Homeless: A cry for help

Robb Murray
The Free Press

MANKATO June 23, 2008 11:11 pm

— Around tables, in little rooms in churches in communities all across the state; that is where the fight to end youth homelessness is being waged today.
Monday night at Bethlehem Lutheran Church, a small gathering of community members attended a forum sponsored by Mankato Lutheran Social Services.
The point: To begin the task of battling homelessness. To tighten the focus a little, the latest effort is geared toward youth homelessness.
“The words ‘no room at the inn’ are words no kid should hear,” said Rep. Terry Morrow, DFL-St. Peter.
Monday’s gathering was just one of many taking place around the state. Lutheran Social Services representatives joined the Mankato representatives to help raise awareness about the problem of youth homelessness, and the work LSS is doing to combat it.
The numbers appear to justify the cry for help.
According to the state Department of Human Services, almost half of the state’s homeless population is younger than 21. More than half of them are from rural Minnesota.
Half report suffering from a mental health problem, and more than half report being either physically or sexually abused.
And according to the Wilder Research Center, on any given night, between 550 and 650 kids have no permanent home.
One figure that isn’t available, however, is how many kids are homeless in the Mankato area.
“They’re out there,” said Tammy Weisenberger, operations director for Mankato Lutheran Social Services. “But there’s no good way to tell.”
LSS does offer services, including offering emergency housing for homeless youth. LSS is also encouraging congregations to start Circles of Hope, or small groups that meet regularly to discuss the issue of homelessness and, hopefully, try to come up with solutions.
But more needs to be done at the state level, Weisenberger and others said at the forum. Budget cuts have taken money away from social service funding, and organizations such as Lutheran Social Services has felt the pinch.
In 2003, for instance, a state budget shortfall led to massive cuts across the board, and social service programs weren’t spared.
“We have not recovered from 2003,” said Kirsten Anderson-Stembridge, public policy manager for LSS in St. Paul.
And the upcoming legislative session doesn’t look much better. Current estimates say lawmakers will be looking at about a $2 billion deficit, or one similar to that in 2003.
People at Monday’s forum hope the fight to end youth homelessness doesn’t suffer any more setbacks.
“If we continue to cut out social services,” Morrow said, “every family is going to feel it.”