HOME VAN NEWSLETTER 6/12/16

Dear friends,

 

 

Sorry for the long silence.  I have been dealing with boring, time-consuming, but very non-lethal medical stuff (just part of being 70 I guess), as well as an unexpectedly enormous response to our Food Pantry.  I now have three volunteers working with me, Liz, Marie, and Reggie, many thanks to all three of you - as well as major assistance from Peggy toward the end of the month.  She brings in, among other things, her signature sandwich and cookies spread, which is extremely popular.  . I have no doubts that this service is needed.  People walk through 95 degree heat and through thunderstorms and then stand in line to receive their bags of food, meds, and candles.  This past Wednesday we had 115 participants.   We totally feel like the Home Van again, except the people are coming to us.  Many of those who come are real heartbreakers - pregnant women, elderly people, people in wheelchairs.  As the old timers back in Vermont said so often, "I don't know what this world is coming to." 

 

Although we are a food pantry for homeless people, we make a few exceptions, mainly for veterans.  The VA social workers have become aware of us and they send veterans, many of then newly housed and getting back on their feet, to us for food.  Also there are a few very old people from my neighborhood who come here for food. 

 

Before I go any further, I would like to say to my many friends in the LGBT community - my thoughts, my prayers, my love - are with you.  The massacre in Orlando beggars any words I can come up with except these - we all need to become more loving people in any way we can.  We need to increase the amount of love and peace in the collective consciousness, and we can only do it one person at a time.

 

THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO OUR GO FUND ME SITE!  We now have $1035 in our account.  Our goal is two thousand dollars (40 tents). 

 

I do not know the person who was shot out at the Sweetwater Branch community, at least by name.  It bothers me that perpetrators in the homeless community are identified, by the media, according to their housing status, and I hope this practice will eventually be outlawed.  It reminds me of the 1950s and early 60s when only African American suspects were identified by race.  In other words, if two people, one white one black, robbed banks, the subsequent headlines would read:  "Man robs bank," and "Negro man robs bank."  It took legal action to stop this practice.  Domestic violence tragedies happen in all communities and neighborhoods, housed and un-housed, so this sad news will not, I hope, lead to a call to evict the Sweetwater Branch Tent Community.  It is one of the oldest and most stable homeless neighborhoods in the city. 

 

I am also very sad that Fredo's dog Cha Cha was shot.  She was a very sweet dog, and she was Fredo's family.  I know that it is very frightening and potentially dangerous to be charged by a strange dog, but I have to wonder if pepper spray would not be a viable alternative.  I had a rescue dog, years ago, who turned out to have one major flaw:  He was dedicated to biting everyone except us.  He got out once and the mailman pepper-sprayed him and it worked very well.

 

Many thanks to all of you who are supporting us with food and money and useful items like tents and candles.  Blessings on you.  I am more than a day late and a dollar short in acknowledging all that you do for us, but know that I thank God for you every day.

 

peace,

 

arupa

HOME VAN NEWSLETTER 1/18/16

  From Martin Luther King, Jr.:  

    

 

Everybody can be great. Because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You don't have to know about Plato and Aristotle... (or) Einstein's Theory of Relativity ... (or) the Second Theory of Thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love. _____________________________________________________________________ THE TIDES ARE RISING

 

 

When I down-sized the Home Van to a food pantry, I imagined that I would be filling a small but needed niche in Gainesville's services.  I knew the old loners and curmurdgeons who had been my friends and customers for years would not be moving to Grace.   I knew there were a fair number of people with mental illness who find it difficult if not impossible to leave their comfort zone, and of course there would be some who, as the old Vermonters would say, were just 'agin it.'  These folks would need a small service center.  It was like that for the first few weeks.  Since then the number of people who come to us for  help, and the range of things they need, have continued to rise week by week. 

 

Some people tried out living at Dignity Village or Grace and found out that they didn't like a living situation that involved rules and supervision.   It wasn't that they wanted to run wild and see how many social norms they could shatter.  It was more that it  made them feel like they'd moved back in with their parents, so they left.  Others left because they got into trouble - not big time, go to jail trouble, but enough trouble to be restricted from Dignity and Grace for a certain amount of time.  When services were scattered about in the community, if you got into trouble at one agency, you could go to another for help.  With all the agencies concentrated in one location behind a fence, you get restricted from everywhere - and that is a real problem.  For example, you get restricted for getting into a fist fight, a fist fight that did not result in anyone needing medical attention.  No one should be handing out awards for getting into a fist fight, but a restriction should not involve little or no access to food or blankets and such, in January.  Theresa and Jon are aware of this and it is one of the many things that have to be worked out - how do you maintain order and at the same time avoid unjust levels of hardship.  It is not easy.  Fortunately there are volunteers from the community also working on this problem.  Grace Marketplace and Dignity Village are evolving projects that we can all support in one way or another and they will only get better. 

 

So, as people drift back downtown, there are few resources available to them down here, and my food pantry is one of them.  I am officially open on Wednesday afternoons, but reasonable people (e.g., those who come by during the day time hours and ring the bell once or twice and leave if I am not home or available (as opposed to those who ring the bell 47 times), can come by if they need an aspirin or a mylar blanket.  It still works but it is a larger challenge than I had expected.  Giving people tents so they can establish campsites is ideal, and the city may need to give more support to such a  plan on this end of town.  The Sweetwater Branch tent community has been a stable, self-governed living area for many years, so it is a feasible idea.  Hiring social workers to work one-on-one with people in need of mental health care would surely be not only a more compassionate strategy, but also a less expensive strategy than hauling people off to jail or the ER on a regular basis.  When Howard Dean was governor of Vermont, he added up all the money being spent on homeless services, jail time, and emergency medical care, and then added up how much it would cost to give everyone a place to live.  The second plan - give everyone a place to live - was MUCH CHEAPER! 

