Working with the homeless is often so stressful and frustrating. It is so difficult to find the needed resources to assist them . This was so prevalent tonight after I picked an elderly homeless gentleman up from the hospital. I thought we had it worked out for hime to go into Salvation Army until we could get him into a more permanent situation. After getting his medications, I preceded with confidence to the Salvation Army, only to be met by a very rude and belligerent night manager who refused him a bed. He could not pull his weight around there and had been kicked out recently for being so slow. He also said that this man had been disrespectful to him. Now I was speechless, what I was seeing was a very weak older gentleman who was hospitalized with severe hypertension and is on dialysis. I also know when you feel bad, and especially with a high blood pressure and diabetes you do not handle things very well. I can only imagine what would happen if this man in authority & knows it came at him telling him how slow he was and kicking him out. I took him to a motel, tomorrow I will look for other solutions. In the meantime, his wallet was recently stolen and he does not have an idea, his bank card, a SS card, his Medicaid card. He is one of the aging and faceless homeless that I meet daily. Last night I took food for an elderly lady living in a shed in a remote rural area. She has cancer and she has been told she will soon be in a wheelchair. She had no food in her house. Has to make those hard choices....food or medication, medication and food or heat and running water. She cried, we hugged and I prayed. How sad. Today, a middle aged man came in so cold, seeking a thicker coat and blankets. He cannot go into shelter because he does not have an ID. The sad thing is, he is homeless because he is unable to work. He fell about a year and half ago roofing a house and broke his leg severely, numerous surgeries and months in the hospital he still limps. Admits to having a lot of pain. I could see him grimace as he walks. Does he want to be homeless. He laughed and said, mam...why would anyone want to worry about freezing to death. As the temperatures drop below freezing, I remember Ms. Jesse, yes freezing to death for our homeless is a real possibility. Praying for our many homeless people who will go to sleep each night in fear of not waking up in the morning because they froze during the night.
Posted on: Wed, 07 Jan 2015 04:25:41 +0000
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