Opening doors to homeless

By Tanya Connor
The Catholic Free Press
WORCESTER – On these days of bitter cold, what’s available for those who don’t have a home?
“This is what’s available – thank God,” said a woman who identified herself simply as Korin. She was sitting in the hall of St. John Church, 40 Temple St., surrounded by cots.
“Richie and the people here are a God-send,” added Adriana Shackett, speaking of Richard Gonzalez, head of the homeless shelter, and the volunteers who staff it. “We know they care about us. They make us feel like family” – not different from everybody else.
Other places also offer aid, including Catholic Worker houses.
Scott Schaeffer-Duffy and his wife, Claire, house people at the SS. Francis and Therese Catholic Worker House, 52 Mason St. Michael Boover, a key figure at the Mustard Seed Catholic Worker House, 93 Piedmont St., said they have a food pantry and clothing room and offer meals from 5:45-6:30 p.m. Monday-Friday (doors open at 3 p.m. for coffee, pastries and warmth).
Tuesday night, as people waited to enter or serve at the shelter at St. John’s, Pastor Gonzalez told them, “We rely on God.…  Let’s pray together to be able to love.” (He is pastor of The Restorer of Broken Bridges Church, an outgrowth of the Net of Compassion. The Net of Compassion collaborates with St. John’s to provide the shelter.)
He prayed for healing and God’s spirit of peace for the people sleeping there and said, “Thank you for making your house a shelter.”
The man who said grace, who declined to be identified, thanked God for what he has now, and even for his struggles. He said he was grateful for what people are doing at the shelter.
Pastor Gonzalez had just given another little “sermon,” which listeners punctuated with “Amens.”
“Whatever appreciation you have, show it with your respect,” he challenged. “You can transfer from being a receiver to being a giver,” he added, sharing how he did that. (He battled addiction, homelessness and incarceration.) “It wouldn’t hurt … to help.… This is not a government project. This is people like you from the community.… You can be part of the solution.”
“I try and volunteer as much as possible” here, said Michael Thebodo. “I feel good about doing it,” trying to pay back. He said he found himself homeless for the first time after being released from jail in November.
Watching St. John’s pastor bring someone a plate of food, Mr. Thebodo added, “This man here – Father (John) Madden – is incredible.” He also called the volunteers incredible.
“We get numbers here, but we’re not treated like a number,” Mr. Thebodo said, in reference to how their belongings are protected in overnight storage. “We’re treated like family.… When we walk in here it doesn’t matter what your race is … what we smell like” (given lack of access to showers).
Michael Martin, a St. John’s parishioner, said he came to volunteer the second night the shelter opened last December, and tries to come every night.
Asked why, he said he asks himself that question.
“Most of them are very appreciative,” he said of the guests.
He told of a woman who brings clothes to distribute. He said he hasn’t seen people coming in recently without needed winter wear, which they also get from Net of Compassion.
“We’re making sure they have a hot meal every night,” said Kathleen Gervais, a St. John’s member who volunteers for the 5-11 p.m. shift three or four nights a week. (Volunteers take shifts to help with various tasks, including monitoring the sleeping quarters overnight.)
St. John’s opens at 7 p.m. on days when the temperature dips to 32 degrees Fahrenheit, Pastor Gonzalez said. The capacity is 50 people; men sleeping in the hall, women in the lower church. They are checked to keep out alcohol, drugs and weapons. They can stay until 7 a.m., then cross the parking lot for a hot breakfast at the parish’s soup kitchen.
“Nobody leaves here hungry,” said John Johnson. “It’s warm, it’s dry, it’s quiet at night for the most part.” People behave and volunteers “get the point across without being rude.” He can access the hall in his electric scooter because there’s an elevator.
He rides in the streets, which is dangerous and angers others, he said, explaining difficulties handicapped people can face. He has trouble getting around if snow is plowed up against the ends of the sidewalks, even shoveled ones, preventing him from using them.
There are also challenges to being homeless. Many places kick you out if you go inside during the day, he said, but he’s blessed with permission to stay in a covered  doorway. He said he has income, but hasn’t secured handicapped-accessible housing.
Mr. Schaeffer-Duffy talked of other problems the homeless can face, including alcohol consumption lowering body temperature, and, in the summer, the increased danger of being robbed or raped.
“We will always have poor – through addictions, mental health, calamities,” Mr. Schaeffer-Duffy said. But the problem of the working-poor can be addressed – by paying them enough so they can support themselves, he explained. He applied that to stores, people hiring someone to shovel their sidewalk, and subcontractors who pay undocumented workers less than minimum wage and stop paying and threaten deportation when they complain.
He also said legislation guaranteeing a living wage needs to be passed; minimum wage needs to be tagged to inflation like social security is, to keep it up to date.

HOW TO HELP

Mustard Seed Catholic Worker House:
93 Piedmont St., Worcester
508-754-7098

• warm coats and blankets
• peanut butter and cereal

SS. Francis and Therese Catholic Worker House: 52 Mason St., Worcester
508-753-3588
• boots and mittens for adults

Net of Compassion (for shelter at St. John’s):
www.netofcompassion.org
774-578-1128
• winter clothes and socks
• volunteers for the 11 p.m.
-3 a.m. and 3-7 a.m. shifts
at St. John’s