 

To get back to my food pantry - food donations are greatly needed!  Almost everyone's favorite foods are Vienna sausages, Ramen soup and peanut butter.   Chef Boyardee and chunky soups are popular.  With the help of my friend Cheryl, and the Bread of the Mighty Food Bank, I always have a lot of boiled eggs - people love getting them.  I do need granola bars and protein shakes.  The granola bars, if possible, should be soft to chew.    Over the counter medications and batteries, especially double and triple A batteries, are also needed.  I do not need my mylar blankets  - I have enough to last to spring.  I also have a lot of personal hygiene products and need only razors and deodorant.

 

It is my sense that life has a kind of uncertain quality to it these days - so much in flux, so many question marks.  I wonder how many people feel that way?  The solution, I've discovered, is to life life one day at a time.  Despite being Irish, and being a poet, due to some genetic miracle I'm not an alcoholic.  Nevertheless, Bill W. and Dr. Bob are heros to me - the idea of "one day at a time" is the answer to almost everything.

 

If you would like to make a financial donation to the Home Van food bank, the check should be made out to Citizens for Social Justice and mailed to 307 SE 6th Street, Gainesville, FL  32601.  To arrange for a drop-off of supplies call  352-372-4825.  And, as the old timers know, I have my take-in window.

 

love and blessings to everyone,

 

arupa

HOLIDAY ANGELS DISGUISED AS HOMELESS STRANGERS

HOLIDAY ANGELS DISGUISED AS HOMELESS STRANGERS....

 

 

I hadn't planned to write to you all again before the holidays, but this story must be shared. 

 

Yesterday I heard a gentle tapping on my front door.  I went to my take out window and there was an old black man standing on my porch steps, someone I had never seen before.  He needed some food and cold weather gear, which I was fortunate to have.  There was something special about this old man - I had no idea what it was but I could sense it strongly.  He told me he was a Vietnam vet who had run into some trouble down at the Lake City VA and came here hoping for better luck.  I gave him Bridget Fitzgerald's card, telling him that she is not a bureaucrat and has worked her way through bigger kerfluffles than his to get vets into housing. 

 

Then, at some point, he told me that he had been a blues musician most of his life.  He began talking about the gigs he'd played and he lit up with with such joy and such amazing descriptions of the concerts, the music, the instruments, the riffs...  I literally felt like I was listening to someone who had walked out of history, like Blind Lemon or Muddy Waters.   Then I remembered that more than ten years ago I found a really nice harmonica in a box of donations and put it aside, thinking that someone would come along who wanted it.  I told  him to wait a minute, I had something he might want.  I showed him that harmonica.  I don't think I have ever seen a bigger smile or more joyful eyes on a human face than his when he reached through and took that harmonica!  It was really something. 

 

 I hope I see him again sometime, maybe in a concert.

 

Happy happy to one and all!

 

arupa

HOME VAN NEWSLETTER 11/15/15

A DAY OF GRACE

 

The Spirit of Grace Celebration out on 39th Avenue could not have been more beautiful and hopeful.  Grace continues to thrive.  The 131 Dining Hall is really, really nice - painted in bright, cheerful colors, commodious, and well-appointed.  Freeman slipped in and left the official Home Van soup pot, with two ladles, in the kitchen.  It is a five-gallon restaurant-grade pot that cost the proverbial 'arm and a leg,' and shows little if any wear after its 10 years of service with us.  It is good to think this pot will continue to bubble with good food for our homeless friends.  I was very pleased that Commissioner Randy
Wells won the Spirit of Grace Award.  Without his long and patient negotiations with the State, and other efforts he made, it is unlikely that Grace would be there, so the award could not have gone to a more deserving person.

 

At our end of town, the Home Van food pantry is serving a vital function for the homeless and marginally-housed people who remain in the downtown area, especially now that the Salvation Army has ceased providing an evening meal.  I have had many conversations with homeless people, encouraging them to move to Dignity Village and take advantage of the many services available at Grace - good food, clothing, medical care, job training, AA meetings etc. etc.  We have worked steadily to provide tents for people moving to Dignity.  I will not, however, participate in any strategy to starve people into submission to moving out there - not now, not ever.  As I have mentioned before, some of our customers do have a roof over their heads, but no money left to buy food.  Some cannot make that move to Dignity because of mental illness - they have to stay in their comfort zone and it would take one-on-one work with a social worker to change that.  And some are stubborn old geezers who just don't want to.  We will provide them with as much supplemental food as we can as long as they are down here.   And as long as you, our extended family, make it possible for us to do so.  Without your love and generosity we would not exist.

 

TALKING TO PEOPLE

 

It is a great luxury to be working for a small mission rather than an agency, because there is the time needed to talk to people. Our local agencies do so much for so many people.   I have sat behind the front counter of an agency and had to answer the phone 10 times an hour, with people standing in line in front of me for other services.  There is little if any time for long conversations.  When people call here I may or may not be able to give them what they need, but I can talk to them, and  help them process what they are going through and, sometimes, in the course of that conversation, we noodle our way through to a strategy that might actually work.  Last week I had a 20 minute conversation with a very young mother with a toddler and a newborn.  Her partner had split town leaving her with an unpaid and fairly sizeable GRU bill and her utilities were due to be cut off the next morning.  She had some hope that he might return the next day and pay GRU.  She says he has left before when the stress of babies and bills got to be too much for him, but has always come back.  But what if he doesn't?  What is she going to do?  In the course of our conversation my brain came up with a couple more places she might go to for assistance, and I also told her that, if all else failed, we could keep her supplied with candles and bottled water.  I think something worked out because I haven't heard from her again.  The great thing is that I could talk to her. She needed to talk.  A lot of people need, as much as anything else, someone to listen to them.  I'm so glad to be able to do that. 

