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Homelessness is not the same for everyone

© Bea Sheftel

About being homeless,In my experience by day we would walk the streets looking for a warm place to go because the shelters made you leave by 7 AM. It was winter and we would go into the greyhound bus station and sit there and try to get warm for a few minutes but they would realize after a while we weren't there to ride the bus and made us leave.We also were chased away from the local bus shelters when we din't get on the downtown buses.Occasionally we would find a church open but usually during the day they were locked. We'd wash in gas station bathrooms and walk around downtown stores like Lazereth's Dept store to get warm.

We'd try to find work but it's a little difficult with no money,no transportation, and no way to shower.Plus most places want you to have a permanent home address. For food we went to a soup kitchen for a meal once a day where at least we were treated like people for a while.Sometimes another church gave out bags of stale vending machine food..out of date vending machine sandwiches and such. You had to be careful.Many were spoiled.

By 9 pm or 10 we could go to another church and wait in line to be given a voucher to go to the shelter or the welfare motel for the night.The dirty rat and roach infested drug hooker drug motel was better at least you didn't have to worry about someone stealing the few things you had In the shelters you were robbed blind and there were fights ...Sometimes there weren't enough vouchers and we'd group together under the overpasses and build a fire. All this was back in 1986 when I was with an abusive man that seemed to want that kind of life and threatened to kill me if I left.

My daughter never went through it most of the time.She was three then.I'd make something up to my parents about working long hours and have then keep her for a while.. I was afraid to tell them the truth that I was homeless for fear I'd lose her and even bigger fear that he would make good and kill us and my parents if I told.

(C.W. is now in a safe home. She is a friend and writer.)