A Look That Changed Perspective

I've begun to write this blog entry many times, but somehow found it difficult to write. As my hands move across the keyboard as I write this story, I find myself shuttering with a feeling of hopelessness. My hands start to shake ever so slightly and my heart begins to ache in a way that I have never known before. I have tried to push through and write, but it just gets too hard. This is a blog that I wanted to write before Christmas. But, my best friend convinced me that I didn't need to. The Holidays are a beautiful time and I didn't need to bring such reality to this blog which has such a positive message. I mean, how could I follow up my Stevie Wonder blog with a post about real life and the struggles that many people in our community go through every day? It turns out that I couldn't do it.

What I was writing about was something that shook me to my bones. In my job, I see and talk about the struggles and issues that face our community. I learn and talk about childhood poverty, homelessness, substance abuse, lack of healthcare to those that need it, lack of viable education options for some, the ever present need for improved safe and timely transportation options for those that need it. We have Task Forces that address these very issues. I've been on the poverty tour led by Bruce Forbes and have seen some of the neediest places in Greenville. Places where our neighbors are living on cardboard. Living under bridges. Living in transition and doubt.

But, through all this, I still live a life of privilege. A life where I know where my next meal is coming from. A life where I know where I will sleep tonight. A life where my family and friends are supportive, strong and loving. A life that has allowed me to move forward on a path of success and has given me the tools to ensure that I do not stray too far from that path. A life where my challenges and struggles center around getting to work on time, making sure my dog is well fed and making up for mistakes that I make with friends and family. All pretty minor in the great scheme of things.

About a month ago, I was walking back to my car after a meeting downtown. It was a cold day, and I was hurrying to get back to my car to feel some heat. While I walked back to my car, I was running lines for a play I was doing out loud. Now, I don't normally do this in public, but for some reason, on that particular afternoon, I did. When I got to my car door, I pulled out my keys to open the lock (unfortunately, I don't have a cool keyless entry mechanism. It's really unfortunate when it's raining.) As I turned the lock on my door, I felt something to my left. Now, what I felt, was not supernatural or surreal, but very real. It was a feeling of emptiness and loss. I hadn't felt it before. It was strange and strong.

As, I turned to my left, I noticed that I was looking at an empty lot. It looks like there was a house there at one time, but it was gone now. I surveyed the lot and noticed that there was debris on the back end of the lot, closest to me. And, then I saw it. In the corner of the lot was a dilapidated dog house. It was leaning to one side, basically caving in from the top. As I looked at the house I saw a face staring at me from the doorway. It was a homeless man, huddled in the broken, falling down dog house. He just stared at me. His eyes were glassy and cold. He didn't look mad. He didn't look mean. He just looked. That's all. He looked at me and through me. I just stood there and looked back. I couldn't move. We both just stared at each other for what seemed like hours. I don't think either of us blinked. After a moment, I opened my door, climbed in my car, started the engine and drove away. The whole time, I never broke his gaze. He never broke mine. And, I still haven't broken that gaze.

As I drove back to my office I was awed. I don't even remember taking a left and a right. I don't remember pulling into the parking lot. I don't remember walking in and saying hello to Russell and Mary Hunter. I don't remember sitting at my desk and checking my email. But, I do remember the tears. I remember feeling so helpless at what I just saw. I remember feeling like I had taken everything in my life for granted. I remember feeling that this man was every homeless person that I had ever passed and felt nothing for. He was every homeless person that I thought could fix their situation if they just “got a job." He was my guilt for not paying attention earlier.

So, I floated through my Holiday season and thought of him. That man that I saw staring through me from the doorway of a dog house, trying to escape the cold the best way he knew how. As hard as it is to think about, I hope I don't forget that look. I hope I can remind myself of that man whenever I take things for granted. I hope I can find some way to use that moment as a push to motivate me to help Bruce Forbes and Beth Templeton and others in the struggle to eradicate homelessness and poverty from our community.

Many of us don't see poverty. We don't know the face of poverty. Sure, we see it on the streets, but we don't know what it looks like. We don't experience it every day. Well, sometimes facts work in ways that nothing else can. So, in the bear with this length of this entry and read some of these statistics that I received from Beth Templeton with “Our Eyes Were Opened"…


Sobering Facts 2007Assembled by Beth Templeton, Director of Our Eyes Were Opened(Primary sources of data: our Community's Impact Agenda, June 2003 and Out of Reach 2006, nlihc and Bureau of Economic Analysis, 4/06)
IncomeThe 2007 federal poverty level for a family of 4 in South Carolina is $20,650 and is $10,210 for one individual.The area median income in 2006 was $56,500.
In 2004 the per capital income in Greenville County was $28,531 which is 86% of the US per capita income of $33,050.
RentA minimum wage earner ($5.15 an hour) can afford monthly rent of no more than $268. The fair market rent for a one-bedroom unit in Greenville County is $560.
A SSI recipient (receiving $623 monthly) can afford monthly rent of no more than $181.
A unit is considered affordable if it costs no more than 30% of the renter's income.
The percentage of households not making enough money to afford a 2-bedroom apartment at fair market value ($623) is calculated to be 39%. (Income required is $24,920)
Rate of Poverty13.2% of all residents in 2003 in Greenville County live at or below established federal poverty levels.
Almost 1 in 4 African Americans and more than 1 in 4 Hispanic individuals live in poverty.
In Greenville County, 1 in 5 families makes less than $25,000 a year and 1 in 10 makes less than $15,000 a year.
41% of households living in the downtown 29601 zip code make less than $20,000 per year.
LiteracyIn 1990 Greenville County had 48% of its adults age 16+ who were functionally illiterate by national standards.
WagesThe Renter Wage in Greenville County is $11.06. This is the amount a full time (40 hours a week) worker must earn per hour in order to afford a two-bedroom unit at the area's Fair Market rent.
The average hourly wage in Greenville for service occupations is $9.55, with an average work week of 35 hours a week. For jobs categorized as handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers and laborers, the average hourly wage is $10.76 with an average work week of 38.5 hours a week. These jobs represent approximately a quarter of our workforce.
TransportationAccording to the 2000 census, 11,300 households in Greenville County are without a car.

If you've read this far, thank you. It means you care about what is going on in our community. Take some time to think about what you can do. Call the agencies that are working on this problem. Or, email me at bkoonce@greenvilleforward.com and ask me how you can help. I can point you in the right direction. It's as easy as sending an email or making a phone call. For me, it just took one look.