I have been blessed to know this helper for several years and now lucky enough to finally get to interview her about her many years of helping people on the Chicago streets. She has served in different sorts of helper roles… almost all of them on the casual and grass-roots side. She is not a social worker and not a nurse.
However, she has done more good than most professionals who are in their offices and meetings madly trying to get resources to people in need.
Paulette (her real name!) is out there among the citizens, actually sharing information about dozens of categories of goods and services.
In this piece, I am summarizing her responses to questions I have asked her recently—and over time—as we compare notes on the information we provide to homeless persons, persons traveling around, and people who ask for help.
A Christian, Paulette has God on her side—in fact works hand in hand with Jesus. She believes homeless people “are the image of God.”…..and the unhoused should be respected.
She feels there are many reasons a person can become homeless… difficulties with finances and taxes, complications due to an illness, or even a fire that has destroyed their home and made it difficult for them to get back indoors.
People should respect the homeless, she reminds us, because the homeless are human beings and may be facing challenges perhaps either hidden or in some cases hard to understand.
With a booming voice and a loud personality, Paulette tells it like it is. She has opinions because she has seen a lot. She knows how to find things, people say, and she knows the people who can help out when someone is in need.
Paulette reminds me always of all the resources out there—such as the clothing, laundry facilities, counseling, and hot coffee at Connections for the Homeless, a “drop-in” facility in Evanston serving Cook County residents (Shelter + Drop In | Connections for the Homeless | Evanston, IL - CONNECTIONS FOR THE HOMELESS (connect2home.org)).
Paulette is an expert on helping people with paperwork they need to complete in order to access important services and resources. She knows where the good food pantries are, with staff members and volunteers who are patient with—and decent to—the unroofed in Chicago. Respect! Always coming back to that word, Paulette reminds the world that the unroofed need help, encouragement, and advice.
Advice. Paulette has a lot of advice for unhoused folks and knows where they can get free or inexpensive clothing and other necessities. Safe and healthy food is needed each day, as are cans of coffee or soda and of course water. Paulette has advice on which pantries are reliable.
Pantries have different terms for the “order” homeless persons put in when they arrive. Pantries usually keep some items on hand that do not need to be cooked or prepped. For example, a burrito, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and a container of orange chicken and rice might be available to give to the homeless….
Some pantries use the term “ready to eat” or “no cooking” or “ready to take.”
Similar terms abound. The idea is that the unhoused person should be able to open a container and eat the food item. Juices, salads, and fruit such as bananas and apples complement the selections.
Not only does Paulette know the schedules and locations of food pantries, free clothing closets, and related resources, she knows the people.
Paulette knows an incredible number of pantry staff members. She knows many unhoused persons, people who help them, and the roster of typical items available from groups like “The Night Ministry” that travels around in vans and trucks with helpful items… hot soup, cold sandwiches, new socks, and cookies! (Get Assistance (thenightministry.org))
There are many different organizations out there—but Paulette recommends the one that “fits the individual best” because of their issues or difficulties or needs The Night Ministry has a range of services and programs—especially apt for young persons (About (thenightministry.org))
Paulette and I talk not just about resources and locations and staff but also about certain individuals. We exchange notes on people we know who need help. We agree to pray for those people and try to give them advice about xyz…
sometimes xzy being a topic they need to confront and solve but being a problematic one for them indeed.
We pray. And we pray for others…
Drinking, drugs, fighting, and stealing are all signs of other problems, we agree, and they are also the topic of many of our prayers as we see acquaintances of ours, all of whom “have something going on.”
We agree that simply putting a person in an apartment and slamming the door does not “solve the homeless problem” and not even for the person left sitting there in the dark.
Solving the homeless problem means not worrying about the blame of why people are homeless and not pointing the finger at who has to pay to help the unhoused person(s). What needs to be done is “rebuild” the person—in many cases.
Counseling, dollars, food, job training, connections, networks, and many other resources and supports are essential to help unroofed people become inside dwellers.
Since we are both believers and we both pray for others, it is easy for us to communicate in ways that some people cannot. When we see each other, our friendship continues… or starts up again, and we compare notes again.
Paulette is one of those people out there making a HUGE difference in the lives of many people. I envy her and her ability to help so many others. She knows an incredible number of folks on the street, where they have been, where they want to go, and usually what they need to get there.
I am blessed to know Paulette!