What can shelters do or have that would make them safer, or make people actually wanna stay there?
I’ve never been homeless & I want to know what shelters can do right, or what they’re lacking.
(Alternative ask, what makes people feel *unsafe* at shelters? What should shelters avoid?)
i work in elementary education and have a 9 year old student who's been bouncing out of hotels and random people's places all year with his mom. his mom is an addict and has no license and seemingly no concern for her son. he shows up to school wearing dirty clothes every day, has shown up with bruises and human bite marks on him... i could keep going but it's not relevant with post, just some info on the child.
two or three months ago, he showed up to school with a fucked up finger. he claims it was closed on a car door. he got checked out by the nurse, and it fully healed within two weeks. but the kid ultimately needs a note from a doctor before he can start doing things like going to recess and gym again.
i feel very deeply about this and powerless in helping him. he acts like he doesn't care, but i know deep down i know he believes that there's no solution and therefore gives up. that's how he approaches pretty much everything in life. he doesn't know how to read or write, doesn't care to learn how to. doesn't care about anything. and that's because he's in survival mode.
i've never known his struggle, i grew up middle class. but i want to help. obviously i can't pull him out of homelessness myself, but i want to help with this specific situation of him getting a doctor's note. what exactly would be the best course of action for a 9 year old boy, who's seemingly fending for himself, no health insurance and no real means of transportation to get a doctor's note??? is this possible? sorry for my ignorance on this and i appreciate any advice given.
can anyone help me? me my veteran wife and her service dog are going to be homeless as of friday. any advice is appreciated
Federal Restoring Law and Order on America's Streets Act "bill defines a “person who is a danger to public safety” as someone who suffers from a serious mental illness, abnormality, or disorder resulting in serious difficulty refraining from conduct including: Crimes of violence. Burglary, robbery, or larceny. Public drug possession, use, sale, or distribution. Urban camping or urban squatting. Vandalism."
Victimless, petty activities such as a homeless person sleeping are non-violent. Caused by necessity, not mental illnesses. "Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution states: “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” Life sentence commitments for things that are sometimes legal is disproportionate. https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/articles/amendment-viii/clauses/103
"(9) 'urban camping' means using as a primary living accomodation (rather than transient recreation) any temporary outdoor shelter, including tents, tarps, bedding, or vehicle for sleeping or residing for a period exceeding 24 hours in a single location on public or private property not designated for recreational use, and (10) 'urban squatting' means using or occupying a vacant or abandoned building, structure, or land, without authorization" https://mace.house.gov/media/press-releases/rep-nancy-mace-introduces-bill-expand-civil-commitment-and-keep-dangerous
to sum it up, ever since i was little my dad has worked/lived in china and me, my mom and brother in another country. My mom never worked since my dad made enough and also never wanted my mom to work. My mom found out my dad was cheating on her and she tried to make it work but a few years later they got divorced. My parents got married and divorced in china so theres no legal requirement for my dad to pay the divorce settlement and so after they divorced my dad started cutting the money he was giving us which caused me to drop out of school at 14, apart from not going to school i lived fine for the next 2 years then when i was 16 my dad cut even more money and we couldn’t afford rent anymore. Technically ive been homeless for 2 years but At the time my mom still had some money so we were able to stay in airbnbs/hotels for a while but then she and my dad cut contact and ive been living in the airport for 6 months now.
My mom is Christian and believes God will supply us with enough money somehow and our life will suddenly be okay so she doesnt want to get help from others, but shes been saying that for months now so im kind of losing my faith and if i bring it up to her she just gets upset. the police know about my situation because i was arrested months ago for shoplifting food and told them everything, they referred me to a social worker and the social worker just recommended homeless shelters but the homeless shelters here suck which is why theres so many homeless people living in the airport. I was 17 at the time so i had no say as a minor and my mom denied the help anyways so that was that.
I dont have any irl friends to help me since i dropped out at 14 and ive lost contact with everyone. I have online friends and an online boyfriend the same age as me in the US who gives me money for food sometimes and my brother is in the army so i have enough money for food from that.
I cant get a job because it requires an address and since i dropped out of school at 14 i dont have any education degrees that will get me a job to make enough money, even if i did work it would just be enough for food, i mainly just want to find a way to move to the US permanently since i have many friends there, my bf is able to pay for my flight but other than that hes 18 too so I cant live with him/find a way to stay permanently. Everyday i just feel more and more hopeless and jt just feels like dying is the easiest solution
Sorry for the messy post i just trying to make sure i got all the info down so my situation makes sense…hopefully its understandable enough
I think some rehabilitation homes are like homeless shelters except for those addicted to drugs who are trying to get better. I know someone with alcohol use who got in. Yesterday I talked to someone who said he got into one even though he's not addicted to drugs at all. Has anyone tried to get into one of these? I wonder if that drug-free person lied about having a substance use disorder so that he could get housing.
