November 26, 2010
Youth homelessness selected as CAJE top priority
John tells the story of his life as a homeless high school student in Evansville, as Pastor Joe Easley from Central United Methodist Church looks on, during the CAJE assembly. Participants selected youth homelssness as the priority issue for 2011. (Message photo by Paul R. Leingang) Click for a larger version.
By PAUL R. LEINGANG (Message editor)
Justice ministry network members who are active in Congregations Acting for Justice and Empowerment selected youth homelessness as the issue to be tackled in the coming year.
Participants at the CAJE assembly Nov. 18 also strongly supported bettering the chances for prison inmates successfully re-entering society.
Other areas considered were unemployment, health care and illegal drug-related issues.
In previous years, CAJE has focused attention on dental care, literacy, housing inspection, establishment of an affordable housing trust fund, and improvement of public transportation in Vanderburgh and Warrick County.’
Assembly participants celebrated the most recent success of the Warrick Area Transportation Service, which reported ridership that exceeded expectations on the Newburgh route and the Chandler route.
CAJE will continue to press for expansion of bus service along north Highway 41 and along Highway 57, in an effort to link available workers with available jobs in these two industrial areas in Vanderburgh County.
Three individuals gave personal testimonies at the assembly, including a woman who told of the struggle to get to work without adequate public transportation, a woman whose family was affected by meth addiction, and a youth who described his life as a homeless high school student.
“Why should any teenager have to be homeless?” asked the youth.
“Since the sixth grade I have moved 11 times and attend five different schools in two different states,” he said. “It all started once my mom stopped working and starting collecting social security which caused us to not be able to pay the bills so we started moving every few months to try and get ahead and so nobody would catch up with us.”
The youth, introduced only by his first name, John, said he started to get behind in his school work, trying to learn what they were doing at so many different schools.
“So after moving every so often I finally decided enough was enough,” he said. “I wanted to stay with my friends and my wrestling team because for once in my life I was there more than a year and I had friends and stability.”
His mom moved out of state. John stayed in the Evansville area, homeless.
“I have learned from being homeless that I have to constantly worry about were I am going to sleep or where I will keep all my belongings,” he said.
“And when school started I had to worry how to get to school and get supplies and pay all my fees.” He also worried about having school clothes, “But I kept trying to make it work and make it to school so I could get my education and go off to college.”
This year, he has missed too many days of school to continue in the high school he was attending, but he told the assembly he is not giving up.
“I am taking classes online to get my high school diploma and further my education. Which is very difficult because Internet is not always available for me to use.”
He told the assembly that his homelessness did not happen by choice. “I chose to live in a stable environment, I chose getting an education, I chose to not be surrounded by drugs at home, and those choices happened to make me homeless. No one should have to go through what I did. Not every kid is as lucky to make it as far as I have. We need to find a way to help the homeless youth in our community.”
CAJE members plan to meet Dec. 6 to begin research into youth homelessness, to begin the process of identifying steps that can help homeless youth.
The executive committee of CAJE also announced plans to meet, to determine if both youth homelessness and recidivism could be tackled as two issues to get attention in the coming year.
Catholic congregations in-volved in CAJE include Holy Redeemer, St. Anthony, St. Benedict, St. Mary and Nativity churches in Evansville, and St. John the Baptist Church in Newburgh.
Other congregations, all in Evansville, include Aldersgate United Methodist Church, Am-erican Baptist East, Central United Methodist Church, First Ebenezer Baptist Church, Mt. Olive Galilee Baptist Church, Nazarene Missionary Baptist Church, Grace and Peace Lutheran Church, Independence Missionary Baptist Church and Temple Adath B’nai Israel.