Forum scheduled on homelessness problem in area

BLOOMSBURG - The Northeast Pennsylvania Homeless Alliance (NEPHA), working with Agape, is sponsoring a public forum at 6:30 p.m., Thursday in the auditorium of Bloomsburg Area High School to call attention to the local problem of homelessness. The public is invited to learn and discuss solutions, said moderator Gary F. Clark, NEPHA executive director.

A special panel of 17 local agency professionals will discuss the ongoing and rising problem in the area. Part of the problem, says Clark, is the lack of an emergency shelter. Last year, Gate House in Danville assisted 75 individuals on a long-term basis; however, funding losses have closed Gate House. In the past month, about 25 individuals have received assistance at Agape, but have not been placed into shelters, says Clark.

Several presentations are planned throughout the northeast region. In addition, a clothing drive, coordinated by the Alliance and Bloomsburg University's Spectrum Magazine, will be held through Nov. 22. Collection boxes are at BU's Andruss Library and McCormick Center and at the Medicine Shoppe (1000 S. Market St., Bloomsburg.) A clothing give-away will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Nov. 17 and 20 at the Agape offices, 19 E. Seventh St., Bloomsburg.

About 30,000 Pennsylvania children are homeless, with the Commonwealth having the sixth largest number of homeless children, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Education. In the U.S., about 3.5 million persons were homeless at some point this past year. About 40 percent of homeless men are veterans, according to the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty.

The homeless "are largely an invisible population," says Clark, who has been working several years on the streets with the homeless from Northeast Pennsylvania and New York City. Society, says Clark, tends not to want to see the faces of the homeless, so they overlook them. The homeless live beneath bridges, in abandoned buildings with no heat or water, and in the woods, he says. In northeast Pennsylvania, quite a few live in their cars. Because of this, residents see the problem as existing only in other places or large cities.

Clark says he recently worked with a couple and their dog who were living in an old Chevy. The homeless often have pets, he says, because pets give the homeless person not only the only companionship they can rely upon, but also a sense of having someone they can be responsible for. This couple, like most of the homeless who have pets, made sure their dog was fed and cared for before their own needs were met, says Clark.

The recession, combined with significant job losses and increased medical bills, has been a primary reason for the increase in bankruptcies and in homelessness the past two years, says Walter Brasch, NEPHA vice president. About half of homeless persons cite medical bills as a reason why they have lost their homes in mortgage foreclosure. The homeless, said Brasch, come from all social, cultural, religious, and economic classes.

Participants in the public panel include: Agape, Karen Ungereit and Karen Heaps; American Red Cross/Berwick, Kathi Nihoff; American Red Cross/Bloomsburg, Rita Inklovich; American Rescue Mission, Kevin Carroll; Beyond Violence, Cheryl Cerasoli; Bloomsburg Area High School, Dan Bonomo; Bloomsburg Police Department, Chief Leo Sokoloski; Bloomsburg University Outreach, David Magolis; Bloomsburg Women's Center, Zabrina Ashton; Columbia County Commissioners, David Kovach; Columbia County Redevelopment, Rich Kisner; Columbia-Montour Area Agency on Aging, Kathi Lynn; Columbia Montour Snyder Union (CMSU), Gate House, Bill Klink and the Rev. Robert Andrews; Good Samaritan, Sandra O'Rourke; Northeast Pennsylvania Homeless Alliance, Gary Clark, Walter Brasch and Nicole Martinez; Orangeville Manor, Teresa Hess; and Salvation Army, Abigail Ritchie. For further information about the month's activities, contact Clark at 570-317-2210.