 

Liz McCulloch, my co-conspirator at our food pantry, also spends time talking to customers.  She gives out meds, candles and other miscellaneous items while I pack bags, and often finds out that this person needs a pair of work shoes or a severely disabled person needs a tent.  Liz  uses her resources to meet special needs. 

 

Our special needs right now are Triple A batteries, small jars of peanut butter, and diabetic food such as Glucerna bars, Glucerna Shakes, and sugar and corn syrup-free canned meats. Fresh fruit is also something we could use more of, particularly oranges, and vitamins, including Vitamin C.

 

Love and peace to all of you,

 

arupa

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

e Home Van needs tents, tarps, bottled water, Vienna sausages, food for people who don’t have kitchens

, candles and batteries. Call 352-372-4825 to arrange for drop off. Financial donations to the Home Van should be in the form of checks made out to Citizens for Social Justice, Inc., earmarked for the Home Van, and mailed to 307 SE 6th Street, Gainesville, FL 32601, or can be made online at http://homevan.blogspot.com/

 

THE HOMEVAN IS A PROJECT OF CITIZENS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE, INC. (FDACSREGISTRATION #CH35643). A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE (800-435-7352) WITHIN THE STATE.REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE.

 

 

 

 

 

HOME VAN NEWSLETTER 10/4/15

The Home Van Food Pantry is doing a very large business as things continue to go badly, both in terms of the economy and the access to food in the downtown area.  The Salvation Army has stopped serving dinner except on Fridays and is planning to drop meal services all together at the end of the year.  There are also people coming down from Dignity Village to receive food, since the kitchen at Grace is not yet operational.  Although we are a food pantry for homeless people, some elderly people who have (thank God) a roof over their heads but not much else, are also coming to receive food. We do not discriminate.   Some people would like to be going to Grace for meals but they've lost their bus pass (as you may recall, the city gave out permanent bus passes to homeless people earlier this year).  They have been told that bus passes can't be replaced.  It is  hard to keep track of one's belongings living of the streets (it's hard enough living inside, as I've discovered), and one's belongings are much more likely to be stolen if you're homeless.  There is also the photo ID problem.  If you lose your photo ID you cannot get service at a food pantry or many other places.  That is bureaucratic cruelty.   Under the Patriot Act photo IDs are very hard to get and even harder to replace.  Is our society really going to let people starve because they don't have the right pieces of paper?  Sounds to me like something out of Germany in the early 30s.  My Jewish friends often say that we must never forget history, particularly that history, because, among other things, it teaches the lesson that good people can be lulled, one step at a time, into unspeakable evil. 

 

We might need some civil disobedience.  I am dealing with an extremely boring but non-threatening ailment called Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, so I can't organize civil disobedience events or rallies at this time.  Maybe someone else could take this on.   "HEY HEY BUREAUCRATS, HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL YOU STARVE TODAY".  Well, surely one of you can come  up with something better than that.

In case anyone is wondering, yes, I am angry about all this.

 

Some of you may be wondering why we still have homeless people downtown.  There is the bus pass problem, the problem of people with mental illness who are afraid or unwilling to go outside their comfort zone, the old hermits who just don't want to, and others who for various reasons don't want to be way out on the edge of town.  I think Grace Market Place and Dignity Village are evolving into good places that will solve the problem of homelessness for many people, but in the meantime, everybody has to eat today and tomorrow and all the other days of the week.

 

In the meantime, I also have a lot of gratitude for the support so many of you are giving to to our little food pantry.   There are even elves who drop food through the hole in the screen and disappear! 

 

At this time, we are particularly in need of donations of small jars of creamy peanut butter. Chunky soups, canned meats, beenie weenies and anything Chef Boy Ardee are also much appreciated.

 

love and peace to all of you!

 

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Home Van needs tents, tarps, bottled water, Vienna sausages, food for people who don’t have kitchens

, candles and batteries. Call 352-372-4825 to arrange for drop off. Financial donations to the Home Van should be in the form of checks made out to Citizens for Social Justice, Inc., earmarked for the Home Van, and mailed to 307 SE 6th Street, Gainesville, FL 32601, or can be made online at http://homevan.blogspot.com/

 

THE HOMEVAN IS A PROJECT OF CITIZENS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE, INC. (FDACSREGISTRATION #CH35643). A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE (800-435-7352) WITHIN THE STATE.REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE.

 

HOME VAN NEWSLETTER 8/16/15

The Home Van food pantry got off to a bumpy start because I was very low energy, and a lot of other things were going on, but we are now finding our stride, due in no small part to the fact that

Liz McCulloch is now working the Wednesday afternoon food pantry with me.  Liz brings a lot of expertise and good energy to any project she is involved in.  She deals with over-the-counter medications, candles, cold drinks and, of course, talking to people.  In any form of outreach, talking to people is an important part of it.  You make friends with your customers and have a chance to be involved in their lives in a positive way, as you discover small needs - huge and unobtainable to them - that you can fulfill.  I pack the bags.  I know the customers - who's diabetic, who's recovering from surgery, food allergies - that sort of thing.  Of course Liz is learning all that as well, so our roles are not cast in concrete.

