Poverty

Poverty

I had the following email from a student:

Hello, I am a student at Wind River Middle School and I am doing a project on poverty. I figured if anyone knew something about poverty it would be our local homeless shelter. I have a few questions to ask. My first question is, what is your point of view on poverty? My second question is, How do you help with poverty? My third question is, what can I do to help poverty? My fourth question is, how do you actually take action? My last question is, can you volunteer at the Fremont County Good Samaritan? Thank you for taking time out of your day to read this and respond to this. I appreciate it!     

This was my response:

To answer your first question, my opinion on poverty has changed drastically since stating to work here at the Fremont County Good Samaritan Center in May of 2017. I think I had the same view as most of the public which is poverty can be prevented and the person just needs to work hard to get out of it. While this is true to an extent, it isn't the whole picture. Poverty isn't caused by "someone being lazy" but rather circumstances in a person life due to their area, culture, ethnicity, economic status from adolescence, and a cycle that is hard to break. Poverty often stems from the time a child is born and while people can overcome obstacles that are put into their life, it is not an easy road and often a learned behavior. A good example of the break down that occurs with most people living in poverty is this: when you get money how do you spend it? Most kids your age are going to tell you they spend it! They buy something they do not have and it is more of a want than a need. This is a natural response and is impulsive. People that struggle with poverty often do not have money for the things they want and have not learned how to control their impulsive desire to get the things they might think they need. Often times they did not have these things as a child or watched their parents do the same thing so it is passed down on what happens when you get money. This is where it becomes more than just a choice behavior. It is hard to realize how upside down they become just for simply wanting to get something nice for their family or themselves. Whatever they have purchased is rationalized into a need instead of a want. Everyone goes through this struggle and has to learn my needs verses my wants however when you do not have enough funds to cover your needs, it leads to just getting the things you want. 

Another struggle with poverty is hunger. People are more likely to buy food instead of worrying about their car or house payment. Most middle-income families are one paycheck away from becoming homeless. A problem I see in our area and I would imagine is likely in most areas in the country is pride. There is a pride issue when it comes to getting help or asking for help when you need it. The clients I see on a regular basis have tried everything they possibly can before they come to the homeless shelter because they have no where else to go. There are many people that shame them or look down on those that live in poverty so this dose not help a person to be humble enough to ask for help before they get themselves into a situation that is completely out of their control. There are so many programs that can help with getting free/reduced food and learning how to make your own meal is essential to cutting your food budget. 

We have a program we sponsor with the Wyoming Food Bank of the Rockies called The Emergency Food Assistance Program or TEFAP. Twice a month we hand out food that is given to the community by the Federal Government. All of the people live within a standard income that says they live in poverty (Check out the Federal Poverty Guidelines to see what this amount is for sizes of families) or they are in another Federal Program such as The Supplemental Food Assistance Program (SNAP or Food Stamps). Notice how food stamps is really supposed to be a supplemental food assistance instead of their only source of food? When someone relies solely on this program for food they will not have enough food to feed themselves or their family. Most individual adults within a household get less than $100 a month for food. A lot of the people I see that come to get food through TEFAP are not on food stamps due to only being able to receive $16 a month. They do not feel it is worth their time to get $16 a month in food stamps. This same person makes less than $1800 a month. That is not a lot of money for their basic needs let alone any extras or wants so luckily a few people in our communities know about the other programs designed  to help them stretch their money out each month. 

Your second question is how do you help with poverty? You have to teach someone how to take care of their needs first and how to increase their income. Most people have a better chance of not living on poverty if they have no less than a basic education (High School Diploma or GED). Most jobs require you to have no less than this which is why your education you receive now is so beneficial to you even if it seems like you don't need algebra. While I am not a fan of numbers myself (most people in human services hate them, they prefer people and real objects) I have to understand them and know how to change them. You can not change poverty without finding solutions to the numbers they bring in. One big factor is the amount of time they have been clean from all addicting substances. This includes drugs and alcohol however most people do not realize they amount of money that is associated with tobacco products. While I wish I could help my clients completely give up addictive products such as tobacco, I work with adults that can, and do, make their own choices and most of them have recently quite drinking alcohol and/or doing drugs so giving up tobacco is even harder for them.  

