union rescue mission | Homeless in LA

Mar 08 2011

How Would You Choose

Your family is everything and they say that “Home is Where the Heart Is”. But when it is cold and wet and there is no bed for the baby, no blanket for the kids, no lights to do homework by and no heat to keep you warm or kitchen to make food in – you have to finally declare Homelessness and ask someone for help.

But when you do decide that you need help – where can you find it? Canb you find help that fits your needs? Or, will you have to change yourselves to fit the criterea of the agency offering you a bed.

Good luck finding a shelter bed in The Valley (San Fernando Valley) that will take a mother and a teen age boy. For some reason the sheters think teen boys are undesirable and dangerous.

Try to find a FAMILY SHELTER where Mom, Dad and Chid can stay together. – it is almost impossible.

In Los Angeles The Dream Center and Union Rescue Mission are doing the almost unheard of and working hard to keep entire families together because the support system makes periods of homelesnesss shorter in duration – and makes for healthier, more successful children who do better ib school.

Tagged children families, homeless, union rescue mission

Dec 07 2010

The Christmas story as told by a young girl

living at The Union Rescue Mission. Christmas is a holiday for the Homeless and wandering.

Tagged christmas, holiday, homeless, Mary, union rescue mission, video

Nov 23 2010

1 Comment

homeless

The “L” Words You Should Share

Love and Lunch. I am awed and still in the fuzzy foggy glow you get when you have a new crush or have just been given really great news.

Saturday was a miserably cold and wet day. The sky was sporadically dark and spit out water on lines of people standing close to a green building on the corner of 6th and San Pedro. Parkas, gloves and scarves – items rarely seen in Los Angeles – were on anyone who could afford to own them and even the LAPD officers help coffee mugs so tight and close to their faces that they looked like they wanted to dive into the steamy java and escape the terrible weather.

I had spent most of the night in Labor and Delivery Triage at Kaiser and lied to my doctor that I would go home to bed rest and take it easy. But I couldn’t. It was Saturday and the Union Rescue Mission was serving the first part of its Thanksgiving Meal to thousands of people who did not have a home to go to or a bed to rest in. As I lay there, in bed, staring at the ceiling – I kept thinking about the people who don’t have ceilings until I bundled up an went to my car.

By noon I had crashed the URM Thanksgiving Fast. I talked myself in through the back door and went on the hunt for Alex – a volunteer co-ordinator.

There were all these kids – preteens, tweens and teens – walking around in t-shirts and getting water bottles and sodas for the tables. Bright eyed, smiling, warm and always asking “What can I do?” I figured they were children of staffers therefore well seasoned

The most helpful boy of all time - actual superhero action on Saturday!

volunteers. Surprise! Not so much, they were children of other volunteers. The cast of The Bold and The Beautiful were serving in the same room and the enthusiastic kids belonged to them. Well, now I know why everyone looked familiar.

It was just a lunch. One of the three square meals everyone should have a day – but it was possibly the only meal some of these people would eat that day.

It was not just lunch. It was love.

: Linda and Me on Saturday … don’t tell anyone I can work or push a mop.

The turkey and stuffing and pie were on the plates, but love was served in smiles and hugs and fell on people in between the raindrops.

——————– AHEM——————-

You may have missed out on Saturday – but you can get some “L WORDS” action of your own on Thursday. The Union Rescue Mission is serving a second feast on Thanksgiving (because face it – it isn’t like people are only hungry 2 days a year!)

You can volunteer or help to feel people by sponsoring individual meals or entire tables at the URM. I know this because my cyber-buddy Myles Rose tells me all the time! http://www.urmblog.org/2010/11/09/sponsor-a-table-at-urm-this-thanksgiving/

Bradley Bell “His Mama Raised Him Right”

That is the best thing someone can say about a person. It is especially telling when someone who sees you on a regular basis shares this opinion with strangers. Last week I heard this about Bradley Bell.

Bradley Bell - photo belongs to cbs.com

To be honest, this one character reference was the reason I gave a second thought to CBS showing the streets of Skid Row on The Bold and the Beautiful. It made me hope that the perspective shown would be accurate and sincere.

As far as I can tell, his friend is correct. I have Googled, Binged and researched him the best I could and can not find a bad word printed about him (so either he has a crack legal staff or his character is as stated). I tend to believe the man has a social conscience and the bravery to let it loose in the world.

Bradley is the son of the creators of The Bold and the Beautiful, William J. and Lee Phillip Bell. Or should I say that the creators of Bradley also made a television series? Either way, Mr Bell is both Bold and Beautiful.

Why are you homeless? According to an interview with TV Guide, Mr. Bell wrote this question down and kept it at his desk for years until he found the right time and story line to present it. In presenting the answers, he took care to find a variety of people who came to homelessness from several paths. He presented them with dignity and connected with one of the best service providers ; The Union Rescue Mission. When I say connected with the URM, I mean it. He did not just show the outside of the building or mention it in passing. Mr. Bell let his work mingle with that of the Union Rescue Mission and I have heard that The Bold and the Beautiful will be serving Thanksgiving dinner there – most likely unfilmed and without pomp.