 

A lot of our old guys love, love, love Vienna sausages - the more little cans you give them, the happier they are, and they do at least have protein.  So we will always feature God's lowly Vienna sausage at the Home Van.  However, I am finding great joy in trying to give out the best possible food we can - both in terms of nutrition and appeal, with the help of the food bank and our donators.  Almost every week we have fresh fruit, whole grain breads, cheese, chunky soups loaded with vegetables, Chef Boy Ardee, sardines (a healthy fish since they are small and contain little if any mercury), and protein shakes.  Lately we have been very low on peanut butter, so peanut butter (small jars, smooth not chunky) will be greatly appreciated.  We can also use more diabetic foods. 

 

Our other major needs are for batteries (double and triple A's and D's), and bug spray.  We hardly ever get donations of bug spray, due to the expense involved.  I understand that.  On the other hand, mosquitos are driving people stark, raving mad.  The first two people to bring me an entire box of bug spray will receive in return a painting by me. 

 

To arrange to drop off donations call me at 352-372-4825.  Financial donations should be made out to Citizens for Social Justice and mailed to 307 SE 6th St., G'ville  32601.  Online donations can be made by going to:  http://homevan.blogspot.com/

 

love and peace to everyone,

 

arupa

 

HOME VAN NEWSLETTER 6/5/15

Dear Home Van friends,

 

I’m sorry to be so long in thanking you for the amazing outpouring of food and money for food when I requested help. ( My pilot light has been a little low since we ended the driveouts, but I’m on the mend.)  We have been able to feed everyone who has come to us.  The uptick in business at Bread of the Mighty Food Bank seems to be a permanent situation.  More and more people are in need of food assistance over the five-county area Bread of the Mighty serves, so your help makes all the difference.

 

The major surprise for me, when it comes to our food pantry, is that I am now meeting homeless children, very young homeless children.  We hear about them every year in the Point-in-Time Survey.   Roughly 600 children in Alachua County are homeless.  But I rarely met these children when we were driving out.  One young single  mother, B, became homeless with a four-year-old, after a horrific and totally unexpected family tragedy.  She came to Gainesville because she believed there was a person living here who would help her get back on her feet.  That turned out to be untrue and she found herself on the streets, for the first time in her life.  B is one of the most centered and courageous young women I’ve ever known.   She went to agencies and missions all over Gainesville, barking up every tree she could find.  When I met her she had lined up subsidized housing, subsidized daycare, and 15 job interviews.  I met her on  a Friday afternoon.  Her housing was going to become available on Monday, but in the meantime she was facing a rainy, stormy weekend with nowhere to go.  She went to a shelter and whoever she spoke with – staff member?  volunteer?  I have no idea.  In any case, this person told her that there was no bed available for her and that if she ever came back with her child, they would be obligated to call DCF and have her child taken.  Fortunately, some of our homeless friends overheard this conversation and gave her my name and address.  We put her up in a motel for the weekend with a bag of kid-friendly groceries.  She came back last week to tell me that she now has a job and things are going well.

 

Another young family, parents and a very young toddler, were actually living in a tent when they came here for food.  Nevertheless, their child was clean, well-dressed, healthy-looking and had a smile on his face.    With some help from us, they are moving into what I would term “marginal housing.”  It is not ideal, but a step up from a tent and they and their baby will be safe and dry.  One of the parents is working fulltime at a fast food restaurant and they are saving every penny they can to get for real housing soon.  The third young family had a very small baby with them.  Fortunately, this baby stays with relatives at night and is with them during the day.  They want a tent for themselves, to camp near where their baby is living, and have a place to keep their belongings and prepare for job interviews.  It is hard to get a job when you are living in a tent, and basically impossible when you are roaming the streets.  All these young families impressed me with their courage.  Thank God for cell phones.  I had each of them put our number into their cells.  I told them to call me when they need to, and assured them they can get food from us whenever they need it, not just on Wednesdays or Thursdays.

 

The other major group who comes here is very old men.  Most of them are the old hermits and mavericks who have always come here for services.  I talk to them about Dignity Village but they’re just not interested.  Some of them have been out in the woods since Vietnam and expect to live out their lives in the woods by themselves.  They are a remarkably cheerful lot and always say God Bless You!

 

I am hearing about Iraq veterans.  I had a long conversation yesterday with a young man who is not a veteran himself but says that most of his friends in the homeless community are.  He tells me that they are in very bad shape, psychologically, and he is doing what he can to help them.  I haven’t seen the VA social workers lately, but so far as I know they are still out there rounding people up for the HUD VASH program.  But there are always more.

 

Peace and love to everyone,

 

arupa

 

 

The Home Van needs tents, tarps, bottled water, Vienna sausages, food for people who don’t have kitchens

, candles and batteries. Call 352-372-4825 to arrange for drop off. Financial donations to the Home Van should be in the form of checks made out to Citizens for Social Justice, Inc., earmarked for the Home Van, and mailed to 307 SE 6th Street, Gainesville, FL 32601, or can be made online at http://homevan.blogspot.com/

 

THE HOMEVAN IS A PROJECT OF CITIZENS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE, INC. (FDACSREGISTRATION #CH35643). A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE (800-435-7352) WITHIN THE STATE.REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE.

