At first the man didn’t even know who had healed his feet.

Only later would he be able to say that it was Jesus who had made him well — the same Jesus who would allow his own feet to be nailed to a tree to offer the man the best news in the history of broken bodies, minds and hearts.

The Holy Bible talks about feet once again in the Book of Psalms 8:6 and it says: “Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet.”

What needs do you see in those around you? In what ways have you seen Jesus meet your own needs?

Tell someone else how Jesus has made you well.

1 4 // S T R E E T S E N S E M E D I A // M AY 1 2 - 1 8 , 2021

FUN & GAMES

Intermediate Sudoku by KrazyDad, Volume 10, Book 6

Sudoku #4 5

A tomb in the ruins of the ancient Lycian city of Pinara, located in modern-day Turkey. PHOTO BY FERIDUN ALKAYA / WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

4 9 1 6

Answers

9Sudoku #1 2 6 4 1 8 9 5 6 2 8 39 6 74 5 1 5 7 2 3 6 8 4 2 1 2 3 7 9 5 9 7 8 6 1 2 4 33 2 4 9 5 6 4 9 6 17 85 56 2 7 2 3 6 4 8 9 4 9 8 5 3 3 4 6 7 7 5

3

2

1

4

4

8

5

3

8

1

1

9

9

1

7 3

5

8

3

4

9 6

7

1

2

"I am extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end."

-- Margaret Thatcher

6 2 7 4 5

Intermediate Sudoku by KrazyDad, Volume 10, Book 6

Sudoku #2 2 8 4 1 1 9 6 4 7 3 5 6 5 7 2 8 6 1 3 5 8 4 9 2 9 6 1 7 3 5 7 9 4 2 8 3

3 7 6 2 5 3 8 9 4 1 3 9 9 4 2 7 6 1 4 8 5 6 2 8 5 1 7

5

9

7 8 1 2 6 4 8 7 3 5 2 3 4 1 9 6

© 2015 KrazyDad.com

Fill in the blank squares so that each row, each column and each #3 3-by-3 block contain all of the Sudoku digits 1 thru 9.

LAST EDITION’S PUZZLE SOLUTION >>

7 3 8 6 4 6 9 2 9 8 7 1 5 2 6 8 1 4 3 5

Sudoku #5 5 2 4 1 6 9 1 4 3 8 7 2 2 6 3 5 4 1 9 6 8 7 5 9 9 4 2 3 7 3 6 8 1 5 8 7 Sudoku #7 5 9 3 8 1 8 2 3 7 6 4 2 3 4 9 5 8 2 1 6 6 5 7 1 4 3 5 7 2 1 8 9 9 7 6 4

Turque

1 9 2 4 5 5 3 1 8 7 3 2 6 5 4 7 4 9 3 1 9 6 8 7 2

Sudoku #4 5 3 6 7 1 2 7 4 9 8 4 1 7 6 3 9 2 5 1 6 8 4 9 5 6 1 5 3 3 7 2 8 4 9 8 2

7 9 8 3 2 5 5 4 6 8 1 9 2 8 7 1 6 3 6 7 1 4 5 2 9 3 4

5 2 8 9 6

Sudoku #6 7 6 2 9 9 1 5 6 3 8 4 7 5 2 7 8 6 9 1 3 8 4 3 2 2 7 6 5 4 5 9 1 1 3 8 4

4 5 1 8 3 2 2 1 5 9 6 4 5 4 7 1 7 6 3 9 8 7 8 3 6 2 9

7 1 2 6 4 9 3 5 8 1 7 6 5 9 3 8 2 4 9 6 1 4 3 7 2 8 5

Sudoku #8 7 5 9 1 2 4 3 6 1 8 6 3 8 9 1 5 6 2 7 9 5 3 4 2 3 7 5 4 9 1 8 7 4 6 2 8

8 2 6 4 3 9 5 1 8 7 4 7 5 2 9 6 3 4 7 2 1 4 3 5 8 7 8 9 1 6 2 9 8 6 1 5 6 2 3 4 3 1 7 9 5

SUDOKU: Fill in 3 puzzle 7 2 4 guesswork.

8 1 5 6 9 If the you use logic you can solve the without blank squares so that 8 shows 4 2the puzzle.

5 1a logical 9 6 3 Need a littleeach help? row, The hints page order7to solve Use it to column identify theand next square you should solve. Or use the answers page each if you really get stuck.

6 9 4 3 2 5 7 1 8 each 3-by-3 block contain all of the 2 1 5 7 4 8 3 9 6 digits 1-9.

6 8

9 7 3

4 5 1 2

6

4

7 5 1 9 8 2 4 7 9 3 2 8 5 6 3 1

3 7

1 4

2 8 5 9 3 6 8 4 7 3 1 2 4 7

8 7 1 9 6 2

9

1

5

6 5

3

4

9

1

3 6 Some 5 2 walls likened to vizards. ghostly hover. Qwhil vor thet 2 5 sin ov Faceless-Figours, a pace qwietus, places hygh set, 4 8 7 3 lift ovre thé bene, each a homelet.

8 9 walls, new blancht skulls come Etled wons 6 4 hayrs, is quiety some.

