12 16 2015

$2

Volume 13: Issue 3 December 16 - 29, 2015

Street

suggested donation

sense

Read more and get involved at www.streetsense.org | The DC Metro Area Street Newspaper | Please buy from badged vendors

Miriam’s Kitchen to Cease ID Services in 2016 | pg 3 A Closer Look at Homeless Encampment Closures | pgs 3-5

s y a d i l o H y p p a H from vendors r e p a p street ld! the wor around 9 pgs 8 -

STRE E EXCL T PAPER U Interv SIVE: ie Pope w with Franc is

pgs 6

-7

Street Sense is the street media center of our nation’s capital. We aim to serve as a vehicle for elevating voices and public debate on issues relating to poverty while also creating economic opportunities for people who are facing homelessness in our community.

ONLINE EXCLUSIVES www.StreetSense.org Ending Veteran Homelessness in D.C. and Beyond

BY ALEXANDRA PAMIAS

Innovative Affordable Housing Targets “Grandfamilies”

BY JONAS SCHAU

Rise Up to End Police Terror and Murder

BY HENRIEESE ROBERTS

D.C. Premiere: Under the Bridge

BY JC DIAZ

Housing Authority Accused of Kicking out Tenants to Flip Homes

BY ALEXANDRA PAMIAS

COVER ART

Street paper vendors from Australia, Austria, Ireland and Taiwan.

COURTESY OF THE INTERNATIONAL NETWORK OF STREET PAPERS (INSP)

ADVERTISE WITH US

streetsense.org/ advertise

SOCIAL

A new issue comes out every two weeks, but you can stay connected to Street Sense every day!

/streetsensedc @streetsensedc /streetsensedc

OUR STORY Street Sense began in August 2003 after Laura Thompson Osuri and Ted Henson approached the National Coalition for the Homeless on separate occasions with the idea to start a street paper in Washington, D.C. Through the work of dedicated volunteers, Street Sense published its first issue in November 2003. In 2005, Street Sense achieved 501 ( c ) 3 status as a nonprofit organization, formed a board of directors and hired a full-time executive director.

Today, Street Sense is published every two weeks through the efforts of four salaried employees, more than 100 active vendors, and dozens of volunteers.

Nearly 30,000 copies are in circulation each month.

How It Works

ADDRESS 1317 G Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005 PHONE 202.347.2006 FAX 202.347.2166 E-MAIL info@streetsense.org WEB StreetSense.org

Each vendor functions as an independant contractor for Street Sense. That means he or she re-invests in the organization with every purchase.

Vendors purchase the paper for 50 cents/issue, which will then be sold to you for a suggested donation of $2.

Street Sense publishes the newspaper.

75% 75% supports the vendors helping them overcome homelessness and poverty.

Street Sense

Vendors buy the newspaper for 50 cents each.

&

25% costs at Street Sense.

1. Street Sense will be distributed for a voluntary donation of $2.00, I agree not to ask for more than $2.00 or solicit donations for Street Sense by any other means.

2. I will only purchase the paper from Street Sense staff and volunteers and will not sell papers to other vendors.

3. I agree to treat all others, including customers, staff, volunteers, and other vendors, respectfully at all times. I will refrain from threatening others, pressuring customers into making a donation, or in engaging in behavior that condones racism, sexism, classism, or other prejudices.

4. I agree not to distribute copies of Street Sense on metro trains and buses or on private property.

5. I agree to abide by the Street Sense vendor territorial policy at all times and will resolve any related disputes I

11

The remainder of your supports the vendor.

have with other vendors in a professional manner.

6. I understand that I am not an employee of Street Sense, Inc. but an independent contractor.

7. I agree to sell no additional goods or products when distributing Street Sense.

8. I will not distribute Street Sense under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

9. I understand that my badge and (if applicable) vest are property of Street Sense, Inc. and will not deface them. I will present my badge when purchasing Street Sense. I will always display my badge when distributing Street Sense.

10. I agree to support Street Sense’s mission statement. In doing so I will work to support the Street Sense community and uphold its values of honesty, respect, support, and opportunity.

© STREET SENSE, INC 2015

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Margaret Chapman, Margaret Jenny, Elizabeth Canizares, Reed Sandridge, Max Gaujean, Heidi Keller, Robyn Kerr, Jeremy Scott, Jennifer Park, Martin Totaro, John Senn, Anne Willis EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Brian Carome EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Eric Falquero SALES & COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER Jeffrey Gray VENDOR & SALES MANAGER Josh Maxey COORDINATOR OF EVENTS & AUDIENCE ENGATEMENT Shira Hereld INTERNS Olivia Aldridge, Alexandra Pamias, Jonas Schau EDITORIAL BOARD Rachel Brody, Arthur Delaney, Britt Peterson EDITORIAL & PAPER SALES VOLUNTEERS Jane Cave, Cheryl Chevalier, Nathalia Cibotti, Pat Geiger, Roberta Haber, Mary Henkin, Karen Houston, Erum Jilani, Leone, Hannah Northey, Jesselyn Radack, Andrew Siddons, Jackie Thompson, Marian Wiseman, Eugene Versluysen, Alex Zielinski VENDORS Shuhratjon Ahamadjonov, Gerald Anderson, Charles Armstrong, Lawrence Autry, Daniel Ball, Aida Basnight, Roberta Bear, Phillip Black, Reginald Black, Melanie Black, Phillip Black Jr., Maryann Blackmon, Viktor Blokhine, Debora Brantley, Andre Brinson, Donald Brown, Joan Bryant, Elizabeth Bryant, Brianna Butler, Melody Byrd, Conrad Cheek, Aaron Colbert, Anthony Crawford, Walter Crawley, Kwayera Dakari, James Davis, Clifton Davis, Charles Davis, David Denny, James DeVaughn, Ricardo Dickerson, Dennis Diggs, Alvin Dixon-El, Ronald Dudley, Charles Eatmon, Deana Elder, Julie Ellis, Jemel Fleming, Chon Gotti, Marcus Green, Barron Hall, Tyrone Hall, Richard Hart Lorrie Hayes, Patricia Henry, Jerry Hickerson, Ray Hicks, Rachel Higdon, Ibn Hipps, Phillip Howard, Leonard Hyater, Joseph Jackson, Carlton Johnson, Donald Johnson, Harold Johnson, Allen Jones, Mark Jones, Morgan Jones, Linda Jones, Darlesha Joyner, Juliene Kengnie, Kathlene Kilpatrick, Hope Lassiter, John Littlejohn, James Lott, Scott Lovell, Michael Lyons, Jimmy M. Ken Martin, Joseph Martin, Kina Mathis, Michael Lee Matthew, Authertimer Matthews, Charlie Mayfield, Jermale McKnight, Jeffery McNeil, Ricardo Meriedy, Cynthia Mewborn, Kenneth Middleton, Cecil More, L. Morrow, Evelyn Nnam, Moyo Onibuje, Earl Parkin, Lucifer Potter, Ash-Shaheed Rabil, Henrieese Roberts, Anthony Robinson, Doris Robinson, Raquel Rodriquez, Lawrence Rogers, Joseph Sam, Chris Shaw, Patty Smith, Smith Smith, Gwynette Smith, Ronald Smoot, Franklin Sterling, Warren Stevens James Stewart, Beverly Sutton, Sybil Taylor, Archie Thomas, Shernell Thomas, Craig Thompson, Eric Thompson-Bey, Sarah TurleyColin, Carl Turner, Jacqueline Turner, Leon Valentine, Grayla Vereen, Ron Verquer, Martin Walker, Michael Warner, Robert Warren, Angelyn Whitehurst, William Whitsett, Wendell Williams, Sasha Williams, Judson Williams III, Ivory Wilson, Denise Wilson, Charles Woods

NEED MORE STREET SENSE? Listen to our Sounds From the Street podcast!

StreetSense.org/audio Subscribe to the paper!

StreetSense.org/subscribe Be Active in the Community!

StreetSense.org/calendar

STREET SENSE December 16 - 29, 2015

3

NEWS

Miriam's Kitchen to drop I.D. referral services in 2016

By Olivia Aldridge, Editorial Intern

For years, Miriam’s Kitchen has been a resource for homeless individuals seeking referrals for identification (I.D.) services in the District. The referrals support clients with instructions and fi-nancial assistance (to pay fees) as they pursue the government documents through regular chan-nels. Beginning January 1, Miriam’s will no longer offer this service.

Bob Glennon, director of social services at Miriam’s Kitchen, explained the reasoning behind de-cision. “Our Mission at Miriam’s is to end chronic homelessness in D.C. Part of the decision was how we want to spend our time and energy toward that mission,” Glennon said. He added that as a result of this decision not to provide I.D. referral services, Miriam’s will be able to have a greater impact with other initiatives. In particular, it plans to redouble efforts toward providing clients with stable housing.

At present, Miriam’s is one of only three District organizations certified by the Department of Human Services (DHS) to provide referrals for people needing assistance to obtain identification documents, birth certificates, and police clearances.

The others are Foundry United Methodist Church and Chevy Chase Presbyterian Church (USA).

Foundry provides an I.D. and Walk-in Ministry every Friday and on the first and third Saturday of each month for up to 36 individuals with appointments. Chevy Chase Presbyterian’s Transi-tional Assistance Program is open Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday mornings, offering 15 ap-pointments per day. Both churches offer assistance in obtaining birth certificates and D.C. non-driver identification cards. These cards are for individuals who do not qualify to receive drivers licenses, such as adolescents or people who cannot drive.

Due to the limited number of appointments available at these locations, it is unclear if they will be able to meet the increased demand for I.D. services when Miriam’s new policy goes into effect in 2016.

Organizations that are certified by DHS to provide clients with identification service referrals must have a system in place to receive mail on behalf of clients. Few social service providers in D.C. have this ability, but they are able to play a limited

role in connecting homeless individuals with such services. According to Kathleen Stephan, community resource and quality assurance coordinator at Bread for the City, providers such as Bread play an important role in helping cli-ents understand the processes they will have to go through in order to receive new identification documents.

