We and They Are Simply We

The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASPA as an organization.

By Robert A. Hunter
June 3, 2024

They may be called street people, bag ladies, beggars, panhandlers, shopping cart ladies, tramps, vagrants or drifters, but they are still human beings, still members of our communities and still impacting our lives in one way or another.

Homelessness costs our communities dearly in terms of healthcare, behavioral health services, shelter and jail services and workforce losses.

Individually and collectively, we can find ways to humanely deal with the homeless challenge.

Thirty-six years ago, Dr. Floyd Seager stepped out of a medical conference in Ogden, Utah, and discovered a helpless, fallen man on the street and went to his aid. He learned that the man was homeless and had no access to medical care. Dr. Seager saw a need and filled it by establishing a free medical center for those in need, now known as the Seager Memorial Clinic. He soon recruited medical colleagues to volunteer their time and expertise. They learned the names of those they served.

Dr. Seager passed away in 1996, but his compassion and willingness to take action had left a legacy of service improving the health of thousands who felt they had nowhere else to turn. Almost 85,000 patient visits have occurred since the clinic’s inception.

Recently, while speaking with one of the nurses at the clinic, she told me the story of a homeless man for whom she was administering care when he began to cry. She asked if she was hurting him. His reply was, “No, you’re not hurting me. It’s just that I haven’t felt the human touch in two years.”

When we get to know the homeless, individually, personally, and know their names, we also get to know their needs, and begin to understand how we can give them the specific help they require to enhance their lives and wellbeing.

In 1971 a young man named Rhett Potter, serving as a mental health support specialist in our Ogden community, recognized the need for housing people with mental health issues where they are and providing a positive social atmosphere for those patients, as opposed to warehousing them in the state hospital. Now, at the age of 85 and more than 50 years later, Mr. Potter still shepherds the members of PAAG (Problems Anonymous Action Group) by providing group housing and socialization at a drop-in center. He knows their names. He knows their needs. And he’s done his work at a fraction of the cost of state housing. Chances are, these PAAG members would otherwise be unattended and hopelessly without positive recovery.

The stories of Dr. Seager and Mr. Potter are just two examples of people who recognize challenges and develop solutions to help the homeless and forgotten. Such leaders are not just found in Ogden, Utah but across the country.

The nonprofit Community Solutions has organized a movement called Built for Zero whose goal is “to enact federal, state and local policies that drive reductions in homelessness so that every community can make homelessness rare and brief.”

So far more than 100 communities across the nation have joined the movement, establishing local initiatives to make homelessness rare and brief.

One tool they use is to create a by-name list of homeless persons, which tells them who is homeless, the nature of their specific needs and gives them a way to network and connect individuals with appropriate resources and services.

Each community has found that in order to succeed, the common misconceptions about homelessness must also be erased.

First, we must not assume that homelessness is the result of a person’s choice.

Second, we cannot believe that people are homeless because they’re lazy, asking, “Why can’t they just get a job?”

Third, we should understand that people who are food and housing insecure are not all the same. We cannot judge by appearances. And we cannot apply universal solutions.

Fourth, homelessness does not equate to danger and violence. Fearing the homeless benefits no one. These are people who simply need help.

The website breaktime.org offers further information about such misconceptions.

In addition to efforts by people like Floyd Seager and Rhett Potter in various municipalities and counties, local governments and nonprofits can collaboratively strategize to carry out a sensible, progressive plan for homeless mitigation.

The Community Solutions organization and its Built for Zero movement offers refreshing and useful suggestions.

As with many solution-seeking organizations in America, United Way of Northern Utah is hiring a Housing and Homeless Systems Coordinator. This position will report not only to United Way’s nonprofit coalition, but also to the County Commission, thus drawing government and pertinent nonprofits together for coordinated action. The Governor of Utah also recently appointed a housing czar and homeless czar to support such initiatives from a state level as well.

Believing that homelessness can be virtually eliminated and believing that homeless individuals need to be treated with respect and service is a huge first step in lifting the wellbeing of our communities.

Truly, there is no we and they. We are all we.

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Author: Robert A. Hunter is a longtime leader in Utah’s government and nonprofit arenas. He currently serves as Public Policy Advisor for United Way of Northern Utah and teaches Leadership and Political Life at Weber State University. He may be reached at [email protected].

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