Home Van Newsletter 4/16/15

 

            Service with Compassion

a Roundtable on Homelessness

 

with

Randy Stacey, Helping Hands Clinic

Arupa and Bob Freeman, HOME Van volunteers

Adam Gurske, Family Promise

 

Thursday, April 23

7-8:30 p.m.

Upper Hall

Holy Faith Catholic Church

(747 Northwest 43rd Street, Gainesville, FL 326070

(handicapped accessible)

 

Following up on the January roundtable with Jon Dicarmine from Grace Marketplace, the Open Table group will sponsor a discussion among four of Gainesville’s most prominent homeless service providers:  Randy Stacey, director of Helping Hands Clinic; Arupa and Bob Freeman, long time Home Van, now food pantry organizers; and Adam Gurske, chairman of the board of Family Promise (formerly Interfaith Hospitality).  Each will describe their mission and current projects and take questions from the audience.  Persons of all faiths who are concerned with the issue of homelessness and social justice are warmly invited to join the discussion.

 

For more information contact theopentablecommunity@gamil.com

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

It’s good to be back.  I have been in recovery from my previous illusion that I was a really beat-up looking 35 year old.  I’m feeling much better now.  Our little food pantry is going well.  We’ve also been able to get a few starfish off the beach, including a young mother and a five-year-old who came to us on one rainy Friday.  They had an apartment as of Monday morning, but no shelter for the weekend.  We got them into a motel.  There will always be a need for small, nonbureaucratic missions like the Home Van, who are in a position to address situations like that.

 

I plan to start some kind of community project to inspire people to donate tents, but I’m not quite there yet.  In the meantime, tent donations are most welcome, as are donations of non-perishable foods.  Financial donations to the Home Van should be made out to Citizens for Social Justice and mailed to 307 SE 6th Street, Gainesville, FL  32601.  Donations can also be made through PayPal at our website:  http://homevan.blogspot.com/

 

love and peace to all of you,

 

arupa

HOME VAN NEWSLETTER 2/13/15: SPECIAL EDITION

Dear friends,

Below you will find a personal letter from me to the homeless community that I passed out on last night’s driveout.  I know some of you work with homeless people, so I encourage you to print out the letter and share it with your homeless friends and clients, since we never see everybody on any one driveout.  In March I will be reviving the Home Van Newsletter and telling you more about what we are doing and how people can participate.  In the meantime, I want all our homeless friends to know that we are still going to be here for them, except in a different way, and I want them to know how much they have meant to me and how much they have given me. 

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Dear friends of the homeless community,

            As of March 1, when the Bo Diddley Community Plaza is shut down for remodeling, the Home Van is going to change from doing driveouts to being a food pantry for homeless people only.  Our food pantry will be open every Wednesday afternoon from 1-5 and every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., except for the first week of the month.  Even on five Thursday months, we will be open the 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th and 5^th Thursday of each week and on the preceding Wednesday afternoon.  Our

house is at 307 SE 6^th Street.  Many of you have been there.  Many of you also have my phone number, in case of emergencies.  It is 352-372-4825.  So we will

continue to be here for you, except in a different way. 

The money we save by ending the driveouts we are going to put into getting tents and tarps so people can move out to Dignity Village.  I know some of you have beautiful, well-established campsites and are under no threat of eviction at this time.  You will most likely choose to stay where you are and pick up supplies at our food pantry.  Those of you who stay in the downtown area may be facing very hard times with the closing of the plaza and perhaps even more efforts on the part of the authorities to remove homeless people from the downtown area.  I am convinced that you will be much better off at Dignity Village, where you will be within easy walking distance of hot meals, water, showers, laundry facilities, and other services.  Dignity Village is not perfect but some very good people are working hard to make it into a good place with self-governance and safety from eviction and other threats.  You can help make that happen.

We are going to miss doing these driveouts.  I will admit to you, my dear friends, that some of this is old age.  I am fast approaching 70 and have been doing these driveouts for almost 13 years.  I’m tired and need to take life easier.  But I also think that supporting Dignity Village is the right thing to do.

Finally, and most importantly, I want to thank all of you for all you have done for me.  You have done more for me than I have done for you.  I am not the same person I was when I started doing these driveouts.  I have learned more about love, courage, compassion, patience and faith from you in these 13 years than in the whole rest of my life.  At the beginning, I was mainly concerned with myself, and was even someone who would complain about having to do housework.  I didn’t know that God had blessed me beyond measure with a house to live in.  I learned that, and so much more, from you, my dear and wonderful friends.

love,

arupa

GREETINGS FROM THE HOME VAN

Seasonal Pome

Peace, may we have peace,

Republicans, Democrats,

Black, white, Chinese,

Vegans, locivores,

folks selling barbecue

From backs of trucks on country roads.

May we have compassion,

For doctors and dentists and hookers,

And chief financial officers,

For gated communities and homeless shelters,

For law enforcement officers, for thieves,

For all who breathe the free air around us,

For all who feel the sun and rain on their weary backs.

May there be candles,

Menorah candles,

Kwanza candles,

Christmas candles,

Candles adding their soft light

To the gentle beams of the Solstice moon.

May there be light,

May there be peace,

May we love one another.

                -arupa

HOME VAN JOURNAL 10/26/14

LEN RINGEL

 

Our friend and long-time volunteer Len Ringel passed away in a Hospice in California on Sunday, October 19.  He was in his eighties.  Len was an artist and a gardener and a man who loved ideas.  He enjoyed challenging his friends with concepts that were profound and well off the beaten path.  He learned of the Home Van when Sh’mal Ellenberg, our chaplain, gave a talk at the Unitarian Church.  Our Unitarian friends have given us many gifts over the years, but best of all was our friend Len.  He had a loving heart and, as a seasoned father and grandfather, took a special interest in very young people in the homeless community, doing a good bit of individual outreach.  Len, we love you and we miss you.

