Paying it Forward

by Dr. Chad Audi

Recently, while reading a newspaper column about the importance of paying it forward, I was reminded of the following Bible verse:  “Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and He will repay him for his deed.”  – Proverbs, 19:17

This verse is particularly meaningful at this time of the year. As families celebrate Christmas with gifts and food and welcome in the New Year with parties, it is important that we do not forget those who are less fortunate.

When you give to non-profit agencies that assist the homeless, hungry, unemployed and disadvantaged — like the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM) — you enable us to share the hope and love of God with those who need to know that all is not lost. The number of people turning to us for help has risen to an all-time high. Imagine if the same situation is occurring at rescue missions and shelters in cities across the country! We cannot imagine having to turn away frightened mothers and children or hungry seniors or men lost in their addictions. These are the people in need of real help and real hope this holiday season.

DRMM is thankful for faithful friends and supporters whose hearts are full of compassion for the poor. Their gifts can mean the difference between a homeless man shivering on the streets or being able to eat dinner and sleep in our heated shelter. When you help those in need, you will reap the rewards of knowing that you have made a tremendous difference in someone’s life. This scripture from the Book of Proverbs says that giving to the poor is like lending to God Himself, and He will reimburse those who honor those created in His image.

That is a pretty powerful metaphor, isn’t it?  Are you paying forward your good fortune to help others? When you’re making your New Year’s resolutions on how to increase your finances in 2014, one of the best investment decisions you can make is to help the poor. Because God pays back with interest and blessings.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Dr. Chad Audi

Detroit’s Homeless Population

by Dr. Chad Audi

Detroit recently made history when its state-appointed emergency manager filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection, making it the largest city ever to file for bankruptcy. As Detroit works through this historic financial crisis, we also continue to attack homelessness in the city that I call home.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development just released its “Point-in-Time Count” of the nation’s homeless. The numbers are based on a count made by volunteers who fanned out across the country on a single night in January of this year.
The federal tally indicates the number of homeless in Detroit dropped less than 1-percent from the last count in 2010. The news was much better for the state of Michigan, which recorded an 11.7-percent drop. And, the entire nation saw the number of homeless drop 6.1-percent over the past three years.

On the surface, Detroit’s financial challenges can help explain why the needle barely moved on the number of homeless in the city. The unemployment rate is still high. In some cases, people are working but they’re not making enough money to maintain a home, pay for utilities, and put food on the table every night. And others have been on the streets and in an addiction for so long that they do not have the ability to turn their lives around without receiving significant supportive services.

Here at the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM), we understand that we must help the whole person when he or she comes to our doors. It’s not enough to provide the homeless with emergency shelter, food and clothing. We must ease them into transitional and permanent housing, so they can learn how to maintain a household. And, we must address the issues that are keeping them from becoming productive, tax-paying citizens. That’s why DRMM offers substance abuse treatment, education, jobs training, and skills building that will help our clients qualify for jobs or pursue their dream career.

It’s difficult to determine the accuracy of the federal government’s homeless numbers, since the point-in-time count is primarily limited to the homeless who are visible in the streets, parks, and shelters. What about those who may have found a temporary place to sleep that night or who may have been trying to stay warm in an abandoned house?

However, one thing is for sure; Detroit, the state of Michigan, and the nation will need financial support if we are to meet President Obama’s goal of eliminating homelessness by the end of 2020. Currently, congressional budget cuts are reducing the amount of funds that agencies like DRMM receive to address homelessness. A 5-percent cut in aid to emergency housing and shelter programs is scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2014.

Let’s encourage Congress to reverse that budget cut, so that our progress on ending homelessness is not reversed.

Obamacare’s Impact on the Homeless

by Dr. Chad Audi

Thank goodness the federal government is back up and running after a 16-day shutdown. At issue was the implementation of President Obama’s new healthcare law, the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. Tea Party Republicans were intent on not funding the government, unless Democrats agreed to delay the start of the healthcare act. The standoff ended with Obamacare intact.

