Have you ever worked at or donated to a homeless shelter?

[ThomWV]

It has been my experience to notice that homeless shelters are always underfunded and understaffed.

Have you ever worked at or donated to a homeless shelter?

[bigwillq]

1. Donated food, money and supplies

Have never worked at one.

[Birdiesmom]

12. Done 1, 2 &3...

...would be nice if folks could vote for more than one option if they've done more than one. Maybe you should have a "multi" option.

Great poll!:toast:

[L0oniX]

2. I help feed the homeless every Saturday afternoon.

[patrice]

3. I used to help out at a Catholic Worker House.

[Lerkfish]

4. I've done 1,2,3

but you don't have a choice for all of the above, so I just picked two

[MineralMan]

5. All of the above.

[no_hypocrisy]

6. I volunteered to provide dinner to homeless families who lived in the basement of a church.

My colleagues slept overnight with them to ensure their safety.

Everyone should do this at least once. Once for the experience and more than once for the needed assistance to these individuals and families.

[Beacho]

7. Does teaching computers at the library count?

I've also taught English classes to ESL students. Some of the people were homeless, others not too far away.

[FSogol]

8. Yes, 1, 2, & 3. n/t

[Cal Carpenter]

9. How about an option for people who are employed at a shelter?

They generally do have some paid staff, too...

[euphoria12leo]

10. 2 & 3 Rescue Mission n/t

[Toucano]

11. I worked for the Salvation Army on two occassions in my life.

I was naive.

I won't do that again!

They are a horrible organization.

[tjwash]

13. My wife's an advocate for the homeless...I've donated time, money, labor, and equipment.

A lot of the staffing at the shelters and crisis-houses are ex-clients, that aren't paid very well to begin with. The folks that give their time at a lot of those spots are what keeps them afloat.

[Le Taz Hot]

14. I've done both.

I'll tell you what kills me every time. The children. In our local shelter, there is a separate section for families with children. In the adult-only section, they serve chow line style but in the family section, they get served restaurant style. The first time I served a family, the little girl, probably 7 or so, looked up at me with grateful eyes and said simply, "Thank you." I lost it. I went in the back and cried my eyes out for this little girl and the millions in her situation. And that was WAY before the bottom dropped out of the economy.

[scubadude]

15. I've done 1 and 3 on a number of occasions.

I have put my vote on 3 though, because that is what I have done the most.

Scuba

[State the Obvious]

16. Done 1, 2, and 3....

I was a volunteer for School On Wheels. Volunteers are assigned to a local shelter and they tutor the young children after school. I started with two children in one family that were in pre-school and elementary school....now, one is in community college, the other in high school....both are honor students. I am so proud of both of them.:hug: They worked so hard under some very stressful circumstances; they were an inspiration to me.

[11 Bravo]

17. Yes, several times, and both of my sons accompanied me to help out as well.