“It's difficult for folks to get this information. The system’s not transparent,” said Stephan, who noted that there was a marked increase in the past year in the number of requests made to Bread for help of this kind. Stephan also emphasized the importance of attaining proper I.D. for people experiencing homelessness.

“Not having a photo I.D. creates extra barriers in an already difficult system,” she said.

Advocates from Miriam’s Kitchen and other organizations such as Bread for the City believe that a systemic change in the way I.D. requests are processed in the District is needed.

According to Glennon, these services would ideally be available at whatever agency an individu-al is already connect-

ed to, thus removing the complication of coordinating separate and often difficultto-plan trips to other agencies. Miriam’s advocates for several key service improvements from the city, including expanded access to the voucher for non-driver I.D. and the creation of similar vouchers to obtain birth certificates and driver’s licenses.

Part of the Interagency Council on Homelessness Emergency Response and Shelter Operations committee (ERSO) agenda is to consider improvements to the application process for I.D. and birth certificates. DHS is working with the District Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to amend the “Social Service Proof of Residency” form to allow I.D. applicants to use a family, friend or non-residential service provider’s address in their application, according to a December 8 letter from DHS Director Laura Zeilinger to Councilmember Grosso.

Glennon is hopeful that Miriam’s decision will add urgency to the city’s progress in making the process more accessible and transparent.

“We’re still very committed to the advocacy end of I.D. issues,” he said.

Do I Have the Right to Avoid Shelter?

By Eric Falquero Editor-in-Chief Tim moved under the K Street Bridge on November 29 after Federal Park Police discovered him in Rock Creek Park and informed him that he could not continue camping there.

“Common sense when you’re living out here tells you to find someplace that’s a windbreak, find someplace that covers you from wet. The logical place is under a bridge,” he said, explaining why he chose the new location. “Other than that you’ve gotta look for a doorway, and very few of those are deep enough to provide any real cover, let alone a windbreak.”

A week before Tim set up his home under the bridge, that area experienced a sweep from Department of Public Works (DPW). On November 20, sanitation trucks gobbled up tents, mattresses, camp chairs and bags at “Camp Watergate,” a patch of land under the Whitehurst Freeway, just down Rock Creek Parkway from the Kennedy Center and across Virginia Avenue from the Watergate complex, where more than 40 men and women had been living in tents.

“You are devils, you are devils, you are devils!” one man yelled at DPW employees as they loaded a couple grocery carts into the trucks to be crushed.

Tim returned to his tent on Monday, November 30, to find a waterproof orange

notice telling him that by unlawfully occupying public space, he created an “actual or potential hazard to the public.” The orange notice stated that Tim’s belongings would be removed by the District if he did not do so himself before 2 p.m. on Wednesday, December 2.

On December 2 Tim and the other campers learned their eviction was postponed until the next day. “I really don’t know what they expect,” Tim said.

“They’re not giving us any alternatives.

They’re saying you’ve gotta be out of here, but not suggesting any other place to go, other than the usual ‘have you tried the shelters?’” He was very clear on why shelters are unacceptable to him: in addition to being infested with bedbugs, shelters are hotspots for theft, disease and violence.

“If someone wants to prey on you they know exactly where you are. At least when you’re out on the street, you have a little wiggle room to not have your stuff stolen,” said Tim. “Obviously, I understand [why people want the campers to move]: if you own property you don’t really want a [virtual] homeless shelter where you reside.”

The second sweep of that area in two weeks happened December 3. Waterproof notices similar to what Tim had received had been posted in many locations around the main encampment, including several

satellite tent-clusters such as under the K Street Bridge, to inform residents of the cleanup. “Eviction…cleanup, call it what you will,” Tim mused.

The First Sweep The November 20 cleanup was first attempted on Monday, November 16. As required by District law, the general cleanup notices were posted more than 14 days in advance. It was widely reported in media coverage of the cleanups that these notices informed campers to vacate the area by the posted date: November 12. But most neighborhood residents, housed and unhoused, believed that only trash and debris would be targeted for cleanup, not people.

When Foggy Bottom Association (FBA) President Marina Streznewski saw the DDOT notices, she called the office of Brenda Donald, Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services (DMHHS). It was Streznewski’s understanding that city protocol during Hypothermia Season—November 1 to March 31 in the District—is to leave in place tents, blankets or anything else that can keep people warm during that time. The DMHHS office confirmed to Streznewski that the cleanup would remove only trash.

Nevertheless, on Friday, November 13 Department of Human Services (DHS) and Department of Behavioral Health (DBH)

outreach workers spent the day informing campers that they would have to move before Monday, November 16, and assessing them for potential housing placement.

It seemed to Streznewski that “the deputy mayor had done an about-face.”

“There are a huge range of opinions about homelessness in our community,” Streznewski told Street Sense. “I had one person say ‘I pay too much in taxes to have to look at this.” On the other hand, people have said ‘they are our neighbors too.’”

The FBA has been trying to reconcile these viewpoints and get all members working toward tangible solutions. Six months ago, the association created a task force specifically to address ending homelessness in Foggy Bottom.

“We want to actually solve problems, not just move them to somebody else’s neighborhood,” Streznewski explained.

“These people are living here for the same reasons we are: it’s a safe community, convenient for transit and close to healthcare.”

Installing public trash cans located near encampments is one initiative the task force had begun working on. And at the November ANC 2A meeting, a resolution to seek a solution to the toilet problem was submitted by the People for Fairness Coalition and approved by the FBA. Continued on next page...

...Continued from previous page: “We’re trying to figure out the toilet issue. Porta-potties can get expensive for the long term, so we want to look for another solution,” Streznewski said. “Obviously, we don’t have the resources that the government does, but we can achieve little things. We’ve received quite a bit of support from DHS, the mayor’s office and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD).

They’ve been great about answering questions – what’s against the law, what’s not, etc. We’re trying to be helpful.”

Around 10 a.m. Monday, November 16, a sanitation truck arrived and several tents across K Street from the main encampment were taken down. However, DPW workers at the main camp only raked and picked up trash. Several homeless campers pitched in and worked alongside them.

In an email to Street Sense that morning, Jenna Cevasco, spokeswoman for Deputy Mayor Donald, wrote that “there have been complaints from the neighborhood about this site for many years” and cited “the increase in debris and tents in recent weeks” as reasons for the cleanup’s immediacy.

Indeed, Google Street View images show that the number of people sleeping at the camp grew significantly in recent weeks.

Images from months prior showed only a handful of tents, which weren’t widely available to the campers until Arnold Harvey, a Waste Management employee from Maryland, began giving them away through his charity, God’s Connection Transition.

On Monday, November 16, outreach workers arrived with a shelter transport van to remind people that they had to leave and encourage them to seek shelter.

Some campers left the area but most stood their ground. Only two people got into the van that day: a couple from Georgia who had been promised transportation assistance to return home with their two dogs.

Deputy Mayor Donald accompanied the van and spoke with several individuals in an attempt to convince them to enter a shelter. “Our concern is of course that [living in the campsite] is not healthy, not sanitary, and it is illegal,” Donald told WUSA9.

No timeline, memo or speech was given to residents regarding the camp’s fate. City workers, including the supervisor on site, were expressly forbidden from speaking to the press. At times there were more news crews on-site than outreach teams. The MPD officers that arrived shortly after the sanitation truck were the only city employees that would readily answer questions about their own presence.

The officers said they weren’t there to move people—or to make a statement on anyone’s behalf, they were quick to point out—only to keep the peace. DHS and DBH continued to speak with campers. No one seemed to know how to proceed, city workers included. Everyone waited.

The rumor mill churned: everyone was

Media inquiries regarding the camp were required to flow through the deputy mayor’s office. Street Sense’s questions regarding shelter conditions, whether or not tents should be confiscated during hypothermia season, and if/when other city encampments would be handled similarly, went unanswered.

“You can read into it how you want,” said Tim, referring to the lack of transparency.

Political Will

The entire former-encampment area under Whitehurst Freeway, from Virginia Avenue up to K Street NW is now fenced off. PHOTO BY ERIC FALQUERO getting apartments before anyone was evicted; this was happening on federal land and D.C. didn’t have jurisdiction to move anybody; if someone’s tent was touched against their will, they could file assault charges. All three of those statements are false, but were believed true at one time or another on Monday, November 16.

Minutes from a meeting that afternoon state that the D.C. Interagency Council on Homelessness (ICH) Outreach Policy/ Protocol working group identified that there is an “issue with mixed messaging.

Not clear to outreach teams and/or individuals residing in encampments whether tents are being removed by DPW or individuals are going to be ticketed and/or otherwise limited in their ability to access the area. Need clarity on whether tents are life-saving articles that will not be removed during Hypothermia season.”

The standoff on Monday, November 16, resumed Tuesday morning. Some campers skipped their routine of breakfast at nearby nonprofit Miriam’s Kitchen for fear that city workers would swoop in while they were gone and dispose of tents and other supplies. 65-year-old Owen, who has been homeless for 14 years, was so stressed by the prospect of another displacement that he had to be checked into GW Hospital. Because there is no law against sleeping in public, only against doing so within a temporary abode, some campers packed up their tents and slept in the open in anticipation of the cleanup.

Clarity came on Wednesday, November 18, when 48-hour eviction notices were posted around the camp. The next morning, shelter vans arrived to take twelve campers to view apartments.

“Word is, they’re coming by with keys for everyone,” a woman named Stefanie said while DHS workers called off names from the list.

That morning it seemed even more people had arrived after word got out about the apartment tours the previous day.

New faces intermingled with those who had been on-site since Monday. The rumor that the plan was to house people, rather than merely shelter them, was generating hope and expectations.

When Friday came, no one had moved into housing, but the campers’ 48 hours were up. Notices of infraction were being distributed and personal effects were being put into storage or destroyed - depending on the items’ perceived value and each individual’s level of cooperation.

Advocate Diana Pillsbury complained that even though Deputy Mayor Donald claimed translation services were available during this process, nothing was provided in writing for the at-least six Hispanic men who had been living there longer than anyone else. Pillsbury provided verbal translation on the spot. Several of the men expressed frustration.

“Maybe one of the most heartbreaking things about today was all the government workers who told me they didn’t want to do it, they were under orders,” Pillsbury tweeted Friday.

