NORWICH – The Chenango Housing Council (CHC) will be co-sponsoring a film, “@home,” to be shown at the upcoming “Second Tuesday’s Film Series” at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 11, in the Founders Room at the United Church of Christ.
The Church, located at 11 W. Main St. in Norwich, will show the documentary-styled film which explores homelessness in America. It is hoped that “@home” will foster a means of communication and engage community members in dialogue about the causes and solutions of homelessness and what is needed to create a renewed sense of empowerment to tackle the ongoing crisis.
While the CHC continues to actively address the growing problem of homelessness in Chenango County, along with other support agencies such as Chenango County Department of Social Services Emergency Services Unit and Catholic Charities, it hopes to also get the word out to the general public via community showings of this film as it builds a coordinated county-wide movement of advocates and resources.
“The general public is just not aware of the increased homelessness issue here in Chenango County,” explained Catholic Charities Community Outreach Director and CHC affiliate Gary Quarella. “Many people in our area are so engrossed with their own lives that they just don't know. Others have a stereotypical image in their mind of what a “homeless person” looks like on the street in a cardboard box, and simply dismiss the issue because they never see that here in Chenango County,” Quarella added.
Another segment of homelessness within the county is the increased frequency of the working homeless among area residents. The are individuals or families who are service-sector or minimum wage employees – often with more than one job – who are considered homeless due to eviction, which is sometimes the result of poor service and upkeep of landlords or property managers, said Quarella.
Quarella indicated that once a residence is deemed “uninhabitable” by code enforcement officials, tenants who may already be on a tight budget or fixed income might not have the means to establish a new residence.
Studies have shown that providing services and housing for homeless citizens costs the taxpayer less than the attendant negative outcomes such as the frequent need of emergency medical care, temporary shelter or incarceration for crimes.
On January 27, the federal Housing and Urban Development agency (HUD) directed CHC to perform a “Point In Time” count of homeless individuals in Chenango County as an audit procedure. The findings showed that on that date – when the average outside temperature in Chenango county was 7 degrees Fahrenheit – the total number of homeless was 97.
Attendees are invited to share a light supper at 6:30 p.m. prior to the show as a means to network, and to stay for discussion afterwards.
Quarella said, “We have a very small budget to work with. Because of the nature of the program, we rely largely upon donations to the CHC department of Catholic Charities.
“I have about a $4,000 budget to work with,” added Quarella. He went on to say of that amount of funding, nearly 65 percent was donated monies.
The definition of what a homeless person or family is can also be quite confusing, added Quarella. “We can't count those who 'couch surf' from one friend’s house to another. But someone living in a abandoned mobile home or R.V. can be. We have a unique blend of homeless people in rural Upstate New York, and it can be difficult to label them. The process of determining if someone is “technically” homeless or not in itself is a five-page endeavor, and convincing someone to spend their time filling out paperwork without any sort of assistance in return is often difficult.”
Of course when families or individuals are homeless, hunger also become part of the equation.
The Roots and Wings program, which offers a number programs for disadvantaged of Chenango County, has witnessed a sharp increase of visitors to its food pantry located in the City of Norwich.
According to Quarella, in the last six moths alone, visits to the pantry have spiked to a rate of more than 600 per month on average; well above the normal rate of approximately 400 per month. In 2013 Roots and Wings saw nearly 6,200 individuals in need walk through the door, witch to a 900 person increase versus the year 2012.
The CHC also points to poverty statistics found in the Chenango United Way community needs assessment to shed some light onto the legitimacy of the waxing epidemic. According to those findings, 9 percent of Chenango County families earn between $10-15,000 a year; 17 percent earn $15-25,000; and 36 percent earn less than $25,000.
“More than 60 percent of our homeless customers that we represent are employed; but they are underemployed – which is the major issue,” said Quarella.
Those who plan on attending should note parking is available on the street, in the Hayes Street and County Office Building Parking lots, but not in the church’s lot.
This film series screens documentaries about current environmental, social justice and peace issues as a public service. It is a project of Chenango County Peace Action and Chenango Community action for Renewable Energy (C-CARE). For more information, please call Chris Brunner at 334-6095 or contact Ken Fogarty at ccare@frontier.com.