OUR CLIENT MAKES IT HOME TO HER GRANDCHILD
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SEPTEMBER
2024
OCTOBER
2024
SOME FLY...
Nope, you won’t see him anymore. You won’t see him
lying on the sidewalk between the Shell gas station minimart and the condos, where he’s been for the last
4 years. He won’t be in the food line at Hope Services,
or at West Hawaii Medical Center, or be seen at all by
the traffic driving by on Kuikini Highway. There was excitement in his voice, anticipation for a new start on the day Officer Nahale drove him to the airport and helped him downsize his ten bags to two
over by the Departure sign.
The old man boarded the plane where window seat 23F was waiting to take him...
THE PARADE
I sat on the outside bench of the Petco store waiting for my client. She was late. I thought about all the previous events that led up to her decision to exit the island and return to her family in Florida. Looking across the way at the Target store, I recognized Dominque’s petite frame
walking on the sidewalk pushing a cart. But she wasn’t alone...
THE TRIUMPH
Jason was a homeless veteran living here in Hawaii for a few years, mostly in Hilo and occasionally in Kona, and was referred to our organization by West Hawaii Medical Center. He stated he was ‘fed up” and just couldn’t manage his lifestyle anymore: constantly robbed, beat up, he had no ID, his bones ached. He described himself to me as “thin” over the phone, due to intermittent meals and not enough sleep. He stated he was camped by the Hilo bus station, and his conversation rambled from lucid to non-sensical. It’s a good thing I was patient...
THE WAR VETERAN LIVING ON THE STREETS OF KONA
The Veteran of the War in Iraq was a referral from a VA social worker. Martin had been in jail for a few months because of a drug conviction but he was out in the streets of Kona homeless for a few months, when he got arrested again. He was hanging out with his girlfriend who is also unhoused, and they were both struggling, and public disturbances ensued. Rachel, his VA worker, advised him to contact our organization...
LOVE IN THE TIME OF COVID-19
Their rental apartment was destroyed by Kilauea lava in April 2018. The Lawson family has been here and there tenting it and sleeping in their car since then. Their cat was attacked by a dog and a kind vet sewed him up. They found a landlord who would rent to them at reasonable rent. We paid the 1st and last months rent for them to move into the 1 bedroom furnished home. They’re in!!
808 Homeless Task Force - March 29th, 2020
FAMILY REUNIFICATION FOR HOMELESS MAN
PRE-CORONA VIRUS TRAVEL: A man homeless for 9 years in Hawaii walks up to Kona policeman, Officer Nahale, and asks for help. The HONOUR Community Officer calls 808 Homeless Task Force to assist this person who's been robbed 3 times for his ID and meager belongings. The man is weary and his legs and hands ache. He's worked as a cook for thirty years for the same restaurant but it closed. Now his wrists hurt and atrophy has set in. Other people warned me that Lee is difficult, but he’s not, he’s just tired. He’s an honorable man, just needs a break. We reinstate his disability benefits, and apply for replacement of vital stats, and get in touch with his brother in Fresno who says, “Come home and live with me”. This is family reunification. We pay his travel fare, and police give him a ride to the airport. He called me a couple a weeks ago. “Are you happy, Lee?”, I asked.” "I have my own room and bed!", he says. Enough said.
808 Homeless Task Force - February 10th, 2020
The days are over when one could walk by a homeless person and think 'they are not my business, not my concern, or I don't want to get involved.' The numbers of un-housed have substantially increased, so that homeless are everywhere, and in your presence. It's both a hardship for them and for the community. I consider this a crisis - it needs to be addressed as an emergency, and it's imperative to address the need one person at a time. We cannot put people in a box, they are individuals just like you and I, and they need guidance and direction to get out of the hole they're in. Problem solving and practical methodology cannot be delayed. Acts of goodwill are the only remedy to saving a life and bettering the community as a whole. May God continue to bless the works of our hands...
Regina Weller, Executive Director - 808 Homeless Task Force