For tastefully bringing an unpleasant circumstance, that is becoming a reality for many families, into a fantasy show – and for inspiring praise from those who know him – Bradley Bell is our Hero of the Week.

Tagged B&B, brad bell, bradley bell, character, hero of the week, homeless, Lee Phillip Bell, union rescue mission

Oct 22 2010

4 Comments

skid row, Union REscue Mission

Life is a Soap Opera

Love, hate, family, emotional drama, and children who grow up in the blink of an eye: Life or Soap Opera – who can tell the difference?

My expert advice is: you will know you are in a television show when

you no longer buy drain cleaner because restrooms are only used for taking pregnancy tests,
your phone number starts with “555″,
everyone you know lives in either a hotel or a mansion…
oh, and you never go outside.

Art imitates Life . . .

Los Angeles based Bold and the Beautif ul is blurring the lines and expanding the scope of the lives reflected in their art.

The show is set in Los Angeles – mecca that I love . Actually, I get excited to see anything based in LA because I know the landmarks and laugh when shows suggest that the drive from The Rose Bowl to the Hollywood sign is a mere 5 minutes. Never the less, on film and television LA is made up of tall buildings, beautiful beaches, physically fit people in their 20′s, and museums. What you rarely see is more of a WHO than WHAT.

CBS‘s Bold and the Beautiful has been filming on Skid Row and including poor and homeless people into the story lines and the payroll.

Sometimes when shows do something like this, it is a publicity stunt ; a move for ratings or to make Emmy nomination worthy episodes and I hope there is a good intent but roll my eyes that the misfortune of others is exploited. But, I found out about the B&B story from Rev. Andy Bales Twitter feed http://twitter.com/#!/abales . If Rev. Andy says it, then it must be true.

In a word – COOL.

I have enlisted my mom to watch the show and introduce the characters to me, and I am going to be paying very close attention to the VISIBILITY the show is giving the Homeless In L.A.

read more and follow along at ♥♥ www.cbs.com/daytime/the_bold_and_the_beautiful/

Tagged bold & the beautiful, skid row, soap oera, social, television, The Bold and the Beautiful, union rescue mission

Oct 18 2010

1 Comment

homeless, Social Work

Are Advocates for the Poor Really Poverty Pimps?

Are we working to end homelessness or perpetuate the cycle so that we all have jobs and keep the status quo?

Some agencies do enjoy pointing to the number of people that are”served”. Sometimes the interactions at each point of service is counted as a new contact with a new person. The annual benefit dinners and award ceremonies for these agencies boast of the numbers receiving services and not the success of the services. I have worked for them and left their employ when I discovered they cared more about maximizing the number of people they could report to serve than they cared about the quality of their service or the number of people who through them – were housed and better off.

Some agencies – The Union Rescue Mission, PATH, Union Station, Burbank Temporary Aid Center, The Foothill Unity Center – to name a few - have a strong and focused mission to make services personal and success is counted on an individual basis as well as those overwhelming MIS reports.

One of the criticisms by Cohen and Wagner (1992, p. 22) is that the “Poverty Pimps” are professional advocates and are not encouraging the actual people being served, or in need of service, to advocate for themselves.

I would like to introduce you all to Mark Horvath of wearevisible.com – where the entire point is to give voice to the homeless. They re taught how to use Social Media to advocate for themselves and tell their own stories.

Designed specifically to help the poor advocate in their own voices

Another criticism is that when Advocates or employees of agencies that work on ending homelessness present the work they are doing – they only tell “success stories” because politicians and the public are tired of listening to people cry all the time.

I like to believe that eventually everyone is a “success story” and that I talk about the middle of the drama and the hardships people are experiencing as they go though them. Success stories serve a purpose to showcase what has worked. Everyone else serves a purpose as highlighting why new approaches are needed. The standard solutions didn’t solve anything for them .

Tagged PATH, union rescue mission, Union Station

Sep 07 2010

2 Comments

homeless, Role Model, Union REscue Mission

It Came! and who should be a role model?

I am overjoyed to find @abales of @URM in my mail box at work today. It is a little like Christmas and I am super happy to be rewarded for dragging myself into the office today.

My happy dance and small shouts of “It came, It Came!” has prompted a somewhat steady stream of onlookers to my office.

After a few inquiries of “What channel is he the news anchor for” I explained that Rev. Bales is the CEO of The Union Rescue Mission http://www.urm.org/about/senior-leadership/rev-andrew-andy-j-bales.html and one of the people I admire – not for fame or success – but because of intent and purpose.

He has been a foster parent, raised 6 children and seems to care as much about the people on his staff as he does for the community that he serves. His blog, www.urmblog.org/category/rev-andys-blog/ ,is one of my “Must Reads” whenever he gets around to writing in it.

As the mother of 1.5 children (until the end of January when this one is born) I have spent a lot of time thinking about Role Models. How to be one for the children in my life – and who my greatest and best influences are. Also, who do I want my children to think is soo cool that they want to take on personal characteristics of them?

