by brilliq

Created on: December 16, 2008

I do not believe that there is any one comprehensive answer to the problem of homelessness, I do, however, believe that there are things that the homeless can do to change the way that they are perceived by other people in the community.

First, no one is really homeless. They may not have a roof over their heads or a fixed address, but they are still part of the community in which they find themselves. By making themselves a contributing part of that community they can go a long way toward ending the stigma of homelessness. This is not conjecture but a tested hypothesis.

I head a group in Madera, California, called Homeless Helping the Community (HHtC). We are a group of homeless, and formerly homeless people, who believe that in order to help ourselves overcome homelessness we must outreach to the greater community in which we find ourselves. Toward that end we have undertaken many projects here in Madera to improve the community in small but meaningful ways

For instance: We were instrumental, along with members of the Board of Supervisors, in proposing and accomplishing a clean-up of the Fresno river bed. Over 70 homeless people joined with non-homeless in cleaning a two mile stretch of the dry riverbed her in Madera. In addition, HHtC, with the help of the homeless, sponsored a canned food drive in which we raised over 12,000 pounds of food which we then gave to programs that fed the homeless and migrant workers here in Madera.

In addition, HHtC members took part in The Relay For Life, a 24-hour walkathon to help raise money for the American Cancer Society. Male HHtC members also helped to raise money to fight domestic abuse and child abuse through an event called Walk-a-Mile-in-Her-Shoes, by walking around and around the local courthouse in women's high heels. HHtC sponsored, with the help and co-operation of the Health Department, TB testing and flu shots, reaching populations such as the homeless and migrant workers who might not otherwise have taken advantage of opportunities for those services. We also sponsored a cervical cancer workshop, again targeting the homeless and migrant populations who probably would not have availed themselves of this service otherwise.

We also did an Adopt-a-Park program, where we walked through and cleaned a local park and lagoon every two weeks. This was particularly gratifying because it was often the homeless who were blamed, unjustly, for the trash in the park.

Because of these, and other projects as well, which were

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