At the most recent MLK equality march I had an acquaintance pause long enough to ask me to talk with him about a homeless shelter for Starkville.
I was reminded of his comment recently when our Episcopal EFM class was talking about local churches feeding those in need.
A discussion about shelter for homeless would seem to go hand in hand with food pantries and “soup kitchens.” Is there a need? If so, how great is it? Where are the homeless in our community? Where are the resources to address the needs?
I was also recently approached about a battered women’s shelter for Starkville. From that I concluded, we need all of the same crisis type services that any larger city requires. It’s time to decide how to address them.
As I wander off into things with which I have absolutely no experience, my presumption is that it just doesn’t seem to be that hard a thing to make happen. I am sure there are issues that would make it challenging in implementation, but I can’t imagine we can’t work out the details. I also can’t imagine that there would be territorial issues between churches over feeding and sheltering those in need in our community.
I know the Salvation Army has as its mission to “house the homeless and feed the hungry.” That sounds like the perfect coordinating agency for meeting those unanswered needs.
We spend all kinds of local time, effort and money trekking to places like Haiti, the Dominican Republic and parts unknown when our own backyard would seem to be just as deserving. Why is that? Do we not recognize it, or do we just not want to acknowledge it?
The casserole kitchen, a twice-a-week joint effort at the First Presbyterian Church, is a model program. If there are truly homeless and hungry in town then there needs to be at least one easily accessible location that serves at least one meal a day.
How difficult would it be to find a location for a shelter as well as a place to feed those in need? Now that we have free mass transit we can reach the members of our community unable to afford a decent meal. Maybe there is a centrally located church on the bus route that would allow that service on a regular basis.
It is probably easier and more successful to proselytize or evangelize to a full stomach than an empty one. I realize we have several food pantries around town, but if you are homeless and without can opener or stove, I’m not sure what benefit they are.
It can’t go unnoticed that we have multiple church structures that are for the most part uninhabited six days out of the week. In fact, it appears that the old VanLandingham building now owned by the First Baptist Church stays mostly unused.
We’ve all heard the old saw that the most segregated time in America is from 11 to 12 Sunday morning. Even if we don’t worship together, we have compatible goals achievable through cooperation and action.
I spoke with two individuals, who are pretty savvy about the community. One claimed there was a homeless problem and the other didn’t. Whether it’s a family staying with friends or someone sleeping in their car or someone finding a place in Walmart to stay warm, they exist elsewhere and it is folly to believe Starkville is immune.
A friend has occasionally seen homeless from her time at the library, people lingering there until it closed for the night then transitioning to their cars.
I believe there are homeless in our community. We know there are those who are in need of food. It should be worth the effort to research the magnitude of the problem. Sounds like a good masters or doctoral thesis for an intrepid MSU social sciences grad student to me.
Using our resources and creativity, maybe the faith based non-profits in both the county and the city can cooperate on this particular mission to truly make a difference in our own backyard.
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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