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It’s truly wonderful, after a day like today you can return home, kick back, and reminisce
over your day. But what if you couldn’t? What if you were one of approximately 3.5
million Americans annually that don’t have a place to call home. What if your children
were part of 1.35 million annually in America that don’t have a place to sleep at night.
I’m talking about homelessness. Homelessness is something that might not affect this room
directly. However, you can have a direct impact on those that fall within the 3.5 million.
Today, I want to provide you with some staggering statistics associated with homelessness. Not
just nationally, but in our own backyard. I want to paint a picture for all of us as
to what it might be like for someone living homelessly in Rochester. Also, I want to give
you an idea of how you can help with this local and national dilemma. So who am I and
why am I up here preaching to you about homelessness? Well, I’ve served on many outreach programs,
ranging from my hometown in upstate New York and down the East Coast. I’ve assisted in
shelters in New Jersey to church outreach programs in New York. From shelters in Tennessee
to disaster relief in the wake of hurricane Katrina. Recently I’ve begun talking with
the Monroe County Office of Mental Health regarding assistance through my fraternal
organization, doing whatever we can. I contacted the Monroe County Office of Mental Health
following a homeless relocation effort, headed by my father, Amtrack Police Department detective
Steven Ulrich. My father, as well as workers from the city of Rochester and Monroe County
collaborated in relocating those found in this encampment to a homeless shelter located
in Rochester. This is truly something that is present in our backyard. It’s time for
us to help our neighbors in their time of need. Before continuing with the Rochester-specific
situation, I want to give you statistics involving homelessness nationwide, and here in Monroe
County. According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, in 2011 there were at
any given time about 636,000 homeless individuals in the United States. That means nationwide
21 in 10,000 people were homeless. 21 individuals in 10,000 do not have a place to go home to
right now. 21 people in 10,000 that likely don’t have a meal for tonight. Of those
636,000, 67,000 have no suitable shelter over their head. That is some 636,000 Americans
that do not experience basic accommodations we have so blindly enjoyed. How did Monroe
County compare to those national averages? I’m glad to say, the homelessness rate in
this area is only 9.5 out of 10,000 people. With the area’s population being about 700,000,
there’s still at any time about 700 homeless individuals on the street. Individuals such
as those located along the tracks near the Amtrack station or reside in the discarded
subway system. Allow me to set the scene with you at the tracks as viewed by my father.
He described the camp as rudimentary shelters consisting of tarps and scrap lumber. Just
imagine blue tarps in the cold winter’s wind or water pooling during a fall or spring
shower. Certainly not suitable protection from the local weather we are all so fond
of. Such shelter leaves many of the inhabitants to experience deteriorating health from exposure
to weather, which is only perpetuated through deprived diet, scant sanitation, and poor
personal hygiene. As with many hardships and tragedies, homelessness is blind. It could
affect almost anyone given the current instability nationwide. One such individual within this
encampment was a former RIT graduate by the name of Linda. While I cannot provide a great
deal of information about her, I can tell you that she graduated in the early 1990s
from RIT. That’s one of our Tigers among many other Rochesterians that was struck by
the indiscriminate hardship that is homelessness. Luckily, Linda was assisted into housing along
with her husband during the project between Amtrack and Rochester. I can only hope that
this relocation has provided her and her husband with a better opportunity. According to my
father and the Monroe County Office of Mental Health, the group has had modest success adapting
to a real home after so many years of homelessness. Considering how many of them have been without
a proper home, this is a fantastic thing. However, this issue is ever reoccurring. One
in something we can all help alleviate. I told you I was currently in contact with the
Monroe County Office of Mental Health. Such an action serves as a small example as to
how you can help. All it takes is a little initiative on your part, whether acting as
an individual or as part of an organization. You and your organization can assist with
such programs, uh, with this ever-present issue. Your participation can be as simple
as helping local church groups with meals to assisting with major outreach groups as
those conducted by the Office of Mental Health. These organizations are always looking for
assistance, from lending a helping hand, to monetary donations. As an example, Mercy Community
Service is always seeking assistance. You could volunteer your time in clerical or office
work helping organize future projects, provide physical contributions through donation collection
and sorting to facility maintenance and repair. If perhaps you are a skilled individual in
areas of medicine, physicians to dentists are always needed in outreach programs. This
is only a short list of ways you can get involved with many of the community outreach programs.
For a better list of ways you can participate, visit the Mercy Community Service webpage.
I hope this serves as a humble reminder to you all. Homelessness, while not likely an
immediate threat to us all, can affect those in our nearby community. I wish I could provide
specific dates and times that organizations require our help; however, the sad yet very
true answer is that our help is always needed. It’s up to you Rochester. Do your part.
Call your local outreach organization such as Mercy Community Service or the Monroe County
Office of Mental Health and assist our community in whatever way possible. Please, as you depart,
consider individuals such as Linda, as they live without a place to call home.