For me, Social Media is some Geeky Goodness that has brought a little bit of Christmas to my life every day. Not only do I know who I admire the most – I can “follow” them on Twitter. Then, I can keep up with them as often as they publicly make a move or decision – AND I can text them and interact. Also, I can see who they are following and see who inspires them in return.

So – in order to inspire me and reach “Role Model” status in my book, a person has to have a clear intent to

1. do good and
2. be kind and
3. be taking steps in constant pursuit of the good they have elected to work in.

This doesn’t mean you have to work with populations of people without housing , finances, or food. In one of my previous “Hero of the Week” posts I discussed a LAWYER of all creepy careers. Andrea made the cut because she wanted to use the law to heal wounds and swiftly address family issues without dragging the emotional trauma out for prolonged periods of time, although doing so would have benefitted her pocket book, it would not have ben true to who she wanted to be in this world.

I don’t think it is fair to make sports figures into role models. Kobe Bryant may well be the best hoopster of all time – but I would say that he is a man who needs a good spanking and personal cleansing of his soul. I don’t see many other redeeming qualities in him (other than he knows how to buy a big diamond!). The same is true of actors. We pay to see them lie to us on stage and screen. We play “Let’s pretend” with actors so why would we want to emulate them in our personal lives where sincerity is key to intamate relationships and a greater understanding of self?

This year I have been inspired by more than my usual perfect trinity of O’Neals (Who – if combined would make the perfect man) , Ed, Tip and Shaq. (What?!?!? , I live in LA, I am a Laker’s girl!!!!)

I have found inspiration in friends and co-workers, and started looking for people who don’t just have a stated mission in life – but who are constantly working on achieving the betterment of self and their stated goals for good.

With that said – LOOK!!!!! My picture of Rev. Bales came and he is hanging on my wall!!!! Soo Awesome!

Tagged andrea merrill caster, andy bales, autograph, good, role modelm ed o'neal, tip o'neal, union rescue mission

Aug 03 2010

4 Comments

skid row

at @URM Rev @aBales and the budget woes #FB

Today The Union Rescue Mission had to let many loyal and wonderful workers go. ♥Read more at : http://www.urmblog.org/. They were able to save Hope Gardens, but in the crunch to keep both the Mission and Hope Gardens alive, about 11 employees left the payroll.

The Union Rescue Mission has a religious name and a minister at it’s helm, but it has never turned anyone away from services. It has opened it’s doors to DPSS CalWORKS workers who meet with families there and enroll clients into social services, and works in the community to improve the lives of its clients, workers, and ultimately the community you and I live in.

The Mission is one of the few places on Skid Row that inspires trust and security. I used to work down the street from The URM. Several of my clients received services there and I would visit with them while they stood in line to sign up for a shelter bed. Even now, workers from URM drive my GAIN clients up to Burbank to talk to me about DPSS services and mental health, substance abuse and domestic violence therapies I can refer them to.

If you are looking for a place to give your time – give it there. If you are thinking that you want to make a charitable donation before the Federal Government reduces the amount you can claim on your taxes, give it there. And if you have nothing but compassion to give, send the Union Rescue Mission a prayer.

Tagged @abales, skid row, union rescue mission, urm

May 26 2010

Hope Gardens is running out of hope.

Hope Gardens of Union Rescue Mission is about to close due to funding.

I am kinda freaking out. These are my people – homeless welfare moms and their children who have been abused and finally are able to sleep safe and find work and normalize their lives while in a safe and nurturing place.

34 moms and 74 children will lose the safe place they call home while preparing to be self-sustaining after living through Domestic Abuse. Remember how I am always telling you that homelessness is a Women’s Issue – this is it in the flesh and YOU can help. 24 more FAMILIES were preparing to move from Skid Row to this shelter and now they can’t move in – and they will be joined on the streets by the current Hope Garden’s residents.

There is nowhere for them to go. The state budget crushed funding to Domestic Violence education for teens and services in general. As citizens, we are all living in an economic crisis and I am sure your every penny is accounted for and has a necessary expenditure planned for it.

Change your priorities for a week and see what you can Donate online It is TAX DEDUCTABLE!

Get coupon happy this week and buy the store brands so you can donate what you have saved.
Skip seeing Sex and the City 2 or movies and donate the $10 to Hope Gardens – trust that your money will see more life changing drama than any HBO series!
Text “URM” at 85944 to donate $10 via your cell phone and reply “yes” when prompted
Hold off on your manicure for a week and donate the $20 to women who are holding on to their lives by the skin of their nails
Instead of a fancy dinner date – have a cheap date: picnic in the park, walk on the beach, a night in – and donate the savings to families having a date with destiny.

♥♥♥♥ Learn more

http://www.urmblog.org/2010/05/24/critical-news-regarding-hope-gardens/

http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/los_angeles&id=7459872 - it made it on the news

Tagged andy bales, domestic abuse, domestic violence, homeless, hope gardens, shelter, union rescue mission

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