Soon to be homeless. From Merced,CA. I'm thinking a bigger city like Sacramento might be "easier" (more options) to be homeless with the hope of digging myself out. Any advice is appreciated.
Wish I had some peanut butter right about now!
I live along a riverside. I enjoy walking that riverside. However we have some unhoused neighbors in that area. I usually walk with a little bell just so I don't surprise anyone. I make it a point not to take my cellphone out around their camps. I even reached out to the nearby homeless outreach and asked them to let anyone who lives there know that I mean no harm. Just wanna enjoy nature, watch birds, and get some exercise. I don't gawk, I don't interrupt their activities (even illegal ones, I have literally stepped over a girls needle she dropped cause it looked loaded and I didn't wanna fuck up her shit) and to be honest I don't give a fuck what they do back there. I don't want the camp torn down or reported. But I'm a fatty. And I need to walk. That walking is usually done along that riverside. In fact it's a perfect mile from my house to the abandoned tracks. Is there anything else I need to keep in mind? Is there anything else I can do so that they may eventually feel comfortable with my appearance? My dad has even dropped a tarp off to one of them years ago because he saw everyone else had one but them. I really do come in peace. Friend not foe. But how do I help them know that?
About a month and a half ago I ended up homeless and living in my car. I was in a good job and a home last October, but I chased what seemed like a promising sales job. That didn't pan out and I ended up losing almost everything.
I am also married, but my wife lives in Mexico and I'm trying to support her and immigrate her here as well, except now I have no place for her to come to.
I fear my car is going to get repossessed at any time because I bought it on credit when I thought the sales job was working great.
I don't know what to do. I feel like I just can't mentally handle anything anymore. I just wake up, drive to planet fitness and shower. Change out the stuff in my duffel bag at my storage unit. Go to work, sleep In my temporary car, rinse and repeat. I feel like I'm never going to get out of this loop and it's only going to get worse.
I think, at least I have a job, but even though it seems like it pays well, it doesn't pay enough to do anything with.
I'm in Albany, Oregon.
I'm just feeling lost and alone.
Hey guys, I’m a 16 M from Canada that was recently kicked out this afternoon. I have no clue on what to do so far and I’m extremely terrified. I’m sure my parents won’t accept me back in the household, my keys are gone all of my stuff has been thrown out the window. Everything destroyed. Lost my job a couple weeks ago and due to my parents abusive habits they have kicked me out. I have nothing but 50$ to my name and a dream I guess lol.
I need some advice on what I can do for now and help in anyway.
Much love.
Long story short, my ex broke up with me last fall and has moved to his own place, leaving me to the duplex unit we rented (he says he'll still help/pay rent, I believe him). The lease is up at the end of July, and I've been preparing to the best I can. I have almost almost everything that I won't need packed up in three large plastic totes/bins (40 gallon size). I've got my clean clothes in two bags (one is a mesh bag dedicated to hoodies... I'm a hoodie girl, lol), plus a cloth laundry bag to keep the dirties in. I've got one other bag dedicated to toiletries and needles for my diabetes medicine (I use insulin that comes in what looks like a marker, the needles are itty bitty). My stuff will go into a storage unit, I plan on getting a Planet Fitness membership primarily for showers (unless there's a better option), and a PO box closer to moving out. I'd work full time, but honestly, working 40-60 hour weeks just to be exhausted and even more broke at the end of the month isn't a life goal. One of my insulins is $800 every three weeks, and I can't afford to pay the deductible until health insurance starts paying that in full (I'm on government healthcare right now). So, yeah, burning myself out just to be exhausted on my time off and just as broke at the end of the month seems worse for my anxiety and depression. I lived that life once for years, it is exhausting. I have a car and a part-time job, so I'm not completely destitute. I am curious to know if I'm prepping right, what else I might not be thinking about, and if anyone can recommend an easy DIY for curtains in my lil 2-door car. But, dang, I feel like if my medications didn't cost more than local rent (every 3 weeks!), I'd be far better off.
