Things Portlanders can do to help
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1 Pe°Ple ask me’ “What can
®tr?duce
t0 Philanthropy at a young
i ao to help people experiencing
homelessness? I feel helpless and I’m not sure age. We know that when younger people are
my voice actually matters.”
not sure introduced to giving they are more likely to
become lifelong donors and volunteers to
What do I do when people ask me for
great causes throughout their lifetime Plus
The n ° " the Streetf Ifs rea,ly “P t0 you-
Jt s a great way to educate your kids on
’
he Oregonian asked me the same question
helping others.
this year and this is what I had to say,
,,
R°° ts 3180 recommends looking to
n e ^ 0,iS y ,I,m blased
would encourage
the Willamette Week’s GivelGuide during the
people to pick up a Street Roots. Saying that
I have a one quarter or dollar rule. The first ’
months of November and December and
pemon who asks me for change each Jay gets
giving a donation to one of the many great
nonprofits throughout the Portland region.
a htfle something. After that, I tell peopfo no
Give.Guide s launch is right around the
It s a quick and easy way to give, but to not
corner.
other myself with the complexities of trying
1 Sh0Uld give or why 1 s^ uld
Businesses can also get involved by giving a
give to a specific person.
i t ' s e a s y t o b e c o m e c y n f c a , a n i ja d # d
I would advise people to be aware of then-
t h e is s u e o i h o m 8 le s S B e s s M d
environment, to use your gut instinct and to
give as little or as much as you like. There’s
s Z e X ’ W a “ e T S e r i0 B S ,y - 6 i v e a U w “ P P o r t t w i t y t o d o
no, ? lg.remotely fun about living in poverty
o m e U u n g g o o d i n y o m r c o m m n a it y w i l l m a k e y o n f e e l
and having to beg for money. The idea that
Phanh.a" <“lng
somehow are making
out like bandits is an urban myth.”
Can I organize my family, friends and/or
business to do something for organizations
percentage of a night’s profits to a local non
working with people experiencing
homelessness? Yes you can. From getting your profit working with people on the streets. It’s
peer network or business to engage in helping a great way to engage your customers and to
get customers engaged while also supporting
gather materials for organizations working
your business. Not to mention it’s _ a tax
_______ •.
write-
with people experiencing homelessness to
off.
crowdsourcing online to help someone stay in
Beyond giving your time, expertise or
their home — this
m oney — people w ant to know how they can
x
can be a g reat way
DIRECTOR'S
DESK
By Israel Bayer
to engage and
educate your
network and do
something good for
community forward.
the community.
of Tenants. They both can be found on
Facebook and Twitter. I would also
recommend signing up for their newsletters
online, which provide you with á lot of
opportunities to take action in the community.
The next thing you can do is contact
elected officials and tell them you care about
housing. I realize this feels like a hollow
action, considering that rhetoric oftentimes
outweigh substance in American politics.
Saying that, our local government just did
declare a state of emergency on housing and
homelessness.
I would argue that making your voice heard
today is more important than it has been in
years - that’s at the local, state and federal
level. Elected officials need to hear a clear
message that the rental crisis is affecting all
Oregonians. We need our city council
members, mayors, state legislators and
members of Congress to step up to the plate.
We need both new legislation and revenue to
support giving all Oregonians a safe place to
call home.
It’s easy to become cynical and jaded when
it comes to the issue of homelessness and
poverty. Saying that, your support matters.
Seriously. Given the opportunity to do
something good in your community will make
you feel better and it will also go a long way to
support your fellow neighbors. We all need a
hand up. It’s up to all of us collectively to chip
and support making our community the best it
can be.
HOW WOUld I gO
Israel Bayer is the
executive director o f
Street Roots. You can
reach him a t
israel@streetroots.org
or follow him on
Twitter @israelbayer.
help m ove th e issue of housing in our
about this?
Connecting with a
nonprofit and asking what specific needs
might be is a good place to start You can
also look up non-profits online and see if
organizations have wish lists. For Street
Roots, fresh socks and Little Hottie
Handwarmers become lifesavers in winter
months.
Can I offer my labor to support
organizations working with people on the
streets? Yes you can. Vounteering your
expertise is one of the best ways you can get
involved. From simply volunteering a day out
of your week or month to trying to get on a
nonprofit board of directors — your shared
experience in the world adds value to many
groups working with people on the streets.
Should I give a donation to a local non-profit
working with people experiencing
homelessness? How do I choose who to give
too? From a little to a lot, it all matters.
It’s my opinion that you should give to
organziations doing a lot with a little. Of
course, everyone has a different view on this.
Researching organizations that have been
effective in providing services without a lot of
overhead and organizations that provide
successful advocacy efforts are critical at this
time.
There are a lot of ways to think about
giving. For example, if you have a family,
engaging your children to take part in giving
B esides reading S tre e t Roots, two groups
you should be following are the Welcome
Home Coalition and the Community Alliance
'. If you would like
to have
something'
that you’ve
written published
ip our pages, or would
t e to get involved as a
member of our reporting staff,
^ ^ ^ ana$°S Edito r Joanne Zuhf at
503-228-5657, joanne@streetroots.org.
We ask that all submissions include the
authors name and contact information,
Street Roots
211-NWDavfeSt -
Portland, OR 97209
503-228-5657 .
Fax: 503-227-31,7
www.streetroots.org
'ww.news.streetroots.org
Hours: 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m. Mon-Fri., 7:30
a.m.-2 p.m„ Sat. and 7:30-11 am. Sun.
interested in advertising in Street Roots?
Contact Israel Bayer at israei@streetroots.org
Staff
E xecutive D ir e c to r Israel Bayer
israel@streetroots.org
M a n a g in g E d it o r
Joanne Zuhl
joanne@streetroots.org
V en d o r C o o rd in a to r Cote M e rke l
cole@ streetroots.org
Operations Director Sarah
Beecroft
Sarah Cloud
Scott Jackson, Jesuit
D e ve lo p m e n t D ir e c to r
P ro g ra m A s s is ta n t
Volunteer
Development Assistant Ann-Derrick
Galliot
Reporters Emily Green, Sue Zalokar,
Ann-Derrick Gaiflot, Sarah Hansell, Lenora
Ko, Sam Bouman, Jared Paben
Photographers Diego Diaz, Joe Glode
Canvasser Desmond Hardison
Board of Directors
Chairman Bruce Anderson
Vice-Chairman Brad Taylor
Treasurer Heather Stadick
Secretary Amber Bielman
Directors Rich Rodgers, Michael Anderson,'
Leo Rhodes, Nora Coon, Darren Alexander,
Eddie Barbosa, Rachel Langford, Marcus Swift
Volunteers
Jan Bayer, John Barker, Stacey Heath, Brian
Ritchie, Anders Frederickson, Stephanie
Holum, Anjali Rathore, Sam Bouman, Joanna
Chase, Zoe Klingmann, Haven Herrin, Eliese
Baker, Dan Jones, Rob Shyrock, Tom Ray,
Doug Spangle, Susannah Kamala, Jessica
Pollard, Lee Ko, Diana Richardson, Cherie
Manning
If you are interested in volunteering with
Street Roots, please submit a volunteer
application at streetroots.org/volunteer. Or
call our volunteer coordinator for more
information at 503-228-5657.