By the end of the sweep, only a handful of the 20-25 tents remained under Whitehurst Freeway.

A fence was installed on Saturday in the field where the camp had stood, not interfering with those who remained under the freeway.

The fenced-off area will be used to facilitate cleanup and inspection for a portion of the sewer system adjacent to the Kennedy Center, according to John Lisle, a spokesman for DC Water. This maintenance has been needed since February and must occur before March 31, 2016. Permitting for the project began in October before initial DDOT camp cleanup notices were posted. It is linked to a stormwater backup in May 2014 that caused sewage to overflow on the National Crescent Trail.

No construction or digging will occur at the Camp Watergate site. It will be used as a staging area for physical work and equipment storage in relation to the Kennedy Center maintenance.

“I think they could find another staging area,” said Miriam’s Kitchen Advocacy Specialist Jesse Rabinowitz in disbelief when he learned the project details.

That was sweep number one, which did not bring an end to the mixed messages and general lack of information provided to campers and community members alike.

Advocates for the homeless have criticized the encampment cleanups and have contacted the D.C. Council and the Bowser administration requesting, among other things, that the District “follow the encampment protocol created by the Deputy Mayor, including the provision that prohibits the removal of life saving materials including blankets and tents.”

Until now, the Bowser administration has been predominantly lauded by the advocacy community for approving a data and community-driven 5-year plan to end homelessness in the District and investing an unprecedented amount of funds in homeless services for FY2016.

Councilmember At-Large David Grosso visited Camp Watergate during the Friday sweep, and was the only council member to visit the encampment during the threeweek process.

Grosso told Street Sense he first noticed tents along Interstate 395 and elsewhere more than a year ago. A staff member he sent to check on the campers reported that they needed a lot of services, but they were clean; they had said very clearly that they would like to move into a better situation but in the meantime, they felt much safer in their camp than in shelters.

“So we never raised it, I never sent a letter,” Grosso said. “The Gray administration kind of let it fly and didn’t do anything. But for some reason Brenda Donald, over the past couple months, has decided that these [encampments] are unacceptable. Partly, I think people don’t like seeing them. It’s kinda good if you ask me. I want people to see people living on the street. We should raise some alarms and put up neon signs that say ‘look at the failure of our society.’”

The council first heard about the cleanup after Deputy Mayor Donald’s visit on the afternoon of Monday, November 16, according to Grosso.

Like the advocates who have writtenin about the camp closure, Grosso asked Deputy Mayor Donald to not do a blanket closure of encampments across the city.

However, at the Mayor/Council Breakfast on Tuesday, November 24, encampment closures were discussed briefly between the mayor’s debrief on implementation of the DC General family shelter’s closing and a report on Mayor Bowser’s recent business trip to China.

STREET SENSE December 16 - 29, 2015

5

NEWS

“Our intent is there will be no more new tents,” said Mayor Bowser. Deputy Mayor Donald promised to continue outreach in an effort to convince campers to “move on.”

Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans suggested fencing the entire area off. His communications director, Tom Lipinski, told Street Sense that Evans’ office has been contacted over a hundred times about the encampment, but not all comments have been complaints.

“The comments have ranged from neighbors coming up to Councilmember Evans at a restaurant to relate that individuals have defecated in their lawns,” said Lipinski, “to concerns for the well-being of the individuals living in these tents.”

Councilmember Evans was unavailable to be interviewed but provided a statement: “Homelessness and a lack of affordable and safe shelter housing continue to be very real problems for many people in the District. We know that it becomes more difficult to provide the critical wraparound services to individuals who are not in shelters or permanent supportive housing, and it’s my understanding that many of the people living in this encampment are chronically homeless. I support the work the Mayor and the Interagency Council on Homelessness are doing to try to provide services for these individuals. On a larger scale, the city is working quickly to identify and create shelters across the city to provide vital services to those in our community that need them the most.”

Gunther Stern, executive director of Georgetown Ministry Center, has been providing street outreach in the surrounding community for 25 years. “I came here in 1990. There’s always been a thriving community here,” said Stern, who is approaching retirement. “[The city] keeps responding with solutions that cost a lot of money to keep people out. That could be better spent to house people.”

Over the years Stern has seen walls erected to block off under-bridge areas, spaces welded shut to further enclose those areas, and now fencing rented from a Maryland branch of SONCO Worldwide, which was added around the DC Water fencing after a second eviction on took place on Thursday, December 3.

Despite seeing folks living in the shadow of the freeway consistently for the past 13 years, Stern confirmed that the population drastically increased after the tents began to be donated. “It was [only] the Hispanic community until maybe six months ago. [The number of campers] grew 10 -20 times that.”

Where to Go God’s Transition Connection founder Arnold Harvey told The Washington Post that he began distributing the tents throughout D.C. and Maryland because they helped people staying outside keep

themselves and their belongings safer, sleep better, and get noticed so that they could receive help.

The camp sweeps have been an entirely different sort of attention for homeless campers. Ironically, “the Hispanic community” is who remains camping under the freeway on-ramp today. Though at least one man, Ramiro, has been told he will be taken to look at an apartment this week.

Another man said on December 2 that he had been told a group of six men would receive placement in a house together.

By 2:15pm the next day, everything was gone. The six men sat together on a knoll overlooking Camp Watergate with nothing left but a tarp and several bags. “There is no house,” the same man said. “We all need housing.”

They weren’t the only ones.

Paul, a veteran of the U.S. Navy who has been camping in the area since experiencing family trouble in July, had been elsewhere applying for a job when the sanitation trucks arrived. He saw one truck over the hill as he returned, but by the time he got to his tent, everything had been disposed of.

“I don’t even have a sleeping bag.

I don’t even have a change of damn clothes,” Paul said an hour after the cleanup occurred as he panhandled on K Street. “This is what I’m left with: a radio with dead batteries and no antenna.

That’ll keep me warm at night.”

City officials say they’ve been working hard for months to connect with campers, but Paul slipped through the cracks and had not spoken with a single outreach worker by December 3. He blames staying on the move during the day, not loitering at the camp.

“I saw them putting up the notices.

The understanding I had [from other campers] was that we had an extension until we found placement,” Paul said.

“But I guess they wanted to speed the process up or something.”

The day of the sweep, Paul echoed the shelter complaints of other campers.

“What I’m worried about now is how I’m going to stay warm tonight. I can’t go to a homeless shelter because I like to sleep. I don’t want to have to sleep with one eye open. I’ll sleep out in the cold.”

He has since obtained another tent, and is safeguarding its location.

Twenty-five of the estimated 40 campers that were evicted were targeted for housing (though not actually housed) through DHS and DBH’s assessments; this is progress, since they probably will be housed in the near future. There’s simply not enough housing available In the two weeks between the first and second sweep, 10 people from the camp had been housed, and one other had been matched to a successfully inspected apartment and was awaiting move-in.

Stefanie and her husband John have been housed. Tim has not. Paul, the mili-

tary veteran, has not. Housing was found for a woman named Karissa and her cousin James. They were awaiting city workers to help move their belongings as the second sweep wrapped up.

“Me and my cousin stood our grounds.

And let them know man, we can’t go to shelter, so you gotta place us somewhere,” Karissa said. “If it’s not somewhere, help us get a permit for a tent.”

She described how comfortable sleeping on the bare carpet of their new apartment had been the night before. Now she’s looking for a school to enroll in.

“GED is a must for me,” she said with a smile. “If I can’t find a school, I’m trying to find me a job.”

It came to light at a December 1 quarterly meeting of the Interagency Council on Homelessness that most of these housing placements have occurred “outside of protocol.” That means that people were housed independently of their score in a “coordinated entry” system that determines how vulnerable and in-need of housing someone is compared with the rest of those in need.

“I’m worried the city is housing the most visible rather than the most vulnerable,” Jesse Rabinowitz told Street Sense.

While some advocates and anonymous city officials have criticized this disregard for coordinated entry, Staff Attorney Ann Marie Staudenmaier of the Washington Legal Clinic for the homeless thinks it is a moot point.

“The coordinated entry system is important, but when people are literally living outside because they have nowhere safe to stay indoors, we believe they also deserve priority for housing placements,” Staudenmaier told Street Sense. “D.C. has more than adequate housing funds available this year to house both groups of people. It just needs to utilize those funds more efficiently.”

Despite these agreements, advocates and people experiencing homelessness agree that for the immediate future, in lieu of housing or safe and secure shelters, people should be allowed to stay in their tents.

“It’s really hard for me, not being an

expert in it, to know whether someone is safe or not when it gets cold out,” said Councilmember Grosso. “But I think we could probably take our cue from folks who live on the street.”

A camper who wished to remain anonymous stressed that campers look out for each other. “All the homeless people here know each other. Maybe not the name, but the face. I know that guy, and he knows that woman over there. So we all recognize and watch out for each other.”

A December 10 letter sent to the mayor and D.C. Council from the People for Fairness Coalition echoed these sentiments.

“Many live in encampments because it is the only place where they feel safe and supported and can keep their belongings safe. Unlike the random strangers they would encounter in a shelter, they have formed a true community of people who know and watch out for each other.”

“Nobody owes me anything out here.

And I don’t expect anything. But the tent, I really would have liked to have that, man. When the wind starts blowing, it gets cold,” said Paul. “And once you get a chill on your bones… you ever see these guys walking around in layers and think to yourself ‘man it’s hot out, how does he have all that stuff on?’ He’s just now getting the chill off his bones from 3 o’clock in the morning.”

A closed meeting was held Friday, December 11 between advocates and city officials, including Deputy Mayor Donald, to discuss improving how encampment evictions are handled. For now, continued cleanups are still expected.

Anyone who would like to claim their property should call Community Bridge, Inc to arrange for next-day delivery: 202-483-9339 - regardless of the location or permanence of your address.

Landlords can contact the D.C. Department of Human Services at 202-671-4446 to participate in housing programs.

Olivia Aldridge, JC Diaz, Roberta Haber, Dottie Kramer, Jonas Schau and Alex Zielinski contributed to this report.

