Follow up on blog #1: How our same struggles are experienced everyday by the homeless in our city

First of all I'd like to thank everyone for reading my blog Our Family: Addiction and Mental Illness. Michael and I are so grateful for the support we have received and I am shocked to hear how many people have experienced what we have. It is comforting to know there are other families that have gone through similar things and are still standing strong.

Michael and I have grown more interested in serving the homeless in our community. Because of our own trials through addiction and mental illness, it is hard not to notice the effects these diseases have on those around us as we go about our daily life. 3 years before I met Michael he was beginning a life after 12 years of using meth. Bouts of homelessness came with his lifestyle. Though he was just recently diagnosed with mental illness, it is something he has suffered through most of his life. Through mentorship and a supportive community, he was able to get the help and services he needed to get off the streets. Here is a link to an article from 2015 that sheds a little more light on the crisis (http://www.oregonlive.com/portland-homeless/). There are many organizations and resources but with almost 2,000 people suffering from chronic homelessness, these resources are over stretched and under staffed, making them virtually unattainable to the majority of the homeless population. Last night we attended a town hall meeting at PSU on the topic of the homeless crisis (Our first date since the spring!) A man in the crowd stood up to comment and said something to the effect that his downtown Portland homeownership was somehow affected by the homeless crisis and that he shouldn't have to spend his tax dollars paying for services for homeless people. This bigotry will not be tolerated! If someone hadn't shown Michael compassion not only would I not be blessed with him as a husband, I don't know if he would be alive today. Like Michael, many people lack family support or come from broken backgrounds. I've heard story after story of abuse where women have escaped the relationship only to end up on the street. Physical disability is prevalent especially among the elderly homeless population. Homelessness, addiction, and mental illness can also be generational. This is where the communities responsibility comes in. We must befriend and mentor those who are living in these circumstances. It will be tough, it will be messy, and you may not always feel fuzzy about it, but this is what is needed for change to happen. Contact me personally or look up places like The Portland Rescue Mission (http://www.portlandrescuemission.org/) or Tranisitional Youth (https://transitionalyouth.org/) and find ways to help where they need it most.