Now the President has turned his attention to ensuring that all Americans have access to quality, affordable health insurance. The new law strives to lower healthcare costs, and it gives states the option to expand Medicaid coverage to all eligible people with earnings less than 133 percent of the Federal Poverty Level.

So, what impact will the Affordable Care Act have on the nation’s homeless? Will it help prevent homelessness? According to the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, the new healthcare law will benefit the homeless by making health insurance accessible and affordable; providing preventative, wellness and behavioral healthcare services; and focusing on the whole person’s health needs by partnering with community-based organizations.

The Affordable Care Act is welcome news for the nation’s homeless. Especially for the growing number of children without healthcare coverage who must suffer through worsening health issues, a lack of immunizations, and crisis visits to hospital emergency rooms. Here in the Detroit-area, there are an estimated 550,000 individuals without health insurance. As many as 100,000 of them are children ages 10 and under.

Since 2008, the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM) has operated the non-profit S.A.Y. Detroit Family Health Clinic in partnership with S.A.Y. Detroit, the charity founded by journalist and best-selling author Mitch Albom. The clinic provides free maintenance and preventative healthcare services for uninsured and homeless children and their mothers.

At DRMM, we also provide medical care for the thousands of homeless individuals and families who are unemployed, uninsured or underinsured, and living in poverty. Often, their medical conditions have worsened due to the stress and challenges of being homeless. As a result, many homeless individuals only receive healthcare during emergency room visits. Preventative care is nonexistent.

Others are in desperate need of kicking an addiction that has dragged them into homelessness. Each year, DRMM provides in-patient substance abuse treatment and detoxification services to an estimated 1,700 uninsured men and women.

And, in some cases, pre-existing, serious health issues can contribute to a person’s homelessness. The illness and the inability to pay expensive medical bills can lead to a downward spiral that leaves the individual bankrupt, jobless and uninsured.
Treating a homeless person’s medical challenges is a first step toward rebuilding his or her life and giving them a chance at a healthier tomorrow.

State of Homelessness

By Dr. Chad Audi

A new report on the State of Homelessness in America 2011 shows the nation’s recession is continuing to have an impact on the number of people who have nowhere to call home. According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, there was a three percent increase in the country’s homeless population from 2008 to 2009. Hardest hit were families, and the main economic reasons stemmed from unemployment, foreclosure, income, and the burden of housing costs. The report also investigated the demographic drivers of homelessness. Among them are aging out of foster care, release from incarceration, doubled up living situations, and lack of insurance.

Here at the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM), we too have seen an increase in the number of families seeking shelter, food and other human services. Overall, the demand for our services has risen thirty percent. We also understand the challenges faced by men and women who leave the prison system after several years and are suddenly confronted with a transformed society. Often they are released with no housing, transportation or jobs. That’s why we work with the Michigan Prisoner Reentry Initiative (MPRI) to help newly-released prisoners transition back to the community. DRMM services begin before the prisoners are discharged. Our staff visits with them at the jails and prisons to work out a transition plan. We match up many of the former prisoners with church mentors to provide spiritual nourishment. Those who are homeless receive shelter and transitional housing at our facilities. And they are placed in transitional jobs and job training.

DRMM is doing the best we can to address the needs of the whole individual in order to bring lasting change. And without a doubt, preventing homelessness is a key component in America’s economic recovery.

The Man with the Golden Voice

By Dr. Chad Audi

By now, you’ve probably heard about the man in Ohio dubbed as the “homeless man with the golden voice.” Fifty-three-year-old Ted Williams had been homeless for a decade due to drug and alcohol problems. Today, he is two years sober, but has not been able to break out of the cycle of homelessness. That is until a Columbus Dispatch cameraman videotaped Ted speaking in his radio voice as he begged for money on an Ohio highway, holding a sign that touted his “radio voice” as a God-given talent. In fact, Ted had worked in broadcasting prior to his downfall. The video went viral on YouTube, getting more than 11 million hits.

As a result, job offers began pouring in to Ted. During an appearance on NBC’s Today Show, he told how thankful he was to be getting a second chance. But most of all, he exclaimed that his life will be different now, because “This time I have God.” He was also reunited with his 90-year-old mother after a decade long separation.

