This evening while my husband and I were on the way to our car after dinner we came across a man on a corner playing a guitar and harmonica and singing. I told my husband, maybe we should see if we can help him. He reminded me, not everyone on the corner was homeless.
We passed another man hunkering down in front of a store, surely he can benefit from the package. While looking at my husband I told him that someone was hunkering down for the night and maybe can use one of the care packages that we made. The man was stooped down taking items of out his napsack when I approached, then I held the package out in front of me and said, I have this package and you can have it if you feel you would benefit from it. He began to ask me why I was handing him the package and I responded because I care for people and am wanting to help. "I get that" he said, "But WHY???" At that moment, I looked at him and said, "Because I believe God wants me to do this." He stepped back with a smile on his face and said, "OKAY, what you are doing is a good thing." Then he asked me if I belonged to a charity, "No, my husband and I put these together last weekend." He said the bags look like something he had seen that was given out to homeless individuals on the street. I repeated that we packed these last weekend. He said he didn't want to take the only one I had, I told him there were two more packages in the car so it is not a problem. Then he asked for all three. I was wondering why he was asking me for the other two packages and he began sharing with me how women are exploited on the street and not as resourceful as the men are. Then he asked me if I go to church. I responded, "No, I no longer go to church, but I have HIS word and HIM and that is all I need." The man smiled and said that he really does not need the packages because he has all the items he needs, but the women will need them. He began sharing with me to go to the CVS and see who goes in and out of the store and watch who is hunkering down. See if they are drinking liquor and if they are, then those are the people we don't want to give the packages to. He said what some do is, instead of purchasing the items they need to survive, by giving them a package it frees up money for them to get things they don't need to keep them where they are. Never have I thought of this before, but I am saddened by it. I want to be able to help everyone, but I don't want someone freezing on the street because I enabled them to continue in an addiction or keeping them on the street.
Since it is getting colder outside I asked what things are helpful. He told me that socks, gloves, hats and under garments are important for the women to keep them warm. He shared with me that there are shelters in the area and since it is getting cold, many will be staying in the shelter. He shared with me that there are churches that help and there is a minister that goes to different coffee shops in the area and ministers to them. It has taken a while for them to get used to this minister because they are in a vulnerable situation. The women do not go into the coffee shops, because they are exploited by the men on the streets. He also told me when I give a package to a woman, there is often a man behind her that will indirectly benefit from the package.
I asked him his name and he told me. His voice was very soft and gentle. He told me, the way we can help him is to give him a check for him to do his laundry with the check made out to the laundry mat, but to ask my husband first and go along with my husbands decision. He told me the reason he was asking for a check is because cash does not go to the intended purpose or they get beat up for the cash. (This is true, one of the girls I helped the other week was beat up for the $20 we gave her.)
My husband came over to see what was taking me so long and met him. He payed compliments about me to my wife and told my husband the same things he told me. He was also, very thankful and expressing his gratitude for our willingness to help others. He also, told us that he had $7 cash, but needed $10 do his laundry.
We all said our pleasantries, then my husband and I left. While we were in the car we were discussing if we should give him a check and I REALLY want to, but you have to think of the impact one can have giving a stranger a check. The worse thing they could do is take the routing number and account number to pay for items on the internet. So we thought maybe we can meet up with him tomorrow and meet him at the laundry store to give him the money to do his laundry, but then my husband mentioned that he does have $7. It is not that we don't want to help, but we also want to be careful and keep ourselves safe too.
What would you have done?
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