Paul with everything he had left after the second encampment cleanup. His tent and other belongings were disposed of while he was away. PHOTO BY ERIC FALQUERO

STREET PAPER EXCLUSIVE:

Pope Francis Encourages Homeless People to Fight For the Right to Work, Roof and Land Sacred Heart of Jesus, which I still carry with me every day. This medal - which is also a memento - is very good for me.

Would you like to see it?

[With a bit of difficulty, Pope Francis manages to pull out the medal, now completely discolored after years of use.]

With this, every day I think of her, and of how she suffered from poverty. And I think of all the others who have suffered.

I wear it, and I use it to pray...

What is the Church’s message for those who are homeless? What is the concrete meaning of Christian solidarity for them?

Two things come to mind. Jesus came in to our world without a home, and he chose poverty. Then, the Church seeks to embrace us all, and says that it is a right to have a roof over your head. Popular movements work toward the three Spanish ‘t’s’:trabajo [work], techo [roof] and tierra [land]. The Church teaches that every person has the right to these three t’s.

His Holiness Pope Francis meets formerly homeless street paper vendor Marc during an exclusive interview at the Vatican.

PHOTO COURTESY OF FRANK DRIES/STRAATNIEUWS/INSP.NGO

By By Stijn Fens & Jan-Willem Wits Straatnieuws - The Netherlands It is still early when we arrive at the service entrance of the Vatican, to the left of Saint Peter’s Basilica. The Swiss Guards have been informed of our arrival, and let us pass.

We head to the Domus Sanctae Marthae, because that is where Pope Francis lives. The Domus Sanctae Marthae is in all likelihood the most unique three-star hotel in the world. A large white building where cardinals and bishops reside while serving in or visiting the Vatican, it is also the official residence of the cardinals during the Conclave.

Here, too, they are expecting us. Two ladies behind the reception desk, just like in any hotel, kindly indicate a side door. The meeting room has already been prepared.

It is a fairly large space, with a desk, a sofa, tables and chairs, and is the Pope’s meeting room during the week. Then, the wait begins. Marc, the Straatnieuws salesman, is the most patient of us all, waiting, seated in his chair, for what will come.

Suddenly the Pope’s official photographer appears. “The Pope is arriving,” he whispers.

And before we know it, he walks into the room: Pope Francis, the spiritual leader of 1.2 billion Catholics. He is carrying a large white envelope. “Please, sit down, friends,” he says with a gentle wave of his

hand, “How nice to have you here.” Close up, he gives the impression of a calm, friendly man, who is at the same time both energetic and precise. Once seated, he apologizes for speaking Italian, rather than Dutch. We forgive him immediately.

INSP: Straatnieuws interviews always begin with a question about the street on which the interviewee grew up. Holy Father, what do you remember about that street? What images come into your mind when you recall the streets of your childhood?

Pope Francis: From when I was one year old to when I entered the seminary, I always lived on the same street. It was a simple neighborhood in Buenos Aires, with one and two-story homes. There was a small square, where we played football.

I remember that I used to sneak out of the house to play football with the boys after school.

My father worked in a factory that was just a few hundred meters away. He was a bookkeeper. And my grandparents lived within 50 meters. We were all just a few steps from one another. I also remember the names of the people, when as a priest I went to give the sacraments, the final comfort for so many, who called for me and I went, because I loved them. These are the memories that first come to mind.

Did you play football, too?

Yes. Were you good?

No. In Buenos Aires, those who played football like me are called pata dura.

Which means having two left legs! But I played anyway; often I was the goalkeeper.

How did your personal commitment to the poor begin?

Yes, so many memories come to mind.

A woman who worked in our home three times a week to help my mother comes to mind. She helped with the laundry, for example. She had two children. They were Italian, and had survived the war; they were very poor, but they were very good people. And I have never forgotten that woman. Her poverty struck me.

We were not rich, normally we made it to the end of the month, but not much more. We didn’t own a car, we didn’t go on vacations or things like that. But she often needed even the most basic items.

They didn’t have enough, and so my mother gave her things. She eventually went back to Italy, and then later she returned to Argentina. I found her again when I was the Archbishop of Buenos Aires, and she was already 90. I was able to assist her until her death at the age of 93.

One day, she gave me a medal of the

You often call for heightened attention for the poor and for refugees. Are you not afraid that this might lead to a sort of overload in the media and in society in general?

We all have the temptation - when we have to face an issue that is not pretty, that is difficult to talk about, to say: “Oh, let’s not talk about this anymore: this thing is just too difficult.” I understand that the possibility of overload exists, but I do not fear it. I must continue to speak about the truth and about the way things are.

It is your duty?

Yes, it is my duty. I feel it inside me. It is not a commandment, but as individuals we all must do so.

Do you not fear that your support for the homeless and other groups plagued by poverty might be exploited politically?

How can the Church speak out so that it has influence and, at the same time, manage to steer clear of political posturing?

There are paths that lead to errors at that point. I would like to call attention to two temptations. The Church must speak the truth and also with a testimony: the testimony of poverty. The believer who speaks of poverty or of the homeless, but who lives a life of luxury: that will not do.

This is the first temptation.

The second temptation is making agreements with governments. Certainly agreements can be made, but they must be clear agreements, transparent agreements. For example, we manage this building, but the accounts are all closely controlled, in order to avoid corruption. Because the tempta-

STREET SENSE NovemberDecember 18 - December 16 - 29, 1, 2015

7

POPE FRANCIS

tion for corruption is always present in public life. Both political and religious. I remember once that I saw, with great pain, - when Argentina under the military regime entered into war with Great Britain over the Falkland Islands - that people donated items to charity, and I saw many people, including Catholics, who were responsible for distributing those things to the needy, and who instead took those items home for themselves. The danger for corruption is always present.

Once I put a question to an Argentine Minister, an honest man. One who stepped down from his position because he could not agree with certain things that were not sufficiently transparent. I asked him: When you send assistance, whether it is in the form of meals, clothing, or funds, to the poor and to the indigent, of what you send, how much of it arrives to those who need it, of the money and materials items that are sent? He said to me: 35 per cent. Which means that 65 per cent is lost. That is corruption: a bit for me, another bit for me.

Do you believe that up to now under your pontificate you have been able to achieve a change in mentality, for example in politics?

I am not sure how to respond. I don’t know. I do know that some have said that I was a communist. But that’s a category that is a bit antiquated [he laughs]. Perhaps today we use different words to say that...

Marxist, socialist...

They’ve said all those, too.

The homeless have financial problems, but they cultivate their own freedom.

The Pope has no material needs, but he is considered by some to be a prisoner of the Vatican. Do you ever wish you could trade places with the homeless?

I remember the book by Mark Twain, The Prince and the Pauper, when you can eat every day, you have clothes, a bed to sleep in, a desk to work on and nothing is lacking. You also have friends. But Mark Twain’s prince lives in a golden cage.

Do you feel free here at the Vatican?

Two days after having been elected Pope, I went to take possession of the papal apartment in the Apostolic Palace. It is not a luxurious apartment. But it is wide, and large... After having seen the apartment, it seemed to me to be a bit like an upside down funnel, so large but with only one small door. That means being isolated. I thought to myself: I can’t live here, simply for mental health reasons. It would not be good for me. At the beginning, it seemed a bit strange, but I asked to stay

here, at the Domus Sanctae Marthae. And this is good for me, because I feel free here. I eat in the dining hall where all the guests eat. And when I am early, I eat with the staff. I meet people, I greet them, and this makes the golden cage is a bit less of a cage. But I miss the street.

Holy Father, [Straatnieuws vendor] Marc would like to invite you to come have a pizza with us. What do you say?

I would like to, but we wouldn’t be able to manage it. Because the moment I leave here, the people would come to me. When I went out into the city to change the lenses in my glasses, it was seven o’clock in the evening. There was barely anybody in the streets. They drove me to the optician, and as I got out of the car, there was a woman who saw me and cried: “It’s the Pope!” And then I was inside, and all the people were outside...

Do you miss contact with people?

I don’t miss it, because the people come here. Every Wednesday, I am in Saint Peter’s Square for the General Audience, and sometimes I go to one of the local parishes: I am in contact with the people. For example, yesterday [26 October] more than 5,000 gypsies came to the Paul VI Audience Hall.

It is evident that you enjoy your appointments in St. Peter’s Square during the General Audience...

It’s true. Yes, it’s true.

Your namesake Saint Francis embraced radical poverty, and even sold his gospel book. As Pope, and the Bishop of Rome, do you ever feel under pressure to sell the treasures of the Church?

That is an easy question. They are not the treasures of the Church, but rather the treasures of humanity. For example, if tomorrow I wanted to auction off Michelangelo’s Pietà, I couldn’t, because it is not the property of the Church. It is located in a Church, but it belongs to all humanity. This is true for all the treasures of the Church. But we have begun to sell the gifts and other things that are given to me. And the proceeds from the sales go to Monsignor Krajewski, my Almoner [Archbishop Konrad Krajewski, who is in charge of distributing money to the poor]. And then there is the lottery. There were some cars that were sold or given away with a lottery, and the proceeds were used for the poor. There are some things that can be sold, and these are sold.

You do realize how the wealth of the Church might create this type of expectation?

Yes, if we were to make a catalogue of all the Church’s possessions, we could think: the Church is very rich. But with the Concordat with Italy of 1929 on the Roman Question, the Italian government at the time offered the Church a large Roman park. The Pope at the time, Pius XI, said: No, I only want half a square kilometer, in order to guarantee the Church’s independence. This principle is still valid.

Yes, the Church possesses a great deal of real estate assets, but we use them to maintain the Church’s structures and to fund the many works carried out in needy countries: hospitals, schools.

Yesterday, for example, I had €50,000 sent to the Congo for the construction of three schools in poor villages; education is so important for children. I went to the administration, I made the request, and the money was sent.

Let’s talk about Holland. Have you ever been to our country?

Yes, once, when I was the Provincial Superior of the Jesuits in Argentina. I was passing through, during a trip. I went to Wijchen [in the east of the country], because that’s where novitiate was, and I was also in Amsterdam for a day and a half, where I stayed at a Jesuit house. Of the country’s cultural life I saw nothing, because there was no time.

