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Dangers of Family Homelessness, Everywhere!
But the plight of millions of parents and kids can be fixed, according to an expert.
It says something about a parent when a 5-year old child can sit quietly as mom speaks with another adult for over an hour. “Dana” and her daughter “Allie” blew me away this week as I visited with them in Rutland, VT at the Rutland County Parent-Child Center, a slight detour from my HEAR US 2020 VisionQuest trip.
When Dana agreed to sit down with me (no camera or recording device), she approached this opportunity with a researcher’s diligence. She interviewed dozens of parents without homes. Her 17 pages of notes she dutifully condensed to 2 pages.
Dana and her children are homeless, and have been off and on for years. She’s got 4 little ones with her, 9 and younger, including 2 in diapers. As a single mom with limited finances and unlimited challenges, she manages admirably, as Allie demonstrated. Rare to see a little one sit quietly, focused on creating me some beautiful artwork, for that long without interrupting.
l asked her about challenges and conditions for homeless parents and their kids. I’ll quote from her notes (with minor edits for clarity/space) that she said I could share:
“…even though hotel owners try their best…