1 7

8 3 4 7 9

6

3 1 2 8 5 9 1 4 6 2 7 5

BY FRANKLIN STERLING Artist/vendor

Author Gene Weingarten is a college dropout and a nationally syndicated humor columnist for The Washington Post. Author Dan Weingarten is a former college dropout and a current college student majoring in information technology. Many thanks to Gene Weingarten and The Washington Post Writers Group for allowing Street Sense to run Barney & Clyde.

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JOB BOARD Stocker Aldi // Langston Part-time The stocker will stock merchandise.

REQUIRED: None listed APPLY: tinyurl.com/stockeraldi

Crew

Georgetown Ministry Center // 202-338-8301 1041 Wisconsin Ave., NW georgetownministrycenter.org

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// 1 5

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Patricia Handy Place for Women 202-733-5378 // 810 5th St., NW

Samaritan Inns // 202-667-8831 2523 14th St., NW samaritaninns.org

So Others Might Eat (SOME) // 202-797-8806 71 O St., NW some.org

St. Luke’s Mission Center // 202-333-4949 3655 Calvert St., NW stlukesmissioncenter.org

Thrive DC // 202-737-9311 1525 Newton St., NW thrivedc.org

AMC // Downtown Part-time The crewmember will handle the cash register, direct guests to theater, answer guest questions, and more.

REQUIRED: Must be able to lift 50 pounds.

APPLY: tinyurl.com/amccrew

Host Silver Diner // Cleveland Park Full-time

Unity Health Care 3020 14th St., NW // unityhealthcare.org - Healthcare for the Homeless Health Center: 202-508-0500 - Community Health Centers: 202-469-4699 1500 Galen Street SE, 1500 Galen Street SE, 1251-B Saratoga Ave NE, 1660 Columbia Road NW, 4414 Benning Road NE, 3924 Minnesota Avenue NE, 765 Kenilworth Terrace NE, 555 L Street SE, 3240 Stanton Road SE, 3020 14th Street NW, 2700 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE, 1717 Columbia Road NW, 1313 New York Avenue, NW BSMT Suite, 425 2nd Street NW, 4713 Wisconsin Avenue NW, 2100 New York Avenue NE, 2100 New York Avenue NE, 1333 N Street NW, 1355 New York Avenue NE, 828 Evarts Place, NE, 810 5th Street NW

Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless 1200 U St., NW // 202-328-5500 legalclinic.org

The host will direct customers to their table.

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APPLY: tinyurl.com/host-silver-diner

Front of house teammate Bluestone Lane // Logan Circle Full-time The Cafe Service Professional role is all encompassing-every day you may be assigned to something different, barista, server, runner, or host.

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APPLY: tinyurl.com/bluestone-lane-job

Crew Trader Joe’s // Georgetown Full-time

The Welcome Table // 202-347-2635 1317 G St., NW. epiphanydc.org/thewelcometable

Responsibilities will include stocking shelves, bagging groceries, and answering customer questions.

REQUIRED: None listed.

APPLY: tinyurl.com/trader-joes-crewmember-job

Whitman-Walker Health 1701 14th St., NW // 202-745-7000 2301 MLK Jr. Ave., SE // 202-797-3567 whitman-walker.org

Hiring? Send your job postings to editor@StreetSenseMedia.org For further information and listings, visit our online service guide at StreetSenseMedia.org/service-guide

Memorial Day

Remembering our loved ones and heroes

BY GEORGE GRAY Artist/Vendor

Memorial Day is coming up on May 31, 2021.

Time for a cookout and people to eat all the good food.

The people that should be honored, like military people, is anyone like my dad.

Last year, on Memorial Day, I went to Arlington National Cemetery. We took a walk around to give the military honor and support. I salute them.

BY BROTHER JEFFERY CARTER Artist/Vendor

I think about my brother on Memorial Day. My brother was in the military, but he didn’t die in the military.

But I also want to remember brave souls like Mother Theresa, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King. These are my heroes. And good politicians who have served the poor community, who have spoken up for the poor community.

Thank God for love. May peace and blessings be with you.

PHOTO BY DEBORAH JACKSON / PIXABAY

Remembering Street Sense vendors

Goodbye, David Denny

BY QUEENIE FEATHERSTONE Artist/Vendor

Thank you for reading Street Sense!

From your vendor MAY 12 - 18, 2021 | VOLUME 18 ISSUE 17

Done Everybody

WWW.INSP.NGO

All over

BY DORIS ROBINSON Artist/Vendor

Memorial Day should remember those who lost their lives for selling Street Sense papers. They were not given a safe place to live like a hotel or motel room. Some writers have endangered lives. Some have wounds, some are disabled and crippled for selling papers for Street Sense. We do our share of work and we should be given a hotel and motel room, too. It’s not fair.

Taken away Here today, gone tomorrow David was a favorite who many trusted. With tears and heavy hearts, we are all just disgusted. I’m not sure where you are David, I just hope you’re a piece of pie in that great big sky.

So now I’ll just say, David Denny, good friends to you there were many. My memory of you will be plenty, you taught me SSM programs well. I’ll shout and tell David Denny was swell. Goodbye, my friend, goodbye, goodbye, goodbye!!!

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