 

CHRISTMAS PLANS

 

We are doing Christmas differently this year.  United Church of Gainesville is donating 100 Christmas stockings to the Home Van, and three other groups in the community have pledged another 125.  With the number of people we serve reduced by Grace Market Place, we have enough Christmas stockings and will not be doing a stocking drive this year.  Instead, we are encouraging the community to do their Christmas outreach at Grace Market Place.  I don’t yet know about any specific plans for Christmas at Grace, or requests, but will pass this information along to you as soon as I get it.  In the meantime, there is no reason that groups and individuals can’t initiate their own Christmas plans for Grace, clearing them with John and Theresa as need be.  It would be wonderful to have the first Christmas at Grace and Dignity Village be very special. 

 

HUNGER AWARENESS MONTH

 

November is National Hunger Awareness Month.   The Alachua County Commission for the Homeless and Hungry have requested that members of the community write letters to the editor this month, elucidating their own awareness and insights into hunger in our community, and any ideas about what we as a community need to do about it.  There is an excellent overview of this problem in an article about Bread of the Mighty Food Bank in today’s Gainesville Sun:  http://www.gainesville.com/article/20141026/ARTICLES/141029776/1184?Title=Bread-of-the-Mighty-helps-provide-meals-for

 

MEET THE AUTHOR!

 

Marti Losten, long-time member of the homeless community, has written three romance novels and published two of them!  I am so proud of her – there are no words to describe it.  I’ve known Marti for 20 years.  The old timers back in Vermont used to say, of someone who had a long, hard struggle, “They’ve been through hell and high water with their ears sticking out.”   That would be a fair description of what Marti has been through.  Marti is one of those people who never give up.  Sustained by her profound faith that there is a loving God who is always on her side, she has gotten up and climbed back on the horse no matter how many times she was thrown off.  Marti is both a resident and a volunteer at Grace Market Place and you can catch up with  her there if you would like to buy a book from her.  They are ten dollars a piece.

 

A STORY FROM DIGNITY VILLAGE

 

Last week I ran into my friend ‘Aaron’ and his wife at the Texaco.  They were both riding bikes with nifty little carts fastened to the back.  Aaron told me, smiling so widely his face was about to crack open, that he has built a beautiful campsite with an actual wooden shelter made from scrounged materials.  He has also purchased a generator and now has a heater, an electric light, and a little DVD player so they can play videos from the library. This is the magic of having stability in one’s life.  They can eat a nice dinner, go home to a warm bed, and watch a movie.  Such an evening, familiar to us, is really a miracle straight from heaven, we just don’t often notice that the way the homeless folks do. 

 

GOOD NEWS FROM WILLISTON ROAD

 

Six people from the Williston Road community are in the process of moving into housing.  Two couples have found employment sufficient to rent an apartment, and two are veterans who have been assisted through the HUD VASH program.  Williston Road, although it is not a legally designated camping place, has been there long enough to become a relatively stable community with excellent campsites, some self-governance, and supportive relationships with members of the housed community.  Thus, many of them are also on an ascending octave.

 

MYLARS

 

It’s the time of year when we pass out many mylar blankets, so we welcome these to be donated.  A good online site for buying them:

http://www.mcrmedical.com/category/first-aid-training-emergency-blankets-bags.html

 

Peace and blessings,

 

arupa

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Home Van needs tents, tarps, mylar emergency blankets, bottled water, Vienna sausages, creamy peanut butter, jelly, candles, white tube socks, batteries, and games. Call 352-372-4825 to arrange for drop off. Financial donations to the Home Van should be in the form of checks made out to Citizens for Social Justice, Inc., earmarked for the Home Van, and mailed to 307 SE 6th Street, Gainesville, FL 32601, or can be made online at http://homevan.blogspot.com/

 

THE HOMEVAN IS A PROJECT OF CITIZENS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE, INC. (FDACSREGISTRATION #CH35643). A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE (800-435-7352) WITHIN THE STATE.REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE.

 

 

HOME VAN NEWSLETTER 9/15/14

SOMETIMES IT’S HARD TO WRITE ON A MOVING PLANET

 

That’s an old saying from the 1960s.  It has been that kind of a late summer/early fall at Home Van Central.  But now I’M BACK! and glad to be

speaking with you all again.

 

UPDATE ON GRACE MARKET PLACE

 

Grace Market Place is continuing to face challenges.  This project was woefully underfunded by both the City and County commissions.  They have had to close down the Pavilion, where many people slept, and the chapel, in order to save on their utility bill.  They can’t afford to  hire needed staff members.  Joe Jackson is working with the city on a new contract with the Homeless Coalition that will hopefully address some of these issues.  In the meantime, community support is very, very, important.  Donate to Grace Market Place.  Volunteer there if you can.  Do not be complacent that this facility is up and running so our homeless community no longer needs your help.  If we all pull together, we will get there, but it’s going to be a long pull.

 

When Grace Market Place opened, Freeman and I were still not clear what our role would be or if we would want to continue offering services on Williston Road and downtown.  We decided to wait and see how things evolved.  Now it is clear that there is still a need for services at this end of town and will continue to be until Grace is better funded and does some growing, so we are going to continue as we have.  We are the ‘go to’ people for tents for those moving out to Grace.  Many thanks to all of you who have donated tents or money to buy tents.  It is an ongoing need so one way to help Grace is to give us money for tents, especially now that the Pavilion is closing. 

