Archive for the 'Columns' Category

By Francisco Luis Gonzalez

Is “homelessness” the right term to use for being without a place to live?  Perhaps it should be “shelterlessness”, or “bedlessness” or “rooflessness”. Having no home implies a loss greater than a mere place to live. But let’s not tinker with the word, because, after all, it is the right word —it just needs to be understood: sometimes words, out of common usage, lose the poignancy of meaning. What is a home then? Is it the place where one feels safe, reflects on the memories of the past, and grieves its loss when it is lost?  But for many, such a home never existed; it cannot be lost because it was never found.  One can have a place to live and yet be internally homeless. Many search all their lives for the “dream”—while others grieve its loss when it was theirs for a short season: a happy childhood marred by tragedy or altered by a multitude of other factors which destroyed its hope.

A home then can be a tent, a cardboard box, or the inside of a culvert.  What is needed is to feel safe, to have the liberty to dream, and to be surrounded by friends (sometimes friends are closer than family). Ending homelessness may be commonly associated with acquiring houses or apartments, but it really has to do with healing the emotional wounds that somehow, in the downward spiral of society, poverty and materialism afflict us. Take a lesson from the birds. They build comfortable nests, but if there is too much human interference they will abandon them! A home is much more than a place to ruffle feathers­—home is where our dreams are.

By Jim Gillen

In the land of recovery, as in life, change is inevitable. Sometimes 
change is hard, scary, the unknown. Even worse, the projection of 
change, of the future can drive one up the wall. 
When folks come up to the door of recovery, whatever brings them to that 
door, the fear of change, of a monumental, seemingly impossible hill to 
climb can be quite daunting. 
When I think back, since childhood I was putting a huge amount of effort into 
taking the “easy” way out, or so it seemed. 
It always seems to come back to fear. Projection of a future not yet 
here, is just that … well it’s not here, yet Fear plays a big role.

We think, “How am I going to fix this, get that done? Why can’t it be how 
it was?” It is hard but familiar. And that can keep us stuck in 
neutral… or reverse! 
Life is funny that way…change happens. I’ve found that the best way to 
face change is to go with it. 
What’s any of this got to do with recovery? It’s all recovery. It’s a way 
of life. It’s change.

Hello: Over the past year, my life has seen some changes. Good ones to 
be sure, just different. As I write this, I am waiting for my third 
grandchild to be born, most any day now. One will be a year old in 
August and one born in April… 
What will this new one be like? We know the gender and the name. But 
what will he be like? How will he feel about change? Hmmm, I wonder. Continue reading ‘Hello, I Must Be Going’

By Kristen Sherman Esq.

The House and the Senate recently passed companion bills that would enable more convicted criminals to get their records sealed through a process known as expungement. Current Rhode Island law allows judges to permanently seal from public view the record of nonviolent crimes by first offenders.

Eligibility for expungement varies depending on one’s criminal record. One convicted of a misdemeanor is eligible for expungement five years after completion of his sentence, while one convicted of a felony must wait 10 years after the completion of his sentence to apply for expungement. Continue reading ‘New Revisions to Rhode Island Expungement Rules Become Law’

By Jim Gillen

It’s a funny thing; perhaps as I am getting older, I tend to look back on songs to where I can trace certain “eras” of my life. The younger generation equates the above title with Coors Lite as the theme song! Lately, I’ve been hitting some of the funky trails, musically speaking that is. And “Love Train” has been jumping out.

When I look at the premise of Recovery, it’s based on love and understanding, joining hands, regardless of background etc. You know, a Love Train I have been running around preparing for National Recovery Month (September), with an emphasis on our State Rally For Recovery Event on Saturday, September 11, 2010. It will be held in downtown Providence, at Roger Williams National Memorial on North Main Street. And it has been a lot of fun. Very energizing. Very warm fuzzy and Love Trainny!! Continue reading ‘People All Over the World Join Hands’

Horizons for Homeless Children is excited to announce our 5th Young Children Without Homes National Conference to be held June 15th, at the Hogan Center at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts.  The conference, which will once again focus on the needs of young homeless children and their families, is a unique opportunity to raise national awareness about family homelessness and share local and national strategies for serving young children and families experiencing homelessness. Continue reading ‘Horizons for Homeless Children to Hold Conference in June’

By Joseph Perry

There’s no privacy. You are nearly strip searched every time you enter the shelter. When I first entered the shelter you were not allowed to bring in food.  You had to be up at 6:00 am, leave the building at 7:00 am and find some crappy breakfast. The staff stole from the constituents like there was no tomorrow and would get away with it.  Even if the constituents had some type of income, the staff wanted to control all of your affairs.  They’d tell clients that the money was being saved so that when they did find a place to move, they’d have moving expenses and money to help pay their security and rent.  However, when clients would find a place of their own, all of a sudden the funds they felt were saved didn’t match what was returned to them; or the staff would have some excuse as to why they couldn’t return the money.  Continue reading ‘Living in the shelter’

By Catherine Rhodes

The Providence Career and Technical Academy, a new vocation high school which opened in September, 2009, was the stage for Mayor David Cicilline’s State of the City Address. The Mayor opened his address at 7pm on Tuesday, February 2, 2010, to a full auditorium of attendees. Continue reading ‘Mayor Pledges Family Service Centers at the State Of The City Address’

By Kristen Sherman

New bills have been introduced into the Rhode Island House and Senate that would expand police monitoring and reporting of “hate crimes” to include offenses against those who are homeless or perceived to be homeless. Under state law, the state police already monitor “hate crimes” that include “threatened, attempted, or completed acts that appear after investigation to have been motivated by racial, religious, ethnic, sexual orientation, as well as by gender or disability prejudice.” The records track the crimes by matters such as community in which the crime occurs, type of offense, and the target of the offense. If the proposed legislation passes, the monitoring system would also track crimes “motivated by prejudice against a person who is homeless or perceived to be homeless.” Continue reading ‘A Step In The Right Direction: Amending State Police Monitoring Laws To Include Hate Crimes Against The Homeless’