Ted’s amazing story is but one example of the personal stories that flourish among this nation’s homeless population. As President & CEO of the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM), I see extraordinary talent of all sorts in the people who come through our programs. There are musicians, singers, writers, artists, and much more among our clients. In most cases, they possessed the talent, but they got diverted on the wrong path in life. That’s why it is important to DRMM to embrace the talents of the homeless and disadvantaged and provide them with the educational and vocational skills needed to secure jobs and escape poverty permanently.

As Ted Williams’ story illustrates, everyone deserves another chance to live life as a productive and honorable human being, just as God would have us to do.

Cold Weather Survival

By Dr. Chad Audi

In many parts of the country, like here in Detroit, snow has started to fall. The extended weather forecast calls for temperatures hovering around the freezing mark. It is December, so we expect as much. But while many of us can dial up the heat in our homes or start a fire in the fireplace to keep warm, there are hundreds of thousands of people across the U.S. who dread this time of the year. They are homeless men, women and children who are living on the cold streets.

This is the busiest time of the year for the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM) and other agencies like ours. Not only because of the cold weather that drives the homeless to look for shelter and a warm meal, but also because of the holiday season. Everyone deserves to experience the joys of the holidays with good food, gifts and warm gatherings.

A recent newspaper story in Detroit focused on a college student who has designed and created three prototypes of a combination coat and bed roll made of Tyvek HomeWrap insulation and flexible, synthetic fleece. The student’s hope is that the coat will save thousands of homeless people’s lives by protecting them from dangerous, cold temperatures. Interesting? Yes. While certainly no one wants to encourage the homeless to stay on the streets, we do realize there are some people who do not want to come to shelters and abide by the human services organization’s rules.

However, these days, the number of people seeking shelter from the cold is rising. All it takes is the loss of a job or a home to send a person’s life into a tailspin. Or perhaps a tragedy, such as a home that has burned to the ground. And sometimes it’s because of an alcohol or drug addiction that hasn’t been treated.

Whatever the circumstances that lead to homelessness, it can be difficult to find a bed in shelters during this time of the year, because many places are overcrowded. At DRMM, we don’t turn anyone away. But it’s difficult when you don’t have the space and resources to service everyone who needs help. Keep these agencies and the homeless in your prayers and thoughts as we go through the winter season.

Homeless for the Holidays

By Dr. Chad Audi

Now that Halloween has passed, many people are getting into a “holiday state of mind.” Christmas lights and decorations are already erected in some neighborhoods and retail stores have their holiday merchandise on display. You may be starting to plan your holiday meals and parties. And you may be starting to panic, realizing we only have a few weeks before Thanksgiving arrives and less than two months until Christmas.

Time is also running out for agencies like mine — the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM) — that desperately need donations and resources to make the holidays brighter for the homeless and disadvantaged. Can you believe that we will serve more than 300,000 hearty meals this season to people in the Detroit area? When you multiply that number by all of the rescue missions, shelters and soup kitchens across the country, you get an astounding number of meals that are prepared for the nation’s needy during the holidays. And we all need your support and generosity.

Those in need could be your neighbors. They could be your relatives. And they could be your colleagues and friends. Hunger and homelessness know no boundaries. Anyone can be impacted by a bad economy, unemployment, home foreclosures, and broken marriages.

As you go about planning your holiday celebrations over the coming weeks, please keep these individuals and families in your thoughts and prayers. Holidays are a lonely time for the homeless and hopeless. That’s why DRMM and other agencies do whatever it takes to give them great Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners and a home for the holidays.

Homeless Families on the Rise

By Dr. Chad Audi

Recently, I wrote about the U.S. government’s new comprehensive plan to end homelessness among veterans, children, youth and families. Now comes word from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that the number of families staying in homeless shelters increased by nearly 40,000 from 2007 to 2009. The total number of homeless families — identified in the report as at least one adult and one minor child — stood at about 170,000 last year. And unfortunately, it looks like the numbers will continue to grow this year.

