All-N-ONE Facility
1144 words by mani
At this point it is really hard to think about a plan for the three most important issues that I choose to address. The fact of the matter is that one has to be addressed and a plan has to be developed so I think that I will choose the issue of homelessness. The initial thing that I would do for this project is research to find out exactly how many homeless people there are in certain cities. How am I supposed to start a program without doing research about it first. I would want to know the average amount of people that are homeless and then I would want to know their approximate ages. Are there a lot of children that are homeless or is it more adults? The next thing that I would want to research is where they stay. This would include physically going out and interviewing people on the street where they sleep from day to day. I actually think that that would be a good idea for me to go out and interview them. That way I could get all the facts. I would even be able to find out why they are homeless and whether they know about shelters or programs that offer assistance. On top of all of this I would have to pick a city to concentrate on. Each city probably has different types of shelters and different assistance programs that they offer so I would have to choose a specific demographic to do my research.
After conducting research and interviews I would turn my attention towards sponsorships and also ways of raising money to build facilities. I am not sure whether people realize it or not, but it is hard to start programs and even small foundations without money. I am sure that there are non-profit organizations out there that would donate money to helping the homeless and those are the ones that I would seek out to help me start my project off.
Before I were to do all of that I think that I would have to sit down to come up with an exact plan of what exactly it was that I wanted to accomplish. I would try to come up with some kind of motto. You know something like a mission statement. I think that if I were to come up with that then it would make it a lot easier for outsiders to understand where it is that I am coming from and it would let them know precisely what I was trying to accomplish. Would you be willing to give money to a group that just said that they were collecting money to help the homeless, but had no kind of solid proof or some type of paperwork to back it up? You know how those little kids come to your door and they are selling candy? Some kids just have their candy in a little red box and you ask yourself are they legit? Then there are those other children who have the candy bars with the name of the fundraising organizations on the outside of the box and also on the candy they sell you. Now that is legit and if I were to try to come at somebody to ask them for their hard earned money so that I could help others I would want to be legit, because a lot of the time if they give once they will most likely give again. People would realize that they are giving their money to a really good cause. A lot of the times people like to see what their money is doing for the community.
Some of the main things that I would want to establish are medical screenings and medical assistance for the homeless. Many of them could be wandering the streets sick and there would be no way for them to get any kind of medication for what they have. I bet the disease rates among the homeless are high because they are not able to maintain a certain level of cleanliness because of their lifestyle, and I could be completely stereotyping right now. I am not completely sure what goes on with a homeless person and it is wrong to make assumptions, but that is the only way that I can get this assignment done. I have to address what I think is a problem. I just wanted to make that sure in case someone was reading this and thinking, she has no idea what it means to be homeless. My response if someone were to say that would be, yeah you are right I don’t have any idea what it means to be homeless. I am doing my best to interpret what I think a homeless person would have to deal with on a daily basis.
Another idea n addition to the medical care would also be a center that would help with basic skills like reading and writing. It would be like a job skills development program. While they were in the program they would also be learning what it means to manage money, if they were the type of person that wanted to establish some kind of independence in the future. I have heard that many homeless people actually choose to be homeless because they don’t have any real responsibilities, but they are still fed and provided shelter and other things on a regular basis for no charge. My project would basically be me trying to help them help themselves. This may be another stereotype but I am pretty sure that there are those who are homeless and have an addiction problem that they would want to get help with. I am not sure if detox programs are free but that would also be something that was offered at my facility. They would be able to come in to get the right diagnosis and also they would have somewhere to stay while they got their life in order.
I would have to say that this proposal that I have come up with is not completely unattainable. I think that if I were truly dedicated to making it happen that I could really pull it off, but it would defiantly take along time. It is also something that I wouldn’t be able to do by myself. I would need a team of people and everyone would have a specific job that focused on the production of one of the aspects of the facility. I am starting to think that if I were not going to be a doctor and help people out that way then I would really try to pursue this. It makes me feel good to know that I would and possibly could have a positive influence on someone else’s life.
February 2nd, 2005 at 5:04 pm
I think that your ideas were great, and I think that assuming isn’t wrong, because at this point with no research thats all that you can do.
February 3rd, 2005 at 3:33 pm
I think that researching is a good way to start and interviewing the homeless is even better. But the problem is why they are homeless, especailly adults. Are they homeless becuase they are choosing to be homeless. I know no one wants to be homeless, but i have heard of a story of homeless people. It’s really funny how sometimes people are doing their best to get these people a home and they don’t care for it. Infact in my story the government built some apartments for homeless and beggers so they can have a decent place to live, instead of living in their apartment they rented them to other people and decided to stay on street. It’s a shame but a big part of this story is true. Anyway, just so that story don’t repeat again I think one of the major cause for homeless is umemployment, and i think it is more important then homeless alone.
