“I wanna climb into a microwave and turn it on high,” said Chris early last Saturday morning, as he stood shivering in front of SK Market on Washington Street NE in Downtown Olympia. “I am so cold.”
He had a point. With the mercury down in the high teens, the unsheltered and homeless man had spent the night huddled in a storefront doorway down the block. When asked why he had not gone over to the nearby Olympia Union Gospel Mission or used any of the other sites opened specifically to provide a warm place, he said that he did not like them. He then slowly headed in the direction of the Olympia Alano Club.
Another unsheltered and homeless man further Washington struggled to get out from under a pile of tarps and blankets. Asked why he had spent the night on the sidewalk against a building and not in a shelter, Nemo replied, “I don’t like the rules.”
Proceeding down along 4th Avenue East into the heart of the quiet, dark and cold city, Tammy had found a spot to shelter near McMenamins Spar Café. She too said she didn’t want to stay in a shelter, but then added, “The police have been really good about checking up on me.”
The JOLT met another five unsheltered and homeless individuals; some said the same thing about not wanting to use a shelter; others offered no opinion.
As dawn approached, more of Olympia’s homeless began to slowly appear in a parking lot at the intersection of Franklin and State Streets. In the center of the lot, individuals associated with Joyful Hands Ministries were setting up canopy covers, tables and portable griddles in preparation to serve breakfast to the homeless.
“I’m glad to see these folks here,” said Sean, as he held a cup of coffee and watched as food was being prepared. “I was lucky enough to stay warm last night. If I had been out in this cold, I think I would have died.”
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Oly1963
Thank you for verifying what I've been saying for a long time. These people ARE offered choices - and they made their choice. Now we need to make ours. Do we want people who refuse to follow the rules in shelters to be on the streets of our town? Do we want their drug use or psychiatric problems interfering with our ability to shop and dine in our once lovely downtown? We have choices too - lets start making them so these people get choices that also benefit Olympia - do they want to change their lifestyle - get them the help they need to kick their drug addiction or treatment in psychiatric facilities. If they don't want to change - enforce the laws we have and spend our tax dollars on jail, not giving them more of what is creating the problem in the first place. Choose change - choose what's best for those of us who love our community and are tired of supporting people who are not interested in working and living a productive life among us.
Tuesday, January 16 Report this
CPWINOLY
You know what? I don't like "the rules" either. Sometimes I'd prefer to drive 100mph on I-5 instead of 65, or not pay my income tax, or throw my garbage on my neighbors lawn, but I follow "the rules" because I'm not a sociopath. "The rules" keep our society from decaying into anarchy. Like the prior commentator I'm willing to assist my unhoused neighbors in need, but not wanting to follow "the rules" makes it difficult, if not impossible to feel sympathy for their plight.
Tuesday, January 16 Report this