A sinking economy resulting in long-term unemployment and foreclosures is primarily to blame. At the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM), we have seen a 30 percent increase in requests for our services this year. We’ve provided emergency shelter to nearly 3,200 individuals over the past year, treated more than 900 men and women for substance abuse, and placed almost 680 homeless people in transitional housing. In all, DRMM impacted the lives of 5,508 people through our programs this year. And the year’s not over yet.

It’s particularly heartbreaking to see children affected by homelessness. They are innocent and have no say in their families’ financial situation. DRMM provides housing for teen mothers and their children, as well as substance abuse treatment for women with children. We have preventative activities for kids, including a summer camp, aimed at keeping them from going down a path that could lead to homelessness in the future.

Last year, the federal government made $1.5 billion available to states through the Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program. The funds are being used to help keep families in their homes or to get them back in one quickly if they lose their house. The Obama administration’s new homeless strategy, “Opening Doors,” outlines collaborations between federal, state and local agencies to end homelessness among families by 2020. We’ll all need to work together to make this a reality.

A Tent City in 2009

By Dr. Chad Audi

In a recent blog, I mentioned the “tent city” in Sacramento, which has come to represent a particularly disturbing reality of our depressed economy. At last count, about 150 homeless people have set up tents along the banks of the American River. Now comes word that California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is pledging to find state money to help Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson close the tent city and relocate the homeless to an expanded shelter on the state’s fairgrounds and to other local shelters and longer-term housing units. The cost to close the encampment by the end of April: $1 million.

Of course, the biggest concern among local and state officials is to make sure the homeless tent dwellers are moved to a safer, healthier environment where they have access to hot meals, fresh water and vital services. The tent city is being looked at as a new “symbol” of homelessness. It garnered even more national and international attention when Oprah Winfrey recently broadcast a segment about the encampment. Media from around the world converged on the tent city with cameras in tow. Many of the homeless did not understand what made their habitat such a “spectacle.” And believe it or not, some of the tent dwellers are reluctant to leave because they fear what type of environment they will be placed in, the rules they will have to follow, and what will happen after the fairgrounds shelter shuts down at the end of June.

This situation in California greatly illustrates the critical need for a permanent solution to homelessness. It is a chronic problem, further exacerbated by growing job layoffs and record home foreclosures. People are being pushed to the brink, finding themselves in situations they never imagined. At the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries (DRMM), we are focusing on this expanded makeup of the homeless population and how we can set things in motion for their futures by offering a more permanent solution. We cannot look away and pretend homelessness is not on the rise. Desperate times call for desperate measures.

President Obama Helps the Homeless

By Dr. Chad Audi

President Barack Obama’s administration has already made moves to help the nation’s homeless. Last month, the President awarded nearly $1.6 billion in homeless grants to thousands of local housing and service programs across the nation. The funds, administered through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Continuum of Care programs, will help hundreds of thousands of homeless individuals and families find stable homes and much-needed services. An additional $1.5 billion in funding has been earmarked for homeless prevention as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which was signed into law by President Obama.

During a time of record home foreclosures and unemployment, this assistance could not have come at a more critical time. It’s estimated about 6,300 projects that assist the homeless will benefit from the HUD grants. Here in Michigan, we have been hit harder economically than most other states. With an 11.6% unemployment rate, many families in our state are losing dual incomes and facing homelessness. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 offers quick housing assistance to those dealing with a sudden economic crisis — especially families with children. The recovery plan includes short-term rental assistance, housing relocation, or security and utility deposits. A pilot program to rapidly re-house homeless families will be created in the Kalamazoo County/Portage area.

Specifically, the HUD homeless grants will be awarded to programs that target:

• Chronic homelessness
• Permanent housing solutions
• Families with children
• Homeless veterans
• Housing and support services for severely mentally ill clients
• Homeless individuals with substance abuse problems

This encouraging news of additional homeless funding from the Obama administration comes as we watch in amazement as a “Tent City” takes shape in Sacramento, California. The pictures are unbelievable. So are the numbers. Each week, 20 to 50 people are setting up tents along Sacramento’s American River Parkway. They are people who have lost their homes and jobs and have no where else to go. What a sad sign of the times. I’ll write more about this later.