 

DIGNITY VILLAGE

 

Joe Jackson reports that the threat of further evictions of people camping outside the gates of Grace (now doesn’t that sound like a country western hymn somebody needs to write – “I’m a campin’ outside the gates of Grace...”) has been averted!  People are diligently establishing a tent city that they have named Dignity Village, after the tent community on the west coast that has become a model of self-governance and upward mobility for homeless people everywhere.  I encourage you to Google Dignity Village and learn more.  There are weekly meetings, also attended by Occupy folks and other grassroots activists, where rules and goals are being established.  People beset by addictions are camping together, in a designated area.  As Grace evolves, there will be more hope and help for them.  In the meantime, I think it would be a good idea if there were 12 Step Meetings out at Dignity Village.   The idea of bringing meetings to people has fallen out of favor in AA – or so I am told – but it is something that was done by Bill W and Dr. Bob and I think for this special population it would make sense. 

 

BUG SPRAY AND PERSONAL HYGIENE PRODUCTS

 

These are our two greatest needs.  The many rains have caused an explosion of mosquitos out in the woods.  We’re about out of soap and shampoo also.

 

KIRK STENDER

 

On August 12 Kirk Stender, a gentle, wonderful man who was homeless in a wheelchair for at least four or five years, left this world.  We were very fond of Kirk.

We hope to plant a tree in his name out at Grace Market Place.  Grace needs trees so maybe other people can plant trees there, for homeless or housed friends who have moved on. 

 

Peace and blessings to all of you,

 

arupa

UPDATE ON THE 39TH AVENUE SITUATION

Hi Folks,

 

I hoped to have more definitive, and maybe even more positive, information before updating you, but that has not happened.  First of all, the trespass warning/eviction notices to the campers along the west side of 39th Avenue were instigated and delivered by employees of Taccachale.  The Alachua County Sheriff’s Department had nothing to do with it, nor did any other local law enforcement people.  The homeless campers were quite convinced that they had been served by deputies.  Perhaps Taccachale employees wear green uniforms.  I don’t think any of us realized that private citizens can carry out trespass warnings and evictions.  Live and learn.  Since this event an attempt has been made to convince Taccachale to reverse their position, but they are adamant. 

 

Also, another group of campers had to move their tents at the request of the administration of the Work Release Program that is located near Grace.  This was not carried out as a formal eviction process.  Rather, Jon Decarmine helped people relocate.  There is now a shortage of wooded areas for people to camp, and people cannot camp under the blazing sun with no shade and no privacy.  That would be hazardous to their health both physical and mental. 

 

So, our Brave New World has been NIMBYED.  The City of Gainesville is going to have to arrange to buy or lease some wooded areas where people can camp. 

 

I am so sorry not to have better news to share with you.

 

arupa

 

 

HOME VAN JOURNAL August 1, 2014

JULY WAS THE CRUELEST MONTH

 

This is going to be a tough newsletter to write, but enough time has passed that I must let our extended Home Van family know what’s been going on. 

July started out on a high note.  The residents of Tent City had been successfully moved, with the help of Occupy Gainesville, Home Van volunteers, and other groups and individuals in the community – a few to the Williston Road Community but many out to the woods near Grace Market Place.  The Home Van’s tent drive was going well and we were working with the people who had been living for so long in and around the Bo Diddley Plaza – telling them that now there was a safe harbor – a place where they could establish camp sites and be within an easy walk of water, food, and many other amenities.  The people who were already living near Grace Market Place were coming back with glowing reports -  of delicious food cooked by church women, an air conditioned room where they could get respite from the heat and watch a movie on a large-screen TV (some of them had not seen a movie in years), volunteer opportunities, church services in the chapel on Sunday.  Every Thursday we would find fewer people living on the pavement downtown.

 

We were completely confident in our belief that the woods around Grace, which are owned by the State, would be a safe haven for our homeless friends.  Since the beginning of the meetings to develop Grace Market Place, we had been told that these woods would be a place where homeless people could camp.  We were encouraged to help people move out there.  There was not the slightest hint of NIMBY protests throughout the process of developing Grace and moving people to the nearby woods.  The fact that the woods were owned by the state – well, hey – no local NIMBYS to fear.  Freeman and I were clapping each other on the back – we had stayed the course throughout long, tough years – and now our homeless friends were finally safe.

 

On the morning of Friday, July 25, my phone started ringing – hysterical phone calls from homeless people living in the woods to the west of Grace.  Sheriffs’ deputies had come around at 7 a.m., posted the area with NO TRESPASS signs, and walked from tent to tent telling people they had to leave within seven days or be arrested.  We drove out there.  Our friends were walking up and down the road looking numb and stunned, like accident victims, the walking wounded, unable to take in what had just happened.  We found out that this eviction took place at the request of Taccachale.

 

I have rewritten this newsletter in my head several times – the first five or six mental drafts being full of hysterical verbiage, some not appropriate for a family newsletter.  I don’t know what to make of the ruling forces within our government and community who did not MAKE SURE that this was going to be a safe haven.  What were they thinking?  Was it, “Have them move out there and hope nobody minds?” 

 

WHAT NOW?

