After reading a recent article on my "Everyone Has a Name" project, I was contacted by Clark, who very generously allowed mt to share his story, under condition of anonymity. -CO
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Clark became homeless
after being diagnosed with mental illness in college. He was hospitalized
several times, but the nature of his illness impaired his judgment, making it
difficult for him to see the value in taking his medication consistently.
Despite initial support from his father, Clark’s noncompliance with his
medication left him isolated from both family and friends, unable to work, and
struggling in school.
With no job and no place
to stay, Clark found himself at the men’s shelter on the 1200 block of Ridge
Avenue. Although he did not have a
substance abuse issue, he was placed in the rehab portion of the facility,
which allowed him a personal locker and his own room. Clark stayed there for
three months, but was finally discharged from the shelter because he was
hospitalized and did not inform the shelter staff of his whereabouts. He
describes the Ridge Avenue shelter as “a rough environment” but one that was
preferable to the streets. Fortunately for Clark, a family member in the social
services system in Bucks County was able to convince the Director to let him
stay at the Red Cross shelter in Levittown.
Consistent treatment and
improved compliance with his medications allowed Clark to begin the long climb
back from homelessness. But that road was not an easy one. Unfortunately,
restrictions placed upon him by the public medical assistance he received
prohibited him from returning to work. And he needed the assistance to afford
his meds. So he remained at the Red Cross, stayed on his meds, and awaited the
next move.
After seven months, Clark
learned that a vacancy had opened in an independent living program in Bucks
County. Clark took the opportunity, and moved into an apartment, which he
shared with a disabled roommate for the next four and a half years.
Finances were a
struggle. Clark had applied for
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Medicare, but was initially
denied. After two years of waiting for court and living on $200 per month
in welfare cash assistance plus $200 in food stamps, he was awarded benefits,
which helped pay his rent, healthcare, and other basic needs. Rent
in the supportive living program was HUD subsidized, and amounted to 30% of
Clark’s gross income. Clark emphasizes the fact that “SSDI is an
insurance benefit that I contributed to with taxes paid in all my past jobs,
not an entitlement like SSI. It's not a handout, it is an insurance
benefit that workers like myself pay for with our taxes.” He also
points out that ALL of the cash assistance payments he received were repaid in
full to the state with a portion of his retroactive SSDI payment.
The assistance Clark
received proved more than worthwhile—it allowed him to return to school and
earn his bachelors degree. He was later accepted to a prestigious university
for his post-grad work. Clark has lived independently while in grad
school, and recently has moved in with a roommate to share expenses. He
still receives SSDI, Medicare, and Medicaid to help pay his living
expenses and healthcare, but his goal is to become self-sufficient. He’s
confident he’ll reach the target when he graduates with a Masters degree in
2013.
Clark agreed to share his
story, with a degree of anonymity, because he wants “to show that anyone can
become homeless—even hardworking, educated, and intelligent people.” He
notes that, even with neither a substance abuse problem nor a criminal history,
one can become disabled and homeless. But there is a way out. Homelessness is
not a dead end. Support, he emphasizes, is absolutely essential. Assistance
from government (and private) agencies is a vital lifeline to those seeking to
climb out of homelessness.
