Hesed House

On December 19th, Christa, Carol, Debbie and I traveled to Hesed House to deliver the donations and money that was collected. None of us were fully prepared to see what we saw when we went there.

The first thing we saw when we began our tour of Hesed House was a room for women and children. There was one woman laying on the floor with her baby who was not even 1 year old laying on top of her taking a nap. There was a room with that housed books for the children. There are some lockers that families can lock up their most cherised possessions. Can you imagine having a locker to hold items that you cherish?!

The men sleep upstairs and they have cots (everyone sleeps on cots) that are no more than 6 inches away from their neighbor. Because there are more men that stay there than women and children, they have the largest room. The room can house about 160 men per night - and it's first come first serve for a cot. The men do not have lockers but rather a small cubby to store their items for the night.

There is a community room where there are tables and a TV to pass the time. When we walked through, the room was full of men, women and children watching TV, talking with each other, reading or just sitting quietly. This is not a usual scene, but because it was such a cold day, they were allowed to stay inside. Otherwise, they are to leave for the day - children to school and the adults to work (yes, many of them work but do not earn enough to be able to afford even Section 8 Housing), or whatever they want to do.

There is a transitional living facility where families live before they move to permanent housing. Each family has a dormitory type room. There are nearly 60 people who live in the transitional housing. They share a kitchen and a community room where there is 1 TV. There are tables where children can do their homework, read and play games. There is also an educational room where the adults are prepared for job interviews - many reminders on how to act and what to say. For instance, "remember to shower", "be honest about your skills".

There is a food pantry where families who live outside the shelter can come and get food for their families. They have a listing for the people who work and volunteer on how many bags can be given to each person who comes. The number of bags depends on how many people are in the family.

There is a small room that has shampoo, soap, laundry soap, toothpaste, mouthwash, toothbrushes, combs, etc. to be handed out to the people who stay there. Because some of the people who stay there don't have a concept on how much laundry detergent to use, the employees and volunteers have to disperse a small amount into a paper cup so that the washers don't overflow with suds.

Many of the people who stay there are battling mental health issues and dependency issues. They are not allowed to have illegal drugs or alcohol if they want to stay there. A few of the people who stay there have been there for many, many years. They are simply afraid to live in the real world and mix in with society. They feel safe at Hesed House.

In the back of the parking lot, there were a few cars that were run down, covered in snow and full of "stuff". It appeared that the cars belonged to people who stay at Hesed. Perhaps when it's not so cold or hot they live in their cars. One of the cars didn't have a passenger side window, but rather a plastic garbage bag duct taped to the car. The cars were packed with their belongings.

I could go on and on about the experience that day at Hesed House. I, for one, am guilty of being judgemental on homeless people. Why don't they get off their butts and get a job? What is so hard about that? How can they stand to live that way? Go work at McDonalds or Jewel! But it's not that easy for everyone. Some have mental health issues and can't get a job - many of them don't have social and people skills. Many of the people don't have families who love and care for them or are completely alone in this world. After this experience, I have learned to not be so quick to judge. I am more willing to help those that are less fortunate. Even if it's giving them a smile or a few dollars to get some food or a cup of warm hot chocolate or coffee on a cold day. We all can make a difference in this world.

We learned that we are truly blessed in our lives. We may think the world is coming to an end when our car has a flat tire, an appliance at home breaks, we're stuck in traffic on the way to work, a long line at the grocery store. We should be thankful that we have a car that works, be thankful that we have a warm shelter over our head, be thankful that we have a job to go to everyday, be thankful that we have money to buy groceries. Life could be so much worse.