 

I don’t know.  There is a small wooded area to the south of Grace that is owned by the city.   This area is filled to capacity with as many camp sites as possible.  The pavilion within Grace is also full of people.  All other areas out there are owned by the state, and could be posted with eviction notices as well.  Some people are moving back downtown and a few have gone out to the freeway to hitchhike somewhere else.  Grace Market Place is a wonderful facility, with great potential.  If the city of Gainesville wants it to be a success – they need to find a place where homeless people can live while they avail themselves of the health care, job training and other services that are going to be available there.  Otherwise they will be, in the famous words of Robert Kennedy, “Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.”

 

In the meantime, we continue supporting Grace Market Place and wait for further developments.  There are people looking into what to do about the situation, and I will keep all of you in the loop.

 

DONATIONS

 

I am encouraging people who have large donations to bring them to Grace Market Place.  We are still accepting small donations of the things we particularly need, as noted in the footer below.  One of our greatest needs is for bottled water.  We are still taking care of the folks in the Williston Road Community as well as people who camp in isolated sites.  The url that takes people to our web site works on some computers and does not work on others.  I don’t know what to do about it, and I am sorry for the inconvenience. 

 

Hang in there – as the wonderul Annette of  Occupy says – PEACE AND CARROTS TO ALL!

 

arupa

_

The Home Van needs tents, tarps, bottled water, Vienna sausages, creamy peanut butter, jelly, candles, white tube socks, batteries, and games. Call 352-372-4825 to arrange for drop off. Financial donations to the Home Van should be in the form of checks made out to Citizens for Social Justice, Inc., earmarked for the Home Van, and mailed to 307 SE 6th Street, Gainesville, FL 32601, or can be made online at http://homevan.blogspot.com/

 

THE HOMEVAN IS A PROJECT OF CITIZENS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE, INC. (FDACSREGISTRATION #CH35643). A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE (800-435-7352) WITHIN THE STATE.REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE.

 

HOME VAN JOURNAL: SPECIAL EDITION

This month’s Home Van Journal has a guest writer:  Tony Robinson, who was, until recently, a resident of Tent City.  Tony is now living in the vicinity of Grace Market Place.

 

Captains and Kings and the Common Man

 

First of all, I give all praise to an all knowing, all powerful God.  Second, I would like to thank the Gainesville community and its civic leaders for their efforts, time and monetary commitments to a place for those like me who at this time are less fortunate and struggling to live life in these trying times.  I don’t know why we are all at this place and in these conditions.  I don’t believe that 20, 10, or 5 years ago any one of us sat around and planned to be homeless, addicted, or physically or mentally ill.  But I do know that it is a fact that we are all here.  I have experienced many trying times as a homeless person, but also many good times and experienced a freedom like no other time in my life.  I looked at pictures of the One Stop Center with all its tall fences and guard post.  My first impression was, no I am not going in there.  But I challenge myself and you to try to imagine and view the One Stop as exactly what it is named – the One Stop, and allow this place to be just that – one stop in our lives.  A place of help, hope and rest.  Let the One Stop be a place of growth, mentally, physically and spiritually where we are all given a chance to be the best we can be.  A place where we can go not for pity, but a place for the betterment of ourselves, our community, our state, nation and world.  A place where we can become strong enough to advocate for peace and for those less fortunate than ourselves.  A place not of labels, but a place for one human family.

                                                                                                -Tony Robinson

 

I want to thank all of you who came out and helped with moving people out of Tent City.  Many thanks also to Occupy Gainesville and Ellen Allen of the Good Neighbor Society, who helped people move, and to Elizabeth Howard who walked Tent City making sure that no animals were left behind.  Uncle Vinnie, a tent city resident, walked the woods near Grace Market Place scouting out campsites.  After people moved he combed the grounds of Tent City gathering up items of value, like tarps and cooking pans, to distribute to the new campsites near Grace.  GPD paved the way for our efforts by going tent-to-tent informing people of the eviction and passing out flyers about Grace Market Place.  The folks out at Grace Market Place, and all the community volunteers,  are working very hard to make this facility a gracious and welcoming place to all refugees of these difficult times.  This was a true community effort.  Anyone who experienced the terrible, traumatic eviction of Tent City a few years ago, appreciates how far we have come in getting to know one another – whether housed or houseless – and in learning to work together.

 

Our drive to gather tents and money to buy tents for those who have had to move is also being widely supported by the community.  So far, I have had a tent for everyone who has come here to ask for one.  I make sure that people know that these tents come from their friends in the housed community.  They ask me to tell you, “Thank you and God bless you.” 

 

love and peace to everyone,

 

arupa

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Home Van needs tents, tarps, bottled water, insect repellant, Vienna sausages, creamy peanut butter, jelly, candles, white tube socks, batteries, and games. Call 352-372-4825 to arrange for drop off. Financial donations to the Home Van should be in the form of checks made out to Citizens for Social Justice, Inc., earmarked for the Home Van, and mailed to 307 SE 6th Street, Gainesville, FL 32601, or can be made online at http://homevan.blogspot.com/

 

HOME VAN JOURNAL 6/29/14

TENT CITY EVICTION – HELP NEEDED

 

Homeless people who live along the bike trail, near the downtown RTS station, have until Tuesday, July 8 to move out.  The person who owns the land wishes to sell it.  He was holding off until Grace Market Place opens for actual shelter, but that date has been pushed to November 1 and he needs to get his land on the market now.  Other camping areas, including the Sweetwater Branch camp, remain undisturbed.  This particular portion of tent City has a fair number of people who are elderly or have other major challenges, so they are going to need help to get themselves and their possessions moved out.  We are encouraging them to move to wooded areