The Invisible Homeless
The Bay City (Michigan) Times
Monday, July 5, 2004
By Steve Neavling
Times Writer
Gary Koch doesn't sleep in a
cardboard box or beg for spare change.
But at 57, Koch has no place to call home.
Koch belongs to a largely invisible homeless population in
Bay County that meanders between friends' couches,
campgrounds, homeless shelters and ramshackle hotels. The
local homeless defy the stereotype of shabby panhandlers who
roam the streets in plain sight of the public.
Because they stroll unobserved, nonprofit agencies that serve
the homeless struggle to pin down the population and offer
assistance. But with local unemployment rising and an
increased demand for services, local experts believe hundreds
of children, adults and families live day-to-day without
knowing their nighttime destination or where to turn for
help.
"It looks like we have no homeless people, when in fact
we have a serious problem," said Erin Dunkle, community
services director for the American Red Cross in Bay City.
"The problem is not the people on the streets. It's not
the people living in cardboard boxes you see portrayed on
television. It's the families crowded into a trailer or 12
people living in a small house. It's the people who jump from
couch to couch."
The Cornerstone Mission in Bay City, the only homeless
shelter in Bay County, is packed with unemployed workers,
parents, children and people with disabilities. The 50-bed
shelter often exceeds capacity, prompting the staff to make
space in the living room or turn people away at the door.
In the communal kitchen last week, Koch spooned cereal into
his mouth. A father watched his son push a plastic toy across
the playroom. A few aging people passed time with crossword
puzzles or worn-out novels. Others flocked in and out on
their way to job interviews.
"These are people who are down on their luck," said
Dorothy Giffel, the shelter's executive director. "They
often come in on the verge of tears, saying they've never
been homeless before. They're scared to death."
Since the nonprofit shelter opened in 1993, Giffel said she
has housed more than 4,000 people, some who stay overnight,
others for years.
Spent dreams
The homeless shelter is often the last stop. Before Giffel
hears the knock at the door, most people shift between
friends' houses and cheap apartments.
Koch has experienced homelessness in one form or another for
the past three years. He doubled up with friends for more
than a year before coming to Cornerstone Mission.
Frail and unemployed, Koch talks like a man resigned to his
fate. He has few words for a hopeful future, but he can talk
all day about the past.
"You don't know who I am, do you?" asked Koch, his
gray-streaked black hair jutting from under a camouflage hat.
Koch played semi-professional hockey in the 1960s and '70s
and says he almost made it to the pros before his knees went
bad. Stung by the near stardom, he drifted across the country
for what seemed like a lifetime, picking up a variety of
low-paying jobs.
"Do you know how much money I made playing hockey?"
asked Koch, flashing a hard blue gaze. "All that money
is gone. I just went broke."
Since arriving at the shelter, Koch had a few fruitless job
interviews. He has settled for fishing cans and bottles from
garbage cans, pulling in $5 to $10 a day if he's lucky.
Times are tough
Agencies that work with the homeless say the main problem is
the county's stagnant economy, which for decades has trailed
job growth in the state and nation. Since 1997, 14 companies
in the county laid off 2,654 employees, according to the
Michigan Depart-ment of Labor and Economic Growth.
Without sufficient savings, many jobless people slip into
debt and lose their houses or apartments. Instead of taking
to the streets, they often double up in cramped apartments or
become "couch-jumpers," people who go from one
friend's house to the next.
"It's impossible to reach those people unless they make
you aware they are there," said Steve Rajewski, AFL-CIO
community services director for the United Way of Bay County.
"As an agency, we can't go out looking for homeless
people. When they come to us, we find they are sleeping on
couches."
Al, a 53-year-old bearded man who asked that his last name
not be used, abandoned his apartment after losing his factory
job in September. Until last month, he couch-jumped while
looking for work. Now he stays at the homeless shelter.
"I would stay at a friend's house for about a month, and
when I wore out my welcome, I'd go to another friend's
place," Al said. "I didn't want to impose. I
figured something would come around, but nothing ever did.
It's hard finding a job at 53 years old. There aren't many
jobs out there. Bay City is only so big."
Another refuge for the homeless are cheap hotels. Weekly
rates are more affordable for those who can't pay a security
deposit or commit to an apartment lease.
At the Empire House Motel on Washington Avenue in Bay City,
homeless people book rooms for $120 a week, often doubling up
to save money.
Jay Patel, owner of the motel, said he checks in as many as
five new homeless people a week.
Homeless coalition
In the mid-1990s, 26 agencies joined forces to combat the
elusive homeless population. The coalition, called the Bay
County Continuum of Care, meets monthly to talk about
reaching a larger population.
But the challenges are difficult to overcome. While the
agencies report record spending on the homeless - $830,000
last year - many believe only a speck of the population is
served.
Good Samaritan Rescue Mission, a nonprofit agency in Bay
City, hopes to reach more people by opening a 30-bed
emergency shelter later this summer for women and children at
the former Samaritan Hospital, 713 Ninth St. If the demand
for shelter remains strong, the agency may offer more beds
and extend the service to men.
The shelter's population will be referred to agencies that
provide counseling and job services - the beginning steps to
getting people back on their feet, said Lynda Soper,
associate director of Good Samaritan Rescue Mission.
But a long-term solution is a difficult task, state and local
agencies say. For those who get jobs, finding affordable
housing is daunting.
Housing experts say low-income people who pay more than 30
percent of their income on rent or mortgages can't afford
other necessities - food, health care, utilities.
In Bay County, 34 percent of renters pay more than a third of
their income on housing, according to the U.S. Census.
"At the heart of the problem is the challenge of
creating and sustaining sufficient housing units that are
affordable to people based on their income," said Chuck
Kieffer, homeless programs coordinator for the Michigan State
Housing Development Authority. "We have a discrepancy
between the realities of what people earn and the reality of
what it takes for people to meet basic needs."
© 2004 Bay City Times. Used with permission
http://www.mlive.com/bctimes/