When I first started my job, the violence I saw and was threatened upon me bothered me. It kind of broke my heart that people hated that much. Then I realized I wasn’t the only one that experienced that and the guys were generally back in jail where they got help for anger and some time too cool off.
What breaks my heart now is the guys who have mental health problems and are a threat to no one but slip through the cracks. They usually fall to the staff and then I get involved and involve some other agencies. The idea of growing old alone is a sad enough thought. The idea of growing old alone, being homeless, and confused over what is happening around them is worse. It takes so long to unravel what the problem is and find solutions but for all of us it is time well spent.
What frustrates me is every time I buy a homeless person a meal is that they are ex-military. We always talk about how much we value our troops, but then we don’t take care of those who come home with problems. I hope that our new Veteran Secretary in America (whom I like very much) will try to make changes.