That’s why it might be a good idea if Holland’s homeless were to invite you to visit our country. What do you think, Holy Father?

The doors are not closed to that possibility.

So, when the invitation arrives, you will consider it?

I will consider it. And now that Holland has an Argentian queen [he laughs], who knows?

Do you perhaps have a special message for the homeless of our country?

I am not well acquainted with the specifics of the homeless in Holland. I would like to say that Holland is a developed country with a great deal of possibilities. I would ask Holland’s homeless to continue to fight for the three t’s.

Finally, Marc has a few questions as well. Speaking through an interpreter, he would like to know whether Pope Francis dreamt of being the Pope, even when he was a little boy? The Holy Father answers with a resolute “No.” “But I will tell you a secret,” he continues. “When I was little, there weren’t many shops that sold things. What we had was a

market, where there was the butcher, the greengrocer, etc. I went with my mother and my grandmother to do the shopping. Once, when I was quite little, about four, someone asked me: ‘What do you want to do when you grow up?’ And I answered: ‘A butcher!’”

Marc: You were unknown to many until 13 March, 2013. Then, overnight, you became famous throughout the world.

How was that experience for you?

It happened, and I was not expecting it. But I have not lost peace. And that is a grace from God. I don’t really think about the fact that I am famous. I say to myself: Now you have an important position, but in 10 years nobody will know you anymore [he laughs]. You know, there are two types of fame: the fame of the “greats”, those who have done truly great things, such as Madame Curie, and the fame of the vain. But this second type of fame is like a soap bubble.

So, you say ‘I am here now and I have to do the best that I can’ and ‘I will continue to work for as long as I can’?

Yes. Holy Father, can you imagine a world without poverty?

I want a world without poverty. We need to fight for that. But I am a believer, and I know that sin is always within us.

And there is always human greed, the lack of solidarity, the selfishness which creates poverty. That is why it is difficult for me to imagine a world without poverty.

If you think of the children exploited for slave labor, or of children exploited for sexual abuse. And another form of exploitation: killing children to remove their organs, organ trafficking. Killing children for their organs is greed.

That is why I don’t know whether we will ever have a world without poverty, because there is always sin, and it leads to selfishness. But we must always fight... always.

We have finished. We thank the Pope for the interview. He thanks us as well, and says that he enjoyed our chat very much. Then he takes the white envelope that has been next to him on the sofa the whole time, and takes out a rosary for each of us. Photos are taken, and then Pope Francis bids us goodbye. As calm and relaxed as when he arrived, he walks out of the door.

Ready for his next appointment.

Courtesy of INSP News Service www.INSP. ngo/ Straatnieuws. Translated from Italian to English by Translators without Borders.

Let’s Try World Peace!!

By Michael Craig, Vendor/Artist

In our holiday seasons, we are often overcome with the euphoria of the occasion. Or perhaps, for some, the depression brought on by the stressors of this time of the year.

We run out and buy gifts and receive gifts. But, in my mind the greater gift to give is respecting and appreciating the diversity of our global society. It costs nothing

and is doable even during trying times. The wonderfully challenging experience is that it begins with you and me. This gift is not seasonal, but rather an ongoing daily proposition. The Christmas tree is us. It’s not you.

It’s all of us. It’s not a materi-al thing.

It costs nothing to love - it really doesn’t. I hope, regardless of your perception of events during this time of year, you find joy and comfort in putting a smile on someone’s face each day of your life.

Let’s try world peace!!

Merry Christmas - Show Love

From Thanksgiving to Christmas

By Robert Warren, Vendor/Artist

Wrangle and tangle with spirits, highs and lows, People in need, they come and they go.

For those in service, it’s a day to love lost souls And to pray for those people less fortunate.

The tables are set with food piled high With thanksgiving to the Lord who fulfills Man’s every need.

Let there be the lighting of the children’s Christmas trees.

Here’s some food for thought to remember, please As the new year came in with so many in need.

The way to righteousness is that every act is for the Lord, you see It is not that you turn your face towards the east or the west, but righteousness is the quality of the one who believes in the Lord, the last day of the angels, the words in the book, and the prophets. It is the one who gives his wealth in spite of his love for it to, his kin folk, to the orphans, and the poor, the homeless and to the wayfarer and to those who ask, and help set a refugee free.

These are the sincere, the pious, may peace be to their fellow man that be thankful and believe in giv-ing out of what the Lord provides to thee.

Not just when the bells of the season ring, the ways of the Lord commercialized for a few dollars, please. Open your eyes and see, people are people 365 days a year, would you believe?

If you give thanks, give every day you breathe, the angels in heaven will sing of thee.

The best part of all, the Lord will remember me, praying for the better day and happy holidays for all in need.

---------------Happy Birth

O

nly Jesus created me and made me, to bring me where I am today. Only Jesus can heal me when I am sick. Only Jesus can heal the broken hearted.

Only Jesus can open doors and opportunities when I don’t see any my way.

Only Jesus can make the impossible to be possible. Only Jesus can make me whole and complete again. Where would I be without Jesus? Jesus is the butter to my bread and the sugar to my tea. Jesus is my all in all. I look to him and only him because I know he will hear my cry and answer my problems. Only Jesus is for me and he is only for you too! Jesus is the only one that helps me in my times in need. He knows when I need him because he is God and he knows everything. He is Jesus, the only Jesus there is. He orders my steps and walks with me no matter what the situation is, in my life and in yours. No matter what happens to you or me, he is always with us. Never forget that. God Bless you all and thank you!

-By Evelyn Nnam, Vendor/Artist

STREET SENSE December 16 - 29, 2015

9

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

e to Everyone 365 Days/year!

Visit StreetSense.org/xmas2015 to read holiday profiles of each vendor pictured here. Thank you for reading Street Sense and supporting our vendors.

Happy Holidays!

You Are Appreciated

By Reginald Black, “The Street Reportin’ Artist” Vendor/Artist I have been thinking of writing something like this for a while, not just for the holidays. I stayed away from it because I feel that pieces like this are, in a way, similar to what I already do on the corners when I’m selling the paper.

I do realize that I am being invested in by all of you who purchase the paper from me personally. I am making great strides in the community. To date, I have starred in interviews, designed flyers and newspaper pages, spoken in front of crowds, directed a film and even published drawings -- something I never thought that I would be able to do. I used to think drawing would be hard, but it seems I have a few skills yet to uncover.

I am relaying this to you all because I want you to know how much I appreciate every invest-ment. Every voice of feed-

back and motivation. I am doing my best to make the greatest turno-ver of these kind words and investments. I am thankful to all of you and hope that you will con-tinue to support me as I endeavor to continue my education and open my own business based here in Washington, D.C. You have been the best parts of my life and I am humbled everyday by the many people that stop just to have a quick chat.

If it was not for you, I would not have gotten this far. I may have come a long way, which includes a two-month stint as a District of Columbia city employee, but I have a long way to go too. I am asking for your support during the journey.

It has been a treasure to be your Street Sense vendor and I am hoping that as I start to roll out creative products for my business that you will become patrons of those items too. I will see you on the streets. And like I always say: safe journeys to you all.

12 Days of a Homeless Christmas

hday Jesus!---------------

2

000 years ago, God sent a present to the world to help the people: he sent Jesus. Jesus came so the people could be saved! He gave his life for people.

This is why we know we should be thankful. There is no greater love.

So, by his example, we should try to keep peace and care about each other. Love each other. Not just sometimes, but all the time. Not just during Christmas, but all year.

The big word during the holiday should not be sale, but love.

I am grateful and happy to say I love Jesus. Happy Birthday Jesus!

-By Jackie Turner, Vendor/Artist

By Doris Robinson, Vendor/Artist On On On On On On On On On On On On

the the the the the the the the the the the the

first day of homeless Christmas, I lost my Social Security card. second day of homeless Christmas, I lost two pairs of glasses. third day of homeless Christmas, I lost three identity cards. fourth day of homeless Christmas, I lost four pairs of socks. fifth day of homeless Christmas, I lost three earrings and two necklaces. sixth day of homeless Christmas, I lost three soaps and three deodorants. seventh day of homeless Christmas, I lost seven of my teeth. eighth day of homeless Christmas, I lost eight of my job papers. ninth day of homeless Christmas, I lost nine of my nails. tenth day of Christmas, I lost ten locks of my hair. eleventh day of Christmas, I lost six bras and five undergarments. twelfth day of Christmas, I lost a dozen $100 bills.

OPINION

Christmastime Compassion Isn't Good Enough

By Michael F. Curtin, Jr. Like dozens of other nonprofit organizations working to end homelessness in the District of Columbia, DC Central Kitchen’s programs are in action all year long. But this time of year – the flurry of activity between Thanksgiving and New Year’s – is always when public interest in homelessness and hunger peaks. Just as a single holiday meal will not liberate a person from hunger, a seasonal spike in shame, outrage or confusion at the ongoing existence of homelessness in our wealthy nation’s capital is not enough. For an individual to replace homelessness with the conditions of self-sufficiency takes coordination, planning and effort from many parties over time. However, this year, like so many years past, our community is still coming up short on these counts – which means that when the calendar turns to 2016, we’re certain to have failed, once again, to make homelessness a thing of the past. If we don’t want to say these same things again next year, we should use these six weeks of public attention and energy to advance the dialogue on a series of key issues: Hunger, homelessness and unemployment are all linked, but the groups addressing them aren’t. Elements of the Housing First model have demonstrated some encouraging results, but housing alone (even if we had enough of it) is not a complete solution. Philanthropists and nonprofits are talking more about food and nutrition than ever before, but those at risk of homelessness still face information gaps about how to access the quality nutrition they need. And without quick transitions into living-wage employment, residents who have received expedited housing assistance may lose it. Coordination across nonprofits, funders and government agencies with different focus areas remains sporadic at best, even though research and practice continue to show how homelessness is a complex challenge requiring comprehensive, integrated solutions.

We must end the outdated and failed approach of warehousing our residents who are homeless. The steps taken to close the dilapidated family shelter at D.C. General emergency shelter have been encouraging, but Mayor Muriel Bowser and Department of Human Services Director Laura Zeilinger are quite right to point out that it will not be a sustained step if all eight wards do not share the responsibility of providing smaller, safer, more dignified living arrangements. Moreover, D.C. General is not the only old, overcrowded shelter in the District, and similar energy must be spent on addressing those facilities and their residents immediately.

