Kind Words campaign connects community with the homeless
Forgotten, unwanted, outcast, invisible is how it feels to be homeless.
In response to this problem, the Lake County Haven, a Libertyville-based nonprofit that provides shelter and services to women and children in crisis, is launching an innovative program called the Kind Words Campaign.
This new program asks the people of Lake County to take a moment out of their lives and throw an emotional life preserver to those who are homeless.
Interested members of the community are to simply put a few words of hope, encouragement, or advice on paper and mail it to the Haven. Messages can also be sent directly through the Haven’s website at www.LakeCountyHaven.org.
The messages will be shared with the homeless women and children in the Haven’s residential programs.
There are 633,782 people who are homeless on a given night in the United States, according to a report by the Department of Housing and Urban Development in 2012.
Often, homelessness is precipitated by domestic violence, catastrophic illness, trauma, or job loss. Regardless of the reason for homelessness, the experience of it is much the same. People scramble for a warm bed, a roof, food, and all the necessities of life. But there is another facet of homelessness that is often overlooked: the emotional experience.
“Our residents often are most shaken not by the material changes, but by the change in their status and self-esteem,” said Laura Sabino, executive director of the Haven. “They have lost their job, their home, their friends and family — everything that normally gives a person a sense of stability, belonging and identity in life. Suddenly, it’s all gone. They ask themselves, ‘Who am I now?’”
Who they are, and how they are regarded, are startlingly different from when they had homes and jobs. Now they have become the outcasts of society.
During the holidays, this sense of alienation becomes even stronger.
This new initiative is designed to send a different message.
“We are hoping for a real outpouring of support: thousands of messages of hope and encouragement,” Sabino explains. “That would send a really strong message to our clients. One that says, ‘You are cared about. You are loved. You matter.’”
For the past 21 years, the Lake County Haven has provided shelter and services to women and children. The Haven rarely has an empty bed, and in fact, receives many more requests from people than they can possibly fulfill.
Former Haven resident, Nancy, became homeless when her business failed. She spent some time selling off her possessions, but eventually there was nothing left to sell. Her home was in foreclosure and the sheriff was coming to put her out on the street. Nancy felt frightened and unsure.
“Being homeless is like being invisible,” she said. “A lot of people in your life will not want to see you, will walk right past you — you have no home to go to, to have your stuff. No home to be yourself in or let your hair down at night.”
Then she came to the Haven, and after a lot of hard work, her life began moving in a new direction. Now Nancy has her own home, a full-time job, savings and a future. She will always be grateful to the Haven for being there in her hour of need. Nancy says, “This is just a wonderful program. They take good care of people.”