Income is a bit harder to tackle. The Federal minimum wage right now is set at $7.25. This is what most people will get if they are just starting out with their employment. I believe this wage is good if you are not trying to make a living such as a high school student however, someone who is trying to live independently can not make it on this wage alone. They need at least another part-time job or sometimes even a third. This is not easy and it is why it is so hard to break out of living in poverty. Our communities need more jobs with better pay and the ability to advance. Big corporations have the ability to pay their employees this higher income and it is why I stress to my clients to work for these companies if they are able to. 

Another topic would have to include someones criminal history. People that have been in prison do not have the ability to apply for certain jobs and have a harder time finding somewhere to live. While I know they were in prison and this sounds scary to most people, these are the people that need the most help and we are lucky to have programs in Wyoming such as the Wyoming Honor Farm here in Riverton that help the inmates get work experience before they are released from prison. They are able to find work easier because they have not only gotten their education but have relevant work experience they can use. Their criminal history is what hurts them the most and they have even more criticism then the average person living in poverty. 

Your third question about how you can help could go in a couple of directions. If you want to help those who are struggling currently with poverty one of the biggest things you can do now to help is not judge and be kind. Everyone makes mistakes in life and I know I would hate to be remembered for the bad choices I make instead of what I am trying to do. People need to be able to gain confidence in themselves and their abilities. Having someone that is willing to talk to them and not judge what they look like, how they dress, where they live, or not treat them as something they want to hurry away from or not acknowledge even their presence makes the difference every day for anyone you meet in life but especially someone who is struggling. It is hard to know what anyone is going through and kindness goes farther than most people realize. 

Another way you can help is to be aware. Be aware of your friends, neighbors, family, or where you are. There is always someone you can reach out to and help. More people have the ability to help the people around them more than they realize because they are not aware of what is going on right in front of them. Making a meal for someone or helping them with their yard work can make all the difference for the people around you. See something and do it without any expectations or wanting to get something in return; do it because you want to make the difference and help someone. Most people are going to appreciate little things you can do for them and no one is to young to make a difference. 

Helping your community organizations that serve people in some form is another way you or anyone else can help. We are the only emergency shelter in our area and one of five in the whole state. There are many organizations that we have to work with in order to serve the people we do each day. Working together is the key to success when it come to helping our clients out of their situations. Donating items you would use (not used deodorant) instead of things you don't "need" anymore are the most helpful. While it is great to have some clothing donated and bedding on occasion, it is not the most needed items for our clients or any of the other organizations we work with. If you have something you don't want, why don't you want it? Think of who might need it or if it can still be used. If you still think it has some kind of value to someone, call the organization and see if it is something they can use instead of just dropping off your used items. I can grantee you, we do not need your left over cake from the birthday party however we could use a gallon of milk or a loaf of bread! We could use a meal for the night or the next day or one we can store in our freezer and pull out when we have a family of 6 check in at 5 PM. 

I hope the topics I covered can answer your fourth question about taking action. Ways to help yourself and your fellow classmates can be summed up in a couple of ways. Get your education now and do not take it for granted. There are children all over the world that do not have access to their basic education and children in poverty often struggle with attendance or school is their one place they get a break. Learn now the kind of person you want to be. Stay away from activities that put you into situations where you have to make hard choices about your safety. Tobacco use, as well as any  other mind altering substance, has long term effects not only on your body but how you live your life. The more you use products such as vape pens, cigarettes, marijuana, or alcohol, the more likely you are to try other things and addiction can affect people in different ways. Not a single person that is addicted to methamphetamine or heroin only ever used that drug. They started with cigarettes/vape pens, drinking at a party or from their own home. Marijuana is more addictive and harmful than people think (talk to me sometime about my son who is allergic) and the high will get to a point it is not enough. Life happens and it is hard, but don't let the hard stuff outweigh the good! Find positive things in your life every day instead of dwelling on all the negative things that get thrown at you. It is easy to pick out the negative things you see and harder to find the positive; focus on the positive. 

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The answer to your last question is yes people can volunteer at the Good Samaritan Center. Right now I am not taking in overnight clients. Our building needs some major upgrades and until I secure funds to make these changes, I will not be accepting overnight clients however, there is always something that needs done around here. One of the biggest things I will be continuing to provide while we are updating our roof is the TEFAP program. I always need boxes for this and people willing to help hand out the food as well as set it up. We hand out the food the same day we get it in and have a schedule for the handout days and it varies on the amount of people we serve. In the summer the numbers go up and we can have as many as 75 households that come to get food. It is my favorite day but also my most stressful and busy with everything that goes into it.