We have an incredible opportunity to make our workforce development system work for individuals overcoming homelessness. There have been encouraging changes at the federal level through the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. The act makes it easier to serve homeless individuals, including homeless youth, and encourages states to invest in the type of innovative solutions that can help these residents access the training, social services and job placement assistance they need to enter and stay in the workforce. To seize this opportunity, the District must name a permanent director of the Workforce Investment Council as soon as possible and immediately begin the process of identifying solutions to meet the employment needs of homeless residents. It’s crucial that any proposed solutions are developed with the input of the nonprofit providers, community advocates and for-profit businesses that will be integral to their successful implementation.

But we must also be forward-thinking about adding new voices to these conversations. Thus, finally, the District of Columbia should become the nation’s capital for social enterprises that provide sustainable, supportive employment for individuals with histories of homelessness.

This promising new sector of the economy, populated by private entities that offer dignified, meaningful jobs while generating revenue and attracting business from conscientious consumers (of which D.C. has many) is primed for growth. In fact, Street Sense and DC Central Kitchen are well-established models of this approach. But the District and the philanthropic community could be doing much more to attract, develop and grow these types of innovative firms. If many purely for-profit businesses are not yet ready to make major investments of time and money into hiring residents who are homeless, we support the idea of adding new employers to the mix who can expand the number and quality of opportunities available.

Instead of using the next few weeks to simply plead for donations, those of us working to end homelessness in D.C. must pull together and provoke productive dialogue – so that someday, we won’t need to ask for donations anymore.

Michael F. Curtin Jr. is the Chief Executive Officer of DC Central Kitchen, a nationally acclaimed nonprofit social enterprise that trains at-risk adults for culinary careers while using wasted food and local farm products to bring healthy food to individuals and families in need.

Remembering Christmas

By Robert Warren

I've never been a big fan of Christmas. I remember, when I was 8 or 9 years old, going with my brother and sisters to my grandmother's house for Christmas dinner and having no gifts under the tree. Something in me changed that day. I guess I found out there is no such thing as Santa Claus. My grandmother, a beautiful soul, was too poor to buy gifts. But she was someone who loved the Lord. I can still see the look of hurt on her face because of not having gifts for us. But even though she didn't have money to do what she wanted, I remember thinking how much I loved her for all the love she showed my siblings and me. Being home with her was the only gift I needed.

So over the years, I have stressed and obsessed with the rest of us about how I was going to make enough money to buy my loved ones gifts. I have seen more and more how Christmas has come to show the difference between the haves and the have-nots – just an exercise of supporting corporate greed. Now, being old enough to see how this happens, I also see how few people think about the poor and people in need after Thanksgiving and Christmas. And I have learned that the work of Christ Jesus is never done. So I am just happy to see Christmas come and go so the real followers of Christ Jesus can get back to the work at hand.

Robert Warren is a writer and Street Sense vendor.

IMAGES COURTESY OF TORANGE.US

I Didn't Leave The Party. The Party Left Me!

By Jeffery McNeil

Our country is in a crisis morally, spiritually and economically. Before I moved to D.C., I thought of myself as open-minded and progressive. I supported women's rights and was sympathetic to gays. Ten years ago, I would never have considered Donald Trump, but the Democrats have moved too far left.

What’s being espoused as liberalism isn't liberalism but a Leviathan from the deep. Once upon a time, people could talk about their disagreements civilly. Liberals don't stop racism. They make you cheer for people such as Donald Trump and Ted Cruz, while they go on witch hunts to find racism in every crevice. You will find out they are the most hate-filled, hypocritical people on earth.

Once upon a time I loved being a Democrat, but they went cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs. I was born in this country, I fought and risked my life for this country, only to come home and deal with bu-reaucrats who are unelected officials and accountable to no one. They tell me I need to learn Spanish to get better employment.

We are building a Tower of Babel. I was

born here, I refuse to speak another language except the language of my country.

Trump isn't racist, he is right. Illegal immigration makes all immigrants look bad.

It’s not about racism; it’s about survival.

Whole towns and cities are being decimated by free trade and globali-zation. What will it take for liberals to realize people no longer see the government as the solution but the problem? People want jobs not health care, minimum wage laws and paid vacations that benefit unions instead of people who need relief.

The reason why Donald Trump is surging is because he doesn't have experts and handlers. He’s a novice, he’s a quick study and learns as he goes. He doesn't go by the polls but by the gut. Please, Donald, don’t be like these country club Republicans and these bourgeoisie Democrats.

Keep it raw and real, be yourself, and you will get my vote.

Jeffery Mcneil is a frequent writer and columnist for Street Sense.

Have an opinion about how homelessness is being handled in our community? Street Sense maintains an open submission policy and prides itself as a newspaper that elevates community voices and fosters healthy debate. Send your thoughts to opinion@streetsense.org.

STREET SENSE December 16 - 29, 2015

1#1

OP-ED

Where Is Our Progressive Mayor?

By Brian Carome

Recent events suggest Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is of two minds when it comes to addressing homelessness. Upon taking office nearly a year ago, she brought a refreshingly pro-gressive approach to the District's longstanding, seemingly intractable homelessness problem. She embraced policies proven effective elsewhere, tapped respected leaders in the field for key administration posts and backed her ideas with more funding than her recent predecessors.

The mayor has been an outspoken proponent of the Housing First model. Proven to be a cost effective way of solving chronic homelessness, Housing First provides people experiencing homelessness with housing as quickly as possible, and then provides services as needed. It re-places a failed approach that made engagement in services, and extended periods of stability, prerequisites for housing. The policy works and saves taxpayer money.

Bowser’s choice of Laura Zeilinger as director of the Department of Human Services and Polly Donaldson as director of the Department of Housing and Community Development suggested that crafting long-term policies to address and end homelessness was a top priority. Both bring a track record of accountability, application of best practices, innovation and public-private collab-oration to the task.

And the mayor has shown a willingness to back her rhetoric with the funding needed to implement good ideas. One longtime critic of the District's approach to homelessness described the mayor's homeless

assistance budget for fiscal year 2016 as the very best and most promising allocation of funding she had seen in 30 years.

All of this leads to our bewilderment about her decision to forcefully evict a community of per-sons from their encampment in the District's Foggy Bottom neighborhood near the Watergate Building. By order of the mayor, city workers swept in, confiscated tents and personal effects and “cleaned up” the encampment last month, all in accordance with city law that forbids such “temporary places of abode.” The mayor has pledged to do the same anywhere else in the city people are living in similar encampments.

Let us be clear, we at Street Sense think it is outrageous that in a city of such wealth, some of our neighbors live outside. But we know they are there for a

reason. For some, it means being able to stay with a supportive partner. (City shelters for single adults do not allow men and wom-en to be sheltered together.) Others find the noise, violence and overcrowding of shelters un-bearable. Others appreciate the sense of community and autonomy that they are able to build at these encampments. Still others found shelters full when they sought refuge there. All found the cost of housing in our city beyond their reach.

Whatever the reason, criminalizing the decision is shortsighted. At the implementation level, when it targets persons who are chronically homeless, Housing First begins with engagement and trust-building. The mayor will tell you that housing was offered to all of the encampment’s residents – a claim not substantiated by

our interviews with those affected. Even if true, holding a lease in one hand, while banishing the club of an eviction notice in the other, is no way to build trust.

Let’s be honest about what is behind these neighborhood “cleanups.” They are knee-jerk reac-tions to demands made by wealthy residents, business owners and developers in these neigh-borhoods. “We don’t care how, just get these unsightly people out of here!” Twenty-three years ago, on nearly the very same spot this now-evicted community found refuge, former D.C. Mayor Vince Gray, while director of the Department of Human Services, conducted a similar “cleanup” operation a few days before Thanksgiving when he forcibly shut down a shelter in an-swer to residents demands to “get these unsightly people out of here.”

The forcible eviction of the Foggy Bottom encampment, and plans to do the same elsewhere in the city, echo an old, outdated and failed style of leadership.

They bring us no closer to the day we believe Mayor Bowser yearns for as much as we here at Street Sense do – a day when this city is beyond its decades of widespread chronic homelessness. We urge the mayor to embrace the progressive inclinations that characterized the first months of her administration. And we stand ready to support implementation of policies born from that brand of progressive leadership.

Brian Carome is the executive director of Street Sense.

Criminality of Being Homeless

Go Ahead And Criminalize Homelessness

All people should have civil rights in this country. We open our borders to immigrants, but people often show they care nothing about the homeless. There is even an effort to make being home-less tantamount to being a criminal.

I have been spat at by passersby. What are my rights? I have been banned from going into a movie theater, presumably because I had bags with me. What are my rights?

Some states, like Connecticut, have passed laws giving homeless people a special "Homeless Person's Bill of Rights."

A person should have the right to sit on a pack bench, go into a public facility, panhandle, etc., without fear of being arrested. Other states have enacted laws similar to Connecticut's and more states need to follow.

Entering a store or a business should not confer on the security guards the right to follow any person or to inquire

Yes, homelessness should be criminalized. Every politician, developer, landlord, church leader and any other "citizen" that opposes or otherwise fails to support sustainable housing; the fight to end unjust incarceration of the disadvantaged; and the restoration of American family life should be sentenced to a term of time in the streets and subsequent parole in a Community for Creative Non-Violence, or CCNV, -like shelter. A fair sentence, as will be mine when editors note the length of that run-on sentence. [Editor’s note: We sentence Ken to a punishment of 50 more op-eds.]

By Gwynette Smith

if they need help. Some stores do have specific policies about the length of time a person can remain on their premises. A reasonable amount of time, like 15 minutes, might be enough time for the type of goods they sell, such as food.

Panhandling should be legal as long as people don’t threaten others. The police once charged me for panhandling because they said I stepped in front of people or should have been on one side of the sidewalk or the other. The people could walk around me. But the police said it didn’t matter, and I had to pay a fine.

