Back around Christmas a few years ago a homeless man named Steve knocked on our door. I was the pastor of a local Christian Church, so having strangers knock on my door asking for aid was a routine situation. Usually I would talk to them for a few minutes, access their need for help, and slip them a Salvation Army voucher redeemable for goods at most retail stores if the situation warranted. But Steve was different. He did not want a Salvation Army voucher or even cold hard cash. All he wanted was a tent. He told me he had come back into the area to see his family at Christmas, but did not want to live off of his kids even though he was homeless and could not afford a hotel. He shared that he had been living in his car up to that point, and with the nights getting colder, could not afford to run the car's engine to keep warm. His request was simple and to the point: a spare blanket that he could use in his old sleeping bag for warmth, and an old tent if we had one.
In Hickory County Mo. there is not much by way of housing homeless people for any period of time. What we pastors usually would do was put them up for a day at a local hotel which always gave us a special rate during the off-season, then provide for a bit of food. The next morning the homeless person would hit the road again for the next town that would provide some form of basic hospitality, and the pattern would repeat. But I could tell right away that Steve was different from the majority of people I had dealt with. There was an excitement in his eyes and a child-like innocence about him. He was around 50 years of age, but reminded me of a child of 12. He spoke briefly about "hearing voices" telling him to forsake his faith in God, but that he wanted nothing to do with those suggestions which he attributed to coming from Satan. He said he was a child of God and wanted to live as a child of God. He did not like being around a lot of people, but instead preferred to live out in nature with "God's creatures." I could tell right away I was dealing with a paranoid schizophrenic of the classic type. Not the kind that presented a danger to others, but rather a sweet and loveable one who, while needing help, prefered giving help to others rather than receiving for himself. This would not be one of my typical pastoral missions of mercy. Rather this would be one that would teach me a great deal about human nature and life in general.
With Steve waiting in our living room I called the local authorities and had a background check done on Steve. He was clean with no prior offences. I called the mental health authorities in the area asking if they knew of any programs he might qualify for. I discovered to my surprise that in our small rural area there were no programs that could take him in. According to one man I spoke with the best that could be done would be to put him into an institution for an overnight evaluation, then, if they felt he was not a danger to others, would cut him loose the next day leaving him again out on his own. After these conversations I took Steve to our backyard storage shed and gave him an old tent I had not used in years, as well as a blanket and some tins of food. Against my usual better judgement, I worked hard to convince him to take $20 for gas. He did not want to accept the money at first, then only accepted it on the condition that he could pay me back when he could. He took his things and headed out to a local campground which allowed the homeless to stay free of charge during the winter months. I never really expected to see him again.
What happened in the next few days was totally unexpected. Within two days he was back on my doorstep with $20 in hand and a Christmas cake. He told me his son had given him some money and some food, and he wanted to pay back my hospitality. I accepted the money, but told him to at least keep the food. He smiled and said, "Awe Ralph...I really don't like fruit cake. It gives me the runs, and when you are homeless you have to be careful about things like that." No other explanation was necessary for me at that point. I accepted his gifts, and asked how he was doing and exactly where he was staying. He had a place in a local park not too many miles away, and I told myself I would check in with him every few days to see how he was doing. A few days later I did just that. I arrived early in the morning at Steve's campsite to find him feeding a deer potato skins! It was like he was feeding a family pet! The innocence this man portrayed could even be felt by the park animals. He seemed to be doing fine, so while I did not like leaving him out in nature during the cold winter month of December, I left feeling like I was doing the right thing.
Another day later I knew I had to take more drastic action. The weather report warned of a large ice storm moving into our area, which would last several days. I went down to his campsite and after a long conversation, convinced him to move out of there. We got him packed into his car just as the ice started coming down. I managed to book him into a really cheap hotel for $250 per month paying first and last months rent, and asked Steve to promise me he would stay there for at least the full two months. He said he would, and thanked me for the help. After I got Steve moved in, I managed to make it back home in the middle of the ice storm. Later that night the ice was so severe we lost electricity in our home and over much of the county. The outage would last for over a week. The next morning waking up in a cold house with the temps just above freezing, my concern was more for my family rather than Steve. I wondered how he was doing, but saw also that we were iced in and could really do nothing more to help. So I just camped out in our powerless unheated home with my wife and made the best of it. We ate out of cans and heated by candlelight for the next few days until the roads were cleared enough for us to get out.
About that time Steve showed up again. He was happy and grateful and was wanting to check up on us to see how we were doing. He was surprised to find that we were without power as his utilities were still on! He offered for my wife and I to stay at his place. I appreciated the offer, but being a church pastor who lived right next door to the church he served, I told him I had to stay on site to keep an eye on things. A few days after that the power was finally restored, and our life began to get back to normal.
After the Christmas, New Years, and ice storm closure period was over, I took the situation concerning Steve up with the wider church. Most were eager to help out. I told them we had paid two months rent for him out-of-pocket, but that additional funds might be needed from the church until a more permanent living arrangement could be found. One kind church member took out her check book and gave me a check for $250 saying she wanted to split the cost with us for putting Steve up for those two months. Others gathered together more blankets and food. An old cot that had been gathering dust in somebodies basement found its way up to Steve's place along with pots, pans, and other household goods. Within 30 days a church member who did not want to be identified talked to the owner of a local lumber yard and convinced him to give Steve a job. Steve came over to our place that day to give me the news! He was beaming with delight. He loved the chance to work again, and paid his own way for the next nine months. Over that same period of time we got Steve signed up for medical benefits and things seemed to be going well. I thought we had a real success story on our hands. Unfortunately I do not exactly have a happy ending to report as of this writing.
It seems at one point Steve stopped seeing the doctor we had signed him up for, and stopped taking his medications again. He never fully trusted the doctor, nor did he trust the medications. Such is common with the schizophrenic. Sometime in September after nine months of having settled down into a normal lifestyle, he followed the voices back out onto the road. I have lost track of him, but still wonder where he is and what he is up to, hoping that if our paths cross again we might be able to help in a far better way. Services to the homeless in our county are still few to none except for the outreach of a few small churches and committed pastors. This is where you the reader may be able to help!
By clicking on the "Donate" key to the right of this post, you can help us provide aid to other people such as Steve. Even donations as low as five to ten dollars per month can be of great benefit. Realistically one person or even one small group of people can not always do much to help out those who can not for whatever reason help themselves. But by joining our limited resources together, we can make a definite difference in the lives of others. All that is needed is the willingness to take action and do what you can to reach out to those in need. Your help today will be greatly appreciated.
Blessings,
Ralph and Heydi