February 4th, 2005 at 9:35 am
Wuzup Imani
I am glad somebody other than I think about the homless and their situation. You are right. The questions that should be asked is, why are you homless or did you choose this way of life. I know some people like to fake it by standing on the corner with nicer clothing then I have and say they are homeless. They make it bad for the people who are truly homeless. I wish the city leaders could be more like you on this issue. They should get some of the houses and buildings just left for nothing and open them up to the homless. What can it hurt. It would give the truly need a feeling of someone is looking after me. You would make a great social worker. We need more like you. Someone who cares about the community and it problems.
February 4th, 2005 at 9:46 pm
I think that it is very admirable that you want to do a project to help the homeless of the city. To be honest, I don’t think I would be able to do it. I kind of have a phobia about that sort of thing. But I think that if I were ever in that situation, I would want more people to be like you and think about the welfare and the needs of the homeless. When I see the homeless guys on the side of the road holding up the signs asking for money, I wonder is it really for food or is it for cigarettes and beer? I have seen that happen. My parents used to own a grocery store, every once in a while a homeless person would be outside begging for money to buy food, but then come in to buy a 40 oz bottle of beer. That is what has kind of pushed me away from these kinds of ideas.
February 5th, 2005 at 1:32 pm
Way to rep the best of Kansas, girl! Like you stated I believe your plan is attainable. Your plan appears to be well thought our and aspects of legitimacy, finance and program structure are covered quite nicely. Maybe after becoming a doctor you and a few of your colleagues could look back upon this plan and really get something started. And also that way you could save some money by acting as your own medical directors for this “all-n-one” facility. You make the plan sound so simple and that is encouraging and lends the idea that “yeah, this CAN be done.” I’m also glad that you stated the fact that you might be somewhat ignorant to what homelessness is, but you are trying to learn through helping and that would offer you an extraordinary education of homelessness that you could then share with others (like me) who have no clue. Overall, great idea for a solution to homelessness.
February 6th, 2005 at 12:11 pm
I think you have a very logical mind with a lot of business sense. Too bad you are pre-med. You are absolutely right about the homeless. A lot of people just see them as lazy drunk people who dont want to work, but that’s not true for all. Many of them are children, battered families, and some of them have degrees and all but lost everything. We would like to think that these people had compassionate families to take care of them, yet they may juist not. If or when I get rich you can come and ask me for some money for your foundation because you are going to need a lot of it. People who work 9 to 5’s have a hard enough time getting decent health insurance, and you want to provide it to those who usually dont have two dimes to rub together. Even so, I’d put my faith behind your program.
February 8th, 2005 at 9:31 pm
Hello my sister! You have one of the best ideas for your project. I believe that many of the homeless in our community get stereotyped as “whinos” and “bums”. Many individuals are willing to work hard, but they are never given the chance. Some homeless people are very talented but are just down on their luck. Some were successful earlier in their lives but fell into hard times. Your project shows the type of person you are: compassionate, loving, and selfless. I don’t know how many people would want to support such a plan because I often hear the phrase “I have my own problems”. I would, however, love to support your project in the future. Good luck, great blog, and God bless!
February 10th, 2005 at 8:12 pm
Imani Goree-
I agree that homeless is a very big problem and research first needs to be done. I really like the order that you laid your plan out in to combat homelessness. I’m really liked how you would like to go to the homeless and actually interview them. I think that we tend to look at homeless people as failures, instead of people. Society tends to look down to them without acknowledging the hardships that they’ve went through to make this country so powerful as it is today. With this statement, I’m referring to the Vietnam Vets that are often in the streets begging for money. I really liked your blog, keep up the good work.
February 13th, 2005 at 11:00 am
Wasup this is james from your class i just wanted to say your blogg was pretty interesting and i enjoyed reading it and hope your project works uot for you see you in class holla
February 13th, 2005 at 9:04 pm
I think this is a very good project, because I’ve seen quite a number of homeless people here on campus. I think this is a very big project, and it is going to take a lot of effort on your part. I don’t think you have a choice but to choose New Orleans, unless you know something that I don’t. I don’t know about interviewing homeless people because the ones I’ve seen around here they seem dangerous. So unless you have a group of people you can go with, you should be very careful, because this is New Orleans. Good luck.
March 3rd, 2005 at 8:39 am
Great. Why don’t you contact a homeless shelter and volunteer for starters.
March 7th, 2005 at 1:20 am
What’s up Imani? How’s life? Why did you choose homelessness? My friend and I came in contact with this homeless man at Subway and he asked us if we had any change because they charge about five dollars to stay at the Salvation Army. We gave him what we had but I was curious to know how he had come to the point in his life where he has no place to stay. It made me want to help but I didn’t know what to do. Maybe you can accomplish what I only thought about doing. You have a pretty solid, well thought out project so I can do nothing but wish you the best.