We are human beings and we all have feelings. Anyone can join the ranks of the homeless through bad circumstances that befall them. We should think of others and in doing so, we may also be thinking of ourselves.

Gwynette Smith is a writer and a vendor for Street Sense.

By Ken Martin

Ken Martin is a Vendor/Artist for Street Sense. He has a background in community organizing as well as real estate. Ken operates a pop-up hat shop in the District.

Learn more at www.brims4you.com.

IMAGE COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

The Street Sense Writers’ Group is led by writing professionals and meets every Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. The group’s goal is to develop ideas and collaborate on the next great issue of Street Sense.

To Conquer

By Rachel Higdon, Vendor/Artist

PHOTO COURTESY OF FLICKR/EMMANUEL

What Street Sense Means to Me

By Richard Embden, Vendor/Artist

Street Sense gets me going. I have a reason to get out of the house. It is no small satisfaction I get from being able to buy what I want to eat rather than being subject to whatever was donated to Miriam’s Kitchen.

Street Sense means I always can decide to put forth a genuine effort and receive a genuine reward. I can make some things happen, instead of asking, “What happened?”

When I am selling Street Sense, I encourage myself, thinking that if “I put in the effort,” Street Sense works.

A Beautiful Life

Woke-Up Dead

When I go to sleep at night, sometimes my body is so tired; especially, after I was recently kicked in the face and so badly beaten I had to have major surgery. But God gave me life, and it has been good to me no matter what I have been going through. God has always been there for me, which is why I count my blessings every day.

Since my arthritis has spread through my hip to my spine, I have to have back surgery soon. That brings another problem I have to go through, because I will have to find a place to heal. I also pray to God I find a place to live very soon. Fortunately, I am going to see about an apartment shortly, and I hope and pray things will work with me and my case manager.

Street Sense has been helping me a lot along the way, and I thank it for that.

Before I end this article, I hope and pray my oldest brother Jim will successfully fight the illness going through his liver.

Luckily, I know God is with him and will bless him always.

What a beautiful life God has given me, and I thank God for that. May God bless us all. Amen and peace!

Woke up dead.

Sorted, shredded, recycled, dumped, picked up, driven unloaded Just plain gone.

Trashed and thrown away.

How could that happen to the thousands of me, here, there, and everywhere, globally, especially cap town, D.C? Woke up dead.

Lost and found, like overdue rotted garbage to be picked up on the street, in the park, squatters’ house, shelter inside or outside in the bed, in the dumpster, in the daylight, in the dark.

Woke up dead, from exposure and death.

Cold and ill from no house--a home or a place to heal.

The cost too high for my town to meet.

Now, I am not here for you to touch and see.

There is hope!

I hear our mayor is going to fix-it.....

So there will be no more throwaways on the street of human life, Awakened-up-dead, like me!

By Charles Davis, Vendor/Artist

I’ve been stranded in darkness And I could not find my way.

I was stuck in place And it was happening every day.

There was no one to help me, I had to learn on my own.

I had to work through my hardships To get to my throne.

I crawled on my knees Every time that I fell.

I crawled through the fire To get out of hell.

While standing at the roadblock, I didn’t give up.

I explored other options When things got tough.

I made it through the jungle With thorns on my feet.

I patched up my pain And made some cleats.

I walked and I walked Until I found the light.

I was blinded with dirt But I did not lose sight.

PERCEPTION IS REALITY:

Spectrum of Change

By Robert Williams, USMC Vendor/Artist Extended time spent in any given environment can or will change an individual.

However, One does have Some control over the change, Be it Positive or Negative And the extent Thereof.

Positivity and Negativity, At opposite ends Of the spectrum Like Light and dark.

After one ends, The other starts.

Night and day, At some points from each other, Not too often far away.

By Angie Whitehurst, Vendor/Artist

My Daughters Birthday

By Elizabeth Bryant, Vendor/Artist

I need all people that read my writing to understand that I’m in a lot of pain.

My daughter’s birthday was November 25, 2015, which marked the first time I haven’t talked to her for a whole year. It was painful not to. But, she had told me to stay away and I was worried about adding to her own pain.

I want her to hear that I love her. I’ve still got her birthday present from last year, for her and my grandson. I hope that I can give it to them one day. I hope I learn how to act.

PHOTO COURTESY OF SCOTT BEALE/FLICKR

STREET SENSE December 16 - 29, 2015

13

VENDOR WRITING REVIEW: MOTOWN THE MUSICAL

By William Mack Volunteer

Jarran Muse as Marvin Gaye | PHOTO COURTESY OF JOAN MARCUS

P-A-I-N

By Reginald Black, Vendor/Artist , “Da Street Reportin’ Artist” P-A-I-N where does it from Grief?

Is there a true relief?

Can one escape the prison an unbothered release?

P-A-I-N What is the destiny of man?

All I see is trouble through a window p-a-n-e All around us How can we let go?

Who sees the P-A-I-N when tears flow?

Are their salty tears meant to water flowers, of earth’s remaining years?

P-A-I-N How much does it take for it to all end?

P-A-I-N is all I see, Wish I could go back to mommy Wishing she was still here to guide How much longer will they be dancing around in false pride?

P-A-I-N, feeling so strong, as Kaio-ken times ten Surely that can’t be all there is to life P-A-I-N is what guides those who fight What form should it take?

How long must hurting people wait?

I ask when will we all be truly free?

How can I remove this pain from me?

Surely it’s a hard road the one I have been on seems flooded out, covered with snow Longing for the day we can all lay down our weapons P-A-I-N, what does it take to win P-A-I-N, we have already lost to many of them P-A-I-N, I can’t accept losing any more P-A-I-N, where is the peace i yearn for?

P-A-I-N, is all I see P-A-I-N, I guess I gotta use both of them, fight with sword and pen.

So many artists got their start with Motown. Marvin Gaye, The Miracles, Martha Reeves and The Vandellas, The Four Tops, Gladys Knight and the Pips, The Temptations, Mary Wells, Stevie Wonder, The Jackson 5 are just a few of the artists and groups that came out of Motown (Hitsville) records. The Motown label was a reflection of hard work and dedication of individuals overcoming obstacles to achieve success. I had the privilege of viewing Motown the Musical on Wednesday, December 9, 2015, at the National Theater, a very comfortable theater with plush seats and excellent atmosphere. Let me start by saying this play was spectacular.

The show opens in 1983 at the time of the “Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever” TV special. This is the music that a lot of us came to love. The music of this era transcended color barriers. Berry Gordy (played by Josh Tower) kept the audience

captivated from beginning to end. Diana Ross’ (Allison Semmes) voice was magnificent. Smokey Robinson (Jesse Nager) was Vice President of Motown records. The singing and dancing had me singing and dancing in my seat as I reminisced with each song sung. The cast was very talented. The music was heart felt and almost as good as the original singers and musicians. The stage was set perfectly, the lighting was just right, and the sound system was at its best.

I definitely recommend this musical for all to see.

I’d really love to see it again! I would like to thank the staff of the National Theater Corporation for all the good work they’ve done and continue to do in helping to bring these performances to the public.

“Motown The Musical”’s Washington area premiere at National Theatre December 1, 2015 – January 3, 2016 www.TheNationalDC.com

AFTER KATRINA: A Ten Year Rollercoster, Part 10

By Gerald Anderson, Vendor/Artist

PREVIOUSLY: I was movin’ around with my carwash bucket, but really I was looking to see did they have crack in that area so I could get high. I started talkin’ to one guy who at first is thinkin’ I’m an informer. After a while, I start to trust him and tell him I’m tryin to get a good connect. “Dope, heroin, or crack cocaine; it doesn’t matter,” I told him. He say, “You got the man right here. I’m gonna call my man. He be here in 10 or 15 minutes...”

Now that I’m movin’ around and startin’ to meet people, they invitin’ me to their house and to cookouts. I got it goin’ on now. I’m minglin’.

So this addict I met told me about some dealer he know that can front me some work, giving me drugs to sell.

When I say work, I mean sellin’ drugs, not work like construction or nothin’ like that.

I asked him, “What they look to get back moneywise.”

He say, “60 for the man and 40 for you.”

I say, “Damn man, in New Orleans they go 70-30.

It’s better up here than down there.”

When he say he can call him right now and the dude will come, I told him, “Man, I don’t want no slow money. I want fast money,” meaning that I want to sell heroin, not crack cocaine. I use crack cocaine—that’s my high, so it would be hard to sell.

I’m a user, so I’d wanna use it.

After him callin’ the man and I meet him, he say, “What’s the most you think you can sell?”

I say, “I’m not new to this game, but I’m new to how they maneuver up here. I’ve been here for a minute.”

He say, “How about 20 bags, can you handle that?”

I say, “How much you lookin’ back for that?”

He say, “I want $120 back.”

I say, “Cool.”

So after I walk off, him and the other guy start talking. I was curious in my mind. With me bein’ high already, I wondered if they were talkin’ about me. And I wonder if the dope was real.

I met him through the grapevine so I couldn’t be too sure.

I purposely didn’t ask the dealer his name. I’m a street dude, so when people ask my name, I think they an informer.

The dealer told the dude who introduced us, that he respect me because I didn’t ask his name or nothin’.

After movin’ around in the projects, I sit on the porch and watch him sellin’ his bags.

He say, “Let me do the morning and I’m gonna let you do the evening. These jackrabbits, they crazy, especially in the morning, so I’ll deal with them.”

I went back and told my homeboys and homegirls that I got a lick. They say what you talkin’ about?

I say I got a connect. I’m in the game with these dudes now.

One of my homegirls say, “I hope you don’t mess his money up. I don’t want you to get in trouble with these guys out here. They might kill you. Or come here and kill us!”

I tell her, “I got this. I’m true to the game, not new to the game. Only thing I needed was to find a way to breathe, like get a connect. Now, I know what to do.

I got a coke connect and a heroin connect.”

So every day I go out and hustle, sell my drugs. I get my nickname—they call me Orleans. (to be continued)

My book, “Still Standing: How an Ex-Con Found Salvation in the Floodwaters of Katrina,” is available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle form. I hope you will tell your friends about it.

It also makes a great gift! Thank you!

