web1_TTL121717courthouse1.jpg

Results of conservation work becoming noticeable at Luzerne County Courthouse

web1_cc-cards.jpg

Sources: Yankees, CC Sabathia agree on one-year deal for 2018

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; A recent report by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says the rate of homelessness is decreasing nationwide.</p><p>I don&#8217;t believe it.</p><p>You can cite all the statistics you want, the fact is you can not accurately report on the state of homelessness if you can&#8217;t identify all those who are, in fact, homeless.</p><p>Those who want to be helped can be accounted for &#8212; they are the ones who show up at the temporary shelters, the drop-in spots. They seek employment, they apply for benefits, they accept the blankets and they sleep in church basements for a week at a time.</p><p>It&#8217;s those other homeless men and women &#8212; the ones who won&#8217;t or can&#8217;t stop drinking or using and who will never be a part of any &#8220;official counting&#8221; of homeless people in America.</p><p>These are the homeless men and women you and I see every day. They pass right by you, some say hello, others ask for spare change, and others just have that blank look of despair. They are cold, tired, sick and, quite possibly, dying.</p><p>Yet little is being done for these people. And they are people. They are chased from buildings where they just walk in to try to get warm for a few minutes. They are &#8220;dispersed&#8221; from public places because they are too drunk or they don&#8217;t look like people that city &#8220;leaders&#8221; want to be seen in their towns.</p><p>Every homeless person I have ever met has a story. It&#8217;s usually a story that tells of how they lost a job, lost a relationship, got evicted or just allowed alcohol or drugs to overcome them. So they wander around. They try to stay warm during the winter by drinking coffee or alcohol and stealing those few minutes in a public building, a business or a library. And when night falls, they seek a &#8220;bandy,&#8221; an abandoned building where they can find shelter from the wind, the rain or the snow. They struggle to stay warm enough to get a night&#8217;s sleep before the get up the next morning and start all over again.</p><p>This is not a good life. Those with some desire to stay alive go to the local soup kitchen for a meal. They meet up with their street friends and talk about a world where they live on the periphery. They go day to day, sometimes hour to hour. Each day, their health worsens and their life expectancy shrinks.</p><p>Most have been forgotten by society &#8212; neglected, passed by, ignored &#8212; or society wishes they would just go away. There are many reasons for these life failures &#8212; addiction, laziness, mental challenges, physical limitations, personal/emotional battles &#8212; none of which are excuses, rather reasons for their situations.</p><p>These homeless people need help, whether it be through counseling, analysis, coaching, encouragement, or just having faith. It would be great if there could be a permanent homeless center where people living on the street could go for help, regardless of their level of sobriety. It would be a place where they could talk to people who could assist them in navigating through what can be a difficult and confusing system.</p><p>Most of these homeless will never be able to return to a normal, productive life. But maybe over the years, more people would be off the streets and those homeless statistics would really decline.</p><p>It is time to seriously address the situation because too many people living among us, existing on what they can find, are dying.</p><p>Soon the annual service for the homeless will be held at St. Stephen&#8217;s Episcopal Church on South Franklin Street. A group, mostly homeless people, will show up and remember their friends who have passed on. Last year, more than 100 names were recited at a candlelight vigil &#8212; remembered in death, after being forgotten for so long when they were alive.</p><p>Every year, I attend the service and I wait for more people to attend to remember these human beings. But the attendance never really increases.</p><p>Please attend the service if you can. If you can&#8217;t, say a prayer.</p><p>It can&#8217;t hurt.</p><style>
.neFileBlock {
	margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
	margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
	border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
	padding-bottom: 5px;
	padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
	font-size: 85%;
}
</style>
<div class='neFileBlock'>
<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/web1_Oboyle_Bill-2-1-2.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Bill O&#8217;Boyle </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/web1_Oboyle_Bill-2-1-2.jpg</photo0><caption0>Bill O&#8217;Boyle </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Beyond the Byline: Help the homeless