So I'm not homeless, just trying to get out of a bad living situation. My mother is emotionally and physically abusive, and she has Bipolar. I didn't want to leave the house since I have a younger brother and a dog that's in her name, but I really can't handle this anymore. She's exploiting the fact that I can't drive and don't have a job, which she prevented me from learning how to do. I thought I could last two more years here to get my nursing license, but it's impossible to attend college and do all she requires of me. I'm making each meal, responsible for each room, responsible for acing my nursing prerequisites, and responsible for my own food. She recently got a metro card, and now won't drive me anywhere due to her wanting me to use it. She uses transportation against me a lot, making me do chores suddenly in the morning when she knows I have classes to attend. I have a friend who might take me, but she already has a difficult life. What do I do? I found a youth center, but I'm terrified of getting raped or murdered. I know I probably sound spoiled to the older people here, but I'm really scared.
Heya!! I know this is reddit but please be kind to me as I am young and trying to learn and seek advice - if you have nothing nice or effectively constructive to say please don't say it - ANYWAYS
I'm a 20 y/o looking to finally relocate from New Orleans, LA for VARIOUS reasons including the current homeless resources, job options and housing options, there's so many reasons as a young person why I feel so stuck and sort of unsafe.
I was born in Buffalo, NY, but don't know much about anything up there so I highly doubt that's a good choice but I'm genuinely wondering if there's any decent resources for someone who genuinely wants a chance at getting a decent job and working their ass off for an apartment or something.
I was not in foster care, I do not have any serious STIs like HIV/AIDS so certain vouchers I do not qualify for.
Thanks in advance redditors! And any recommendations preferred for east or west coast areas
I finally am getting somewhere with my spot. I don’t wanna have to move it. But these kids found it yesterday. They havent been brave enough to come inside of it or anything I just hear them talking about it while they walk around the outside. What should I do? I don’t wanna scare them but I also don’t want them to come inside. They mean no harm I know that but I’m just not sure how to handle it because they are kinda young and might not understand being homeless in such a way that would make them stay away from my camp. Idk. What to do?
If I get accepted into a domestic violence shelter with 9 month old , but there’s no custody order with me and the dad we have a spoken agreement,
will my daughter be allowed to leave the shelter for a few days to stay with him and then come back to the shelter with me ?
I’m her primary caregiver, again.. no custody order . but her dad can’t do anything right and we both know this . So she spends 5 days with me and 2.5 days with him
My daughter will not be in harm being around her father either I just don’t know how the process works。
I was displaced from my home due to mold toxicity 3+ weeks ago. I've been bouncing around Airbnbs paid for by my mom (she is struggling financially and still helps me, God bless her) but it's very expensive, and I keep running into Airbnbs that have mold. I'm incredibly sleep deprived from all that I've been through these last few weeks.
Weather is looking nice Friday onward. I live in Portland, Oregon. I'm thinking about finding a BLM spot just outside of town and setting up a tent for the run of good weather. But I'm afraid it will still be very cold, as I run cold even indoors. It will get really cold in my tent because I sleep on an air mattress when I camp. And I'm afraid that it will be scary to camp alone. I would love to take someone along for body heat and moral support. How could I even find someone?? Do I just find a really good sleeping bag to borrow and hope for the best? Maybe I could attend a few paid campsites just so I am near other humans. I really have no idea how to camp on my own. I'm looking at campsites on The Dyrt. I have my own vehicle which is a total mess right now but my supplies are crammed inside it. I have most of what I need, and I could even plan to just go into town when I need food. I need to go into town anyway, as my plan is just to keep being homeless/Airbnb until I find an affordable sublet or rental in Portland (most of which start May 1st).
I don't even want to be in Portland that badly because the mold is so bad in this city, but all my resources and healthcare are here, and it would just be easier to tie up loose ends here before traveling, I think.
I'm in over my head and would love any advice.
So basically, at the end of May, I'll be getting kicked out. At this point, who knows why. My home life is already hard, and my mom (grandma) kicking me out is really a blessing. My only true problems are that 1. she's the one over my trusts, and 2. I have no one else/nowhere else to go. I live in Houston, and I need advice for the Houston area specifically. At this point in time, this is my last resort.
It’s only day 6 this is gonna take some getting used to tbh
Hello I'm not homeless but I've talked to homeless people before and have a few friends that have been on the street. I was poor until 2 years ago but I'm in a better situation now and I want to help more. I do give some money to homeless people if I have any cash on me sometimes buy food but I want to do something more meaningful.
Do you guys have any tips of things that could be helpful?
Of course I know food and money are the most important things but are there things that most homeless people need that people who have never experienced it don't tend to think of ?
I'm sorry if there's already a post on this.