Growing Homelessness Touches “Average People” in America
Growing Homelessness Touches “Average People” in America
Albuquerque, N.M. —If you catch CNN tonight, you probably won't see a story about the homeless in America. Almost any other story is more important, whether it’s the President’s latest speech, or Paris Hilton’s latest escapade.
But the homeless are still with us. According to National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, there are 760,000 people homeless on any given night, and 1.2 to 2 million people experience homelessness during a year.
There are more homeless people on the streets than ever, and many of the newcomers are not the mentally ill or drug users that people commonly see. Just last week, those new street people may have been your neighbors.
Dr. Jeremy Reynalds, is the Executive Director of Joy Junction, in Albuquerque, N.M., one of the few homeless shelters in America that provides a place for entire families. He said, “We are seeing a definite upswing in the numbers of families who need our services.”
In his new book, Homeless In The City: A Call To Service, published by Theatron Books, Reynalds gave a composite picture of many families they are now seeing at his facility.
He said, “The Wilson family is a couple in their 30s with three children, ages 7, 5 and 2 months, and typically they live in a colder climate. One day, the husband learns there is going to a job cut-back. They cling too long in their home community hoping a new job will materialize, and soon run out of money. The mortgage company starts calling to collect missed house payments, and in desperation the couple decides to sell what they have, and move out west, where they have heard there is plenty of work.”
But the trip out west is not without its problems, Reynalds said. “They have already maxed-out their credit cards and they don't have much cash. Staying in motels and eating out is expensive, even at fast-food places. Car problems take all their cash, and they arrive penniless in Albuquerque.”
Reynalds has seen this type scenario play out many times. “They can't even afford a cheap motel while they look for work, so they come to our shelter," he said. "It can be a very humiliating experience for people who might have been homeowners just a few weeks earlier.”
Reynalds, a transplanted Englishman, has been the Executive Director of Joy Junction for 20 years. He knows how people who come to Joy Junction feel; he was homeless and hungry himself at one point in his life, and had a family to feed. He understands how important it is for people to be able to retain their God-given dignity when adversity strikes.
He likes telling Joy Junction guests about his past. He was homeless, but now has degrees from the University of New Mexico and a Ph.D. from Biola University. He is the founder of Joy Junction, now in its 20th year, and it is New Mexico’s largest emergency homeless shelter. His “rags to spiritual riches” story has inspired many Joy Junction residents to catapult themselves into more enriching lives.
“Our focus is to give a hand up, not a hand out,” said Reynalds.
Reynalds would like to see individual Christians and local churches play a greater role in helping the homeless.
He said, “Too often people think they’re helping when they give a street person loose change, but the problem is much deeper than that. That’s why I wrote this book—I would like regular Christians to know that having a heart for the homeless is a very definite call to Christian service.”
Editors and writers are free to reprint this material as provided, or to use it as a basis for an expanded story.
You can discover more about Reynalds and his ministry, and learn about his new book, Homeless In The City: A Call To Service, at www.HomelessBook.com.
Albuquerque, N.M. —If you catch CNN tonight, you probably won't see a story about the homeless in America. Almost any other story is more important, whether it’s the President’s latest speech, or Paris Hilton’s latest escapade.
But the homeless are still with us. According to National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, there are 760,000 people homeless on any given night, and 1.2 to 2 million people experience homelessness during a year.
There are more homeless people on the streets than ever, and many of the newcomers are not the mentally ill or drug users that people commonly see. Just last week, those new street people may have been your neighbors.
Dr. Jeremy Reynalds, is the Executive Director of Joy Junction, in Albuquerque, N.M., one of the few homeless shelters in America that provides a place for entire families. He said, “We are seeing a definite upswing in the numbers of families who need our services.”
In his new book, Homeless In The City: A Call To Service, published by Theatron Books, Reynalds gave a composite picture of many families they are now seeing at his facility.
He said, “The Wilson family is a couple in their 30s with three children, ages 7, 5 and 2 months, and typically they live in a colder climate. One day, the husband learns there is going to a job cut-back. They cling too long in their home community hoping a new job will materialize, and soon run out of money. The mortgage company starts calling to collect missed house payments, and in desperation the couple decides to sell what they have, and move out west, where they have heard there is plenty of work.”
But the trip out west is not without its problems, Reynalds said. “They have already maxed-out their credit cards and they don't have much cash. Staying in motels and eating out is expensive, even at fast-food places. Car problems take all their cash, and they arrive penniless in Albuquerque.”
Reynalds has seen this type scenario play out many times. “They can't even afford a cheap motel while they look for work, so they come to our shelter," he said. "It can be a very humiliating experience for people who might have been homeowners just a few weeks earlier.”
Reynalds, a transplanted Englishman, has been the Executive Director of Joy Junction for 20 years. He knows how people who come to Joy Junction feel; he was homeless and hungry himself at one point in his life, and had a family to feed. He understands how important it is for people to be able to retain their God-given dignity when adversity strikes.
He likes telling Joy Junction guests about his past. He was homeless, but now has degrees from the University of New Mexico and a Ph.D. from Biola University. He is the founder of Joy Junction, now in its 20th year, and it is New Mexico’s largest emergency homeless shelter. His “rags to spiritual riches” story has inspired many Joy Junction residents to catapult themselves into more enriching lives.
“Our focus is to give a hand up, not a hand out,” said Reynalds.
Reynalds would like to see individual Christians and local churches play a greater role in helping the homeless.
He said, “Too often people think they’re helping when they give a street person loose change, but the problem is much deeper than that. That’s why I wrote this book—I would like regular Christians to know that having a heart for the homeless is a very definite call to Christian service.”
Editors and writers are free to reprint this material as provided, or to use it as a basis for an expanded story.
You can discover more about Reynalds and his ministry, and learn about his new book, Homeless In The City: A Call To Service, at www.HomelessBook.com.
posted by Cindy at 6:50 AM
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