Al Nist by the Rose DEDICATED TO EDWARD SNOWDEN

Autographed photo of Pittsburgh Steelers’ Franco Harris after his winning touchdown catch known as “The Immaculate Reception.” Given to Anthony by a friend.

PHOTO BY ANTHONY CRAWFORD

My ‘Immaculate Reception’

All night by the roos rose, the roos and I lay.

Me ay niht cannot this rose dis-pel synce I bore the flowr o way.

By Anthony Crawford Vendor/Artist I received a birthday gift from one of my loyal readers to celebrate my two year anniversary of having secured housing. I've known him for about a year and a half. He's a good guy. He's a lawyer and his son works for D.C. Central Kitchen. He had seen my Pittsburgh Steelers gear and knew I was a big fan of the team. The birthday gift he gave me was an autographed photo of Franco Harris' touchdown winning catch from Terry Bradshaw back in December of 1972. NFL films say this is the greatest play in the history of pro-football.

Thanks to my friends, this has been a marvelous year for me. Everyone has been really supportive. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all my fans and readers!

A 14th Centruy English folk song, rendered by Franklin Sterling.

Vendor/Artist

MOVING UP: Navigating the Healthcare Sign-up Process

By Arthur Johnson, Volunteer

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) has been very effective in reducing the number of uninsured residents in the United States.

There are many benefits, but one of the most significant responsibilities that goes along with receiving them is that you must purchase insurance or face a significant penalty from the Internal Revenue Service. The 2016 penalty will increase this year to $695 per adult and $347.50 for each child, or 2.5% of income.

Children are actually one of the easiest groups to cover since the Government has in place a program at the Federal level called CHIP (Children’s Health Insurance Program). It is a form of Medicaid designed to make sure all children are covered. And it is very easy to apply. All you do is call 1-877-543-7669. Answer some questions and then they mail you a form to sign and send back with supporting documents. Within 45 days, your children are covered to visit doctors and access any needed medical services.

For adults needing insurance, there are several options. The main website for the enrollment process is DCHealthLink.com. It is a comprehensive site that can guide you through the process of signing up for insurance. After creating an account, you will answer

several questions about your present insurance coverage and your income to determine if you are eligible for subsidies to help pay for your coverage. The subsidies make the insurance extremely affordable.

Another advantage of the Affordable Care Act is that you may have a better chance of getting Medicaid. In states that chose to expand Medicaid (D.C. and Maryland accepted the Medicaid expansion, Virginia did not) the eligibility amount was increased to as much as 132 percent of the Federal poverty level.

One important thing to realize is that in order to avoid paying a penalty when you file your taxes, you must have been insured under a qualified insurance plan.

For example, there are some things that DC Healthy Alliance does not cover and it is possible you may wind up paying a penalty since the plan does not meet the standards set forth in The Affordable Care Act. If you are presently covered under DC Healthy Alliance, it is highly advisable that you apply through DC Health Link to make sure that the coverage you obtain will comply with the ACA. Another thing to know is that if you did not have insurance for at least three consecutive months, you may be subject to the tax penalty unless you meet one

of the exemptions. There are several for 2015 that you should know about: you do not have to pay the fine if you were homeless, were evicted or faced foreclosure, are a domestic abuse victim, had filed for bankruptcy within six months, received a shut off notice for your utilities, suffered a fire or flood, someone in your immediate family died, or if you could get insurance through your employer or a marketplace and the cost would exceed 8.05% of your household income, which would make it unaffordable under the ACA. If you are a young adult you have two options: stay on your parent’s policy until the age of 26 or purchase a catastrophic policy. That is similar to a high deductible policy that has you covering the majority of the expenses until you meet the (very high) deductible.

To get started, visit DCHealthLink.com or call 855-532-5465. You’ll need a copy of your tax return or a pay stub that will show your income, and you will need to provide your social security number and you may need to provide proof of citizenship (driver’s license, birth certificate, etc.)

There are several enrollment centers staffed with assistants and brokers to help you navigate the process too: Martin Luther King Jr. Public Library (901 G St NW);

the Unity Health Care Minnesota Ave Clinic (3924 Minnesota Ave NE); the Unity Health Care Anacostia Health Center (1500 Galen St SE); Whitman-Walker Health (Elizabeth Taylor Medical Center 1701 14th St NW); Community of Hope Marie Reed Health Center (2250 Champlain St NW); Community of Hope Conway Health and Resource Center (4 Atlantic St SW); Community of Hope Family Health and Birth Center (801 17th St NE); Mary’s Center (3912 Georgia Ave NW); and the DC One Touch Enrollment Center with identity verification and bilingual help (Carlos Rosario International Charter School at 1100 Harvard St NW).

Contact the locations for hours. Most are open several days a week. Make sure to apply today. The deadline for open enrollment is January 30.

Arthur Johnson is a volunteer writer focusing on finance and economic issues.

He has two Bachelor’s Degrees in Sport Management and Economics. Johnson has substantial experience working with the homeless as a Volunteer Financial mentor at The Salvation Army shelter in Minneapolis. If you have questions about a specific article or suggestions for topics you would like to know more about, please email him AJohnson@streetsense.org

15

STREET SENSE December 16 - 29, 2015

COMMUNITY SERVICES Housing/Shelter

Food

Clothing

Showers

Outreach

Medical/Healthcare

Transportation

Laundry

Education

Employment Assistance

Legal Assistance

Academy of Hope Public Charter School: 269-6623 | 601 Edgewood St, NE aohdc.org

Bread for the City: 265-2400 (NW) | 561-8587 (SE) 1525 7th St, NW | 1640 Good Hope Rd, SE breadforthecity.org

Community of Hope: 232-7356 communityofhopedc.org

Jobs Have Priority: 544-9128 425 Snd St, NW jobshavepriority.org

Covenant House Washington: 610-9600 2001 Mississippi Avenue, SE covenanthousedc.org

John Young Center: 639-8569 119 D Street, NW

Calvary Women’s Services: 678-2341 1217 Good Hope Road, SE calvaryservices.org

D.C. Coalition for the Homeless: 347-8870 1234 Massachusetts Ave, NW dccfh.org

Catholic Charities: 772-4300 catholiccharitiesdc.org/gethelp

Father McKenna Center: 842-1112 19 Eye St, NW fathermckennacenter.org

Charlie’s Place: 232-3066 1830 Connecticut Ave, NW charliesplacedc.org

Christ House: 328-1100 1717 Columbia Rd, NW christhouse.org

Church of the Pilgrims: 387-6612 2201 P St, NW churchofthepilgrims.org/outreach food (1 - 1:30 on Sundays only)

Friendship Place: 364-1419 4713 Wisconsin Ave, NW friendshipplace.org

Community Family Life Services: 347-0511 | 305 E St, NW cflsdc.org

Food and Friends: 269-2277 219 Riggs Rd, NE foodandfriends.org (home delivery for those suffering from HIV, cancer, etc)

Foundry Methodist Church: 332-4010 1500 16th St, NW foundryumc.org/ministry-opportunities ID (FRIDAY 9-12 ONLY)

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

Gospel Rescue Ministries: 842-1731 810 5th St, NW grm.org

CELEBRATING SUCCESS! My Selling Techniques

By Patty Smith Vendor/Artist After five years of selling Street Sense papers all around DC, I started selling in the Shaw area. The gift of gab I was known to have, always being courteous to the people I ran into on a daily basis. I also learned that complimenting my customers has been a good selling point.

Over the many years I have sold Street Sense, I have found these points to work out perfectly.

Martha’s Table: 328-6608 2114 14th St, NW marthastable.org Miriam’s Kitchen: 452-8926 2401 Virginia Ave, NW miriamskitchen.org

My Sister’s Place: 529-5991 (24-hour hotline) mysistersplacedc.org

N Street Village: 939-2060 1333 N Street, NW nstreetvillage.org

New York Ave Shelter: 832-2359 1355-57 New York Ave, NE

Open Door Shelter: 639-8093 425 2nd St, NW newhopeministriesdc.org/id3.html

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

Samaritan Ministry: 1516 Hamilton Street NW | 722-2280 1345 U Street SE | 889-7702 samaritanministry.org

Sasha Bruce Youthwork: 675-9340 741 8th St, SE sashabruce.org

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

St. Luke’s Mission Center: 333-4949 3655 Calvert St. NW stlukesmissioncenter.org

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

Unity Health Care: 745-4300 3020 14th St, NW unityhealthcare.org

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

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

Consider Contributing to Street Sense!

# 28233

United Way NCA Designation Code

United Way of the National Capital Area

# 8871

VENDOR MEMORIAL: ROBERTA BEAR

By Marcus Green, Vendor/Artist Dear Bobby Bear, Farewell.

I miss you so much. God has called you home. I can’t go back, only forward to make you and God proud.

Taking you and God for granted came back to haunt me. But, there is a blessing in all of this: Bobby’s work on Earth is done, and I must take over.

Please lift me and her family in prayer. I do know prayer changes things.

Thanks for your support.

God Bless, Marcus The Street Sense family grieves for the loss of Roberta “Bobby” Bear. She was a strong woman, prolific writer and gentle soul. Bobby passed away in her sleep, at the age of 58, on Tuesday, November 24. Family services were held on December 6.

Street Sense will hold a memorial at the Church of the Epiphany in early January 2016. All are welcome. She will also be honored during this year’s Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day, observed on December 17 and 18 in the District. Donations may be made in her honor to House of Ruth (HouseOfRuth.org). Reflections and tributes may be sent to editor@streetsense.org.

Roberta “Bobby” Bear.

Marcus Green, Roberta’s husband, now wears both of their wedding bands side-by-side. PHOTO BY ERIC FALQUERO

PHOTO BY JANE CAVE.

December 16 - 29, 2015 • Volume 13 • Issue 3

Street Sense 1317 G Street, NW

Nonprofit Org US Postage Paid Washington, DC

Washington, DC 20005

Mail To:

Permit #568

Remember, buy only from badged vendors and do not give to those panhandling with one paper.

Interested in a subscription? Go to page 15 for more information.

Photos of Roberta on display at her family services. COURTESY OF MARCUS GREEN