In my last post, I said I got one more piece of bad news last week, in addition to losing my computer and iPhone – but it was a piece of news that would affect many more people than just me.
In the six-ish months I have been staying at the Union Mission regularly, it has always been free to check in for the night, as long as you checked in before 2 PM. After that (until 7 PM when the front office closes) it was 6 dollars. It gave guys ample time to go out around Downtown and take care of their personal business, and then still get back and get in free.
Last week the mayor and City Council members met with the folks who run the Mission and toured the facility. I wasn’t there that day; it was one of the days I chose to stay out.
Shortly thereafter, a new policy was announced: Beginning September 1, the daily get-in-free cutoff time would be moved to 11 AM.
So we’re going to have 3 hours a day less free time.
Let me give one example of how this will affect the lives of myself and other guys. We come to the Cossitt Library every morning to check our email, social media, bank accounts, etc. on the public computers or on the library’s Wi-Fi.
But the library’s posted opening time is 10:00 AM. And some days the library is late opening and it’s more like 10:10.
And it’s a 20-minute walk to the Mission.
And if there’s a sharp 11 AM cutoff at the Mission front window to get in free, guys are going to need to be in line by 10:30 in order to make it to the window.
Do the math. We’re left with no time to get our personal stuff done at the library.
And this is just one of probably many examples of how guys’ lives will be affected by taking away 3 of our hours. I’ll give you another.
The Mission is a 1-block walk from the Hospitality Hub. Guys who are more able-bodied than I will walk over there in the mornings, attempting to get a spot in the Hub’s Work Local program for that day. If selected, they go out on trucks and help clear nearby neighborhoods of trash and blight for 3-4 hours.
What they get from Work Local in return for their labor is $50, lunch, and the good feeling that comes from earning a day’s pay.
A friend of mine did Work Local yesterday. “What time did you get done?” I asked.
“Around 11:45,” he said.
That means that starting September 1, his $50 pay will be devalued to $44. He won’t be back to the Mission in time to get in free and will have to cough up six bucks – 12% of his pay.
I don’t mean to criticize the pastors and supervisors who run the Mission. Everything they do is a reflection of their love – and God’s love – for us. I am grateful for them beyond words. And I’m sure there are issues that led them to change the get-in-free cutoff, possibly with the “encouragement” of city officials.
But it sure feels like it punishes a lot of innocent people as a side effect – people who don’t do anything to the detriment of the community surrounding the Mission – people who simply want to get to a better place in life.
Thanks for reading. I’ll try my best to be back tomorrow with a normal news update, if any such thing as “normal” exists on this blog.
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