Adventure Buddies

What an amazing week! Ashley (my AmeriaCorps*VISTA sidekick) and I had the most amazingly wonderful day yesterday. We had the chance to go out and meet a variety of local homeless individuals...who...I must tell you...had so many incredible ideas on how to help end homelessness. The conversations were so raw and honest and we couldn't believe how welcome they all made us feel. Currently, we are working on a Video/documentary about Charlotte County's homeless population.

As our Adventure Buddy Chris would say...."It's about caring about people...CARE ABOUT PEOPLE!"

Until next week...please enjoy..be safe...be merry...and go out and get to know the people in your neighborhood...especially the homeless...they are people too...with amazing stories to share.

One Love,
Kelly 

Generation Invisible

Alarmingly, more and more families are unable to afford childcare. As a result, many 3 and 4 year olds are not going to preschool.

Research indicates that children from low-income families who start kindergarten without first attending a quality education program enter school an estimated 18 months behind their peers.

Many never catch up and are more likely to need special education services and to drop out altogether. Furthermore, they are more likely to up out of work or making less money than the would have otherwise and more will eventually end up in prison.

Currently, there are an estimated 70,633 homeless children living in Florida. Nationally, 1.6 million are homeless throughout the year. (Bare in mind that these numbers are significantly under-counted as many families are afraid to tell anyone they are homeless out of fear of loosing their children).

Despite the growing numbers, homeless children are invisible to the majority of society...they have no voice...

It is up to US to be their voice...
www.nationalhomeless.orgwww.cchomelesscoalition.org
www.homelesschildrenamerica.org

Where Do We Go From Here?

The state of Florida is in the midst of a crisis in its ability to provide adequate shelter and affordable housing for homeless individuals and families.

Florida is currently ranked 42 out of 50 in the nation for its inability to provide quality services to homeless children (more than 70,000 children in the state are homeless -- right at this very minute -- that is 4 Miami Heat Arenas filled to capacity). One homeless child is too many...70,000+ is beyond any words in my vocabulary.

According to the Department of Children and Families' (DCF) most recent report, there are approximately 85,907 persons homeless on any given day in our state; and only about 9,000 emergency shelter beds and an additional 13,000 transitional shelter beds are available to provide lodging to the entire homeless population in this state....Keep in mind that 85,907 is highly under-counted...

What's more frightening is the fact that Florida has led the nation (for the past 6 years) in violent attacks on homeless people. These horrific acts are generally committed primarily by our nation's housed youth and young adults.

So where do we go from here? How to we change the fate of our state and its homeless citizens? The answer isn't easy...there is no cardboard cutout solution...but it starts with US...If we do not raise awareness by educating ourselves, our youth, our government, and our community as a whole...on the issues that surround homelessness, these crimes and inadequate services will continue to plague the lives of our nation's invisible people.

Myth vs Fact Part 1

It is alarming to me that society continues to not truly understand the issues surrounding homelessness. What's more are the multifaceted misconceptions that society has regarding homeless individuals. The purpose of this post is to address the various myths associated with homeless people and to replace those myths with fact-based information...

Myth # 1:

The majority of homeless people choose this way of life.

Fact # 1:


In Florida alone, 70,633 children go without homes, food, access to healthcare, and education every year -- They DO NOT choose this lifestyle.

Fact # 2:

Of all the homeless families living in Florida, 2/3 are living on the street.

To be continued... 

Hello and Welcome!

Hello World! My name is Kelly Hunter and I am the Speakers' Bureau Coordinator for Charlotte County's Homeless Coalition. This is Day 3 of my year long amazing adventure. My goal with this blog is to help raise awareness regarding the multitude of issues surrounding homelessness in America...to break down the barriers that separate society and the homeless...to dismantle the stereotypes surrounding homeless people...and to ultimately help end homelessness for good.

In this blog you will be exposed to the raw truth...and hopefully you will be inspired to take part in generating positive change in your community and eventually the world.

Gandhi once said "Be the change you wish to see in this world"...in my opinion, those are words we should all aspire to live by.

To be continued...

www.cchomelesscoalition.org