If you were homeless, would you want someone to help you?
For example buy you food and give you clothes. Or even a simple hug and a “God bless you.”
It takes three simple words to make a person’s day.
All around Stockton, we witness homeless people starving, not having housing or not enough clothes on their bodies and other horrible situations.
As of 2015 there were 515 adults and 26 children unsheltered in our San Joaquin County, according to that year’s Point-in-Time Unsheltered Homeless Count Report.
The numbers were the highest of previous years, according to the report.
For that reason there needs to be a change in attitude and the way we treat these people.
That’s exactly what they are. The homeless are people.
“I think there is not enough shelters for them to live in,” said Martene Cruz, a Delta student.
As of 2016 the Stockton Shelter for the Homeless has served 2,063 people total. There were 1,353 volunteers and 44,241 volunteer hours as stated in last years Stockton’s shelter statistics.
Things can be done to help.
“Many have asked people for money to buy alcohol or drugs so I would just give them food instead,” she said.
Cruz said if she was homeless she would ask for an umbrella if it was raining but she wouldn’t ask for much else because she would want people to act from their heart.
It seems as if we hardly ever use our hearts to act upon. I blame what the world has turned into. A simple act of kindness sometimes is not acknowledged as much as it should. Our world is rotting away and our attitudes towards each and every being is rotting too.
Dontee Good, also a student, had a different view.
“Just to look at them as a normal person unless they act crazy,” he suggested.
This is a good way to look at them, however, is this really how our community and society think of them? Do we think of them as normal when they’re living on the streets, with no clothes, very little food and no toilet or bath tub.
Good said he would just walk past them.
“Honestly, I understand the reason why they might be homeless but I would give them spare change if I had any to the ones I knew that would use it for a good reason,” he said.
When I see a homeless person I buy them food and give it to them. Even if I spend my money that was supposed to be for food for myself.
At the end of the day I have food in my fridge but that person doesn’t and therefore they need it more than I do.
I give them clothes, spare change and leftover food.
I shake their dirty hands and hug them. I talk to them about their day. These people need it more than I do.
Many have focused on getting rid of the problem about the homeless but do you really think that kicking them out of where they stay will solve the problem? They will just relocate to a different location.
The first step on helping the homeless is changing our attitude when we see them or when they approach us.