Street roots
Dec. 9,2011
Cobra Pose
Power shut-offs loom as winter approaches
Spine elongates
Tension releases
Hips off the ground
Arms strong
Head upright
Looking forward
This is just what it is
A new being emerges
Stripped of outward burdens
Engaged with the world
But detached
Free
Not tame
Not contained
Not surfaced with slick veneer
D esert varnish
Not covered by thick crust
What shall take root?
Exposed
Vulnerable
Trusting absolutely
Being
Love
Care
me.
F R O M 2 1 1 1NFO
By Debra Knauf
Last season,
f you sit in the 211info call center it
won’t be long before you hear from
someone that needs help paying their
utility bill. Some people call before their
shut off notices pile up. But many are
calling as a last ditch effort These days,
energy assistance funds disappear as soon
as word drops that local nonprofits have
money to distribute.
A porous safety net is leaving too many
people behind. And as the months turn
freezing cold, candle light isn’t enough for
struggling families. One such 211 caller
represents thousands of local residents who
will have their power shut off this winter
with nowhere to go. Names and certain
indentifying information have been removed
to protect the privacy of the caller.
I
211 « i f e ^
million in
Low-Income
Home Energy Assistance Program funds.
This year, the state received $22.5 million.
211 info received more than 9,000 calls for
utility assistance last fiscal year (June
2010-July 2011) in Multnomah County
alone. It received more than 12,000 in the
tri-county metro area.
power turned back on?”
Caller: “I have to pay my rent or else I
won’t have anywhere to sleep. I use my
disability payment for rent; I get food
stamps to pay for food. I had to pay in
advance to see a dentist last month, and I
just don’t have any money to pay for
anything else. I don’t have cable TV.”
Caller: “My power was shut off
yesterday. I called you this morning. You
said there were three agencies that had
funding for energy assistance, but when I
called them they were already out of money.
What should I do now? It’s really cold.”
211info specialist: “Do you have a
caseworker at the Aging and Disabilities
office?”
211info specialist: “Is there a way that
you could take money away from other bills,
like maybe your cable bill or a medical
payment, so that you could pay to get the
Caller: “Yes, but she said she can’t help
211info specialist: “Do you have any
family or friends who might be able to assist
you temporarily?”
Caller, crying: “No.”
211info specialist: “Are you part of a
faith community that you could turn to for
help?” :
Caller, crying h ard e r: “No. What am I
going to do?”
211info specialist: “One option would
be to go to the Women’s Winter Warming
Shelter so you could be warm at n ig h t”
Caller: “I am not homeless! I just need
h e a t and I don’t want to go to a shelter. I’m
disabled, and I don’t even know how I would
get there.”
211info specialist: “I don’t have any
other suggestions for ways to get your
utilities turned back on today. I hope you
stay in touch, so if other resources become
available you can try them. It sounds like
you have a lot going on right now, and I’d
like to get you over to someone who can
talk about your feelings about your situation.
I could transfer you there right now.”
A Helping Hand
On my swing
by N. Page
Maybe if I turn round and round
on my swing
Round and round again
Like I did before
Beneath the widest maple tree
in all the world
On my wooden swing
With the cotton rope
spinning a beautiful braid
Above my head
If I turn round and round again
With a sea of leaves beneath me
And round once again
Maybe I’ll be nine again
I could see my big cat, Mac
And I could see my mom
And maybe even my dad
And if I go round and round again
I might see you there too
again. He was so afraid of the outside world
n March 2007, a man donated his time to
tiie Macdonald Center; he was five days . that he didn’t know what else to do. Then he
remembered the letter he carried with him,
fresh from prison and was ready to go
back because the system doesn’t train its , being the man of his word he took the letter
to the Macdonald Center. Walking back and
inmates how to live on the streets. They give
I
them a few worthl^ssdastaeR On how toffll
forth-ire-frpnt of th e btrildmg, afraid to go inr~
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won’t buy you a cup of coffee.
This particular convict was sent to the
release center where they warehouse
inmates until their release dates come up.
Certainly, you’ll find those inmates who
speak fondly of the center, but chances are
they want to make points with the
superintendent or they have one of tiie few
jobs the system offers and they’d like to keep
it
Not to lose track of this convict, he did his
time (a total of 18 years), he was a two-time
loser. After five days he was ready to go back
to prison because it was the only life he
knew. While eating lunch at the center’s
cafeteria, another inmate gave him a sealed
letter with instructions to take it to the
Macdonald Center and give it to Marylee
King (the director of the center). Being the
convict he was, he didn’t look at the sealed
letter; it wasn’t addressed to him. This was
March 5, 2007, and to this day, Marylee is
the only person who knows what was written
in that letter. The convict’s name is Donald
(aka: Chewbaka).
Days after his release, Donald was on his
way to the parole officer to be locked up
he tmally gained the nerve to go to the tront
desk and gave the letter to the man who sat
behind the desk with instructions that it be
given to Marylee. He was instructed to have
a seat in the lobby while they took the letter
to the back room; he sat there like he was
waiting to see the parole board.
About 15 minutes later, Marylee came out
and introduced herself to Donald, inviting
him back to have a cup of coffee and some
conversation. Noticing he was cold she asked
if he would like a jacket Without a doubt, he
accepted and they dove into talking for the
next 45 minutes. Nothing real important was
said; she invited Donald back the next day
where they spent a long time in conversation
and coffee. She noticed all be had to his
name was a plastic coffee cup, two shots of
coffee and a few bags of Top Ramen soup.
One thing led to the next and the two
became fast friends. She let him help around
the Center as a way to pay her back for
befriending him, and she became a very
important person in his life. Donald became
a full-time volunteer for the Macdonald
Center and eventually the residence as well,
doing various jobs that ranged from
hospitality, bouncer, janitor and even the
good, local, food.
ALBERTA
COOPERATIVE
GROCERY
1500 NE Alberta St.
Portland, OR 97211
503.287.4333
w ww .albertagrocery.coop
open to everyone 9 -1 0 daily
gardener.
After two and a half years, Donald moved
over to the Macdonald Center Independent
Living Services office where we volunteered
for more than two years before he had to
convict turning his life around to become a
productive member of society, but about
someone who the Macdonald Center held
out their hand to when it was needed the
most. They took someone who society cast
away and made him the man he is today, a
proud man, a man who can walk down the
street and look you straight in the eye and
say, “Good morning!” and mean it. A man
who helps an older person and expects
nothing in return; a man who works with the
low-income and homeless.
About a year ago, an article came out in
Street Rooty about the Macdonald Center
buying the West Hotel and evicting the
tenants without help. I am that convict, and I
also lived in the W est The Macdonald
Center not only paid my first and last
month’s rent, they also paid the deposit arid
found me the place I live in now. I wasn’t the
only one who received their assistance;
almost every tenant living there was given
the very same assistance. Thank you,
Macdonald Center, and all thê staff involved.
— By Donald Harvey (aka Chewbaka)