Family Counseling Center staff to attend state event

As you read this paragraph, see if you can find common threads that tie these people together: Don Imus, Burl Ives, Harry Houdini, Jim Carrey, Charlie Chapman, David Letterman, George Orwell, "Colonel" Sanders, Debbie Reynolds, Martin Sheen, Cary Grant, Drew Carey, and Troy Donahue. These names are united here for a purpose, and that purpose is awareness. The common thread that pulls them together is everyone mentioned was once homeless, at least for a while. Homeless people have achieved outstanding success, including becoming Nobel Prize winners, Emmy Award winners, Oscar winners, teachers, writers, artists, university professors, and top business leaders. Being homeless at one point in life does not mean a person will never be a productive citizen, and from the list, just the opposite may well be true.

The Governor's Committee to End Homelessness announces that it will commence activities to commemorate National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week at the State Capitol in Jefferson City on Monday, November 14, 2005. A Resource Fair with participant organizations from around the state will provide information regarding housing and services available for homeless individuals and families in Missouri.

Family Counseling Center staff members Shawn Sando, chief financial officer and Randy Ray, chief operations officer, will participate in the event at the Capitol by providing information and materials on homeless programs and supportive services available to Southeast Missouri.

The event "Walking with People Who Have No Home" will display hundreds of shoes on the Capitol steps and lawn, each representing a number of homeless people in Missouri. The goal is to educate people on the severity of this problem and draw attention to this serious situation in our state and in our nation. The Governor's Committee to End Homelessness reports homelessness is a serious situation that affects thousands of Missourian's daily.

Myra Callahan, chief executive officer of Family Counseling Center and member of the Governor's Committee, reports that each year in Missouri over 26,000 individuals and families experience homelessness. Over half of those are children.

According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, the cost of homelessness can be quite high, particularly for those with chronic illnesses. Because they have no regular place to stay, people who are homeless use a variety of public systems in an inefficient and costly way. Preventing a homeless episode or ensuring a speedy transition into stable permanent housing can result in a significant cost savings. For example, a University of Pennsylvania study of 5,000 formerly homeless, mentally ill people, found that safe, affordable, stable housing reduced the use of public services, saving an average of $16,282 per person per year. These persons had a 57 percent decrease in emergency room visits, 58 percent drop in inpatient treatment days, and a 90 percent drop in the usage of public mental health facilities.

Today, women and children are perhaps the most at-risk of homelessness, and experts suggest that there are more homeless children in America than at any time since the Great Depression, with around 40 percent of America's homeless being women and their children.

Barbara McGuire, MRC, coordinates Family Counseling Center's services for the homeless in Dunklin County who need assistance with housing and mental health services. Her examples of homeless people in the Dunklin County area reveal the problem and results of effective programs. For example, McGuire came into contact with a woman and her two children, who were fleeing domestic violence, taking refuge in a Dunklin County emergency shelter.

"We were able to assist the family with HUD-funded rental assistance as well as services to treat the mother's serious mental health problems," said McGuire. "Coming from a physical and emotional abuse situation, the mother is now able to provide a safe, affordable, stable home for herself and her children. As a result of supportive permanent housing services, her children are able to remain in school and can grow up facing less stress, allowing them a stable environment for play and getting an education.

"This woman's situation is not unusual in the Dunklin County area. There are many men, women, and children who are homeless because of serious physical and/or mental disabilities in our community. Homeless people can receive local help through Family Counseling Center and other service providers in the area," she said. McGuire acknowledged, however, that "resources are often too few in the area to meet the demand for services."

"Before positive, long-term solutions can be realized, public awareness needs to be heightened, said Callahan. "We can no longer view homelessness as an abstract social issue or believe the myth that homelessness is somehow a choice," she added.

For more information on homeless programs in the Dunklin County area, call Family Counseling Center at 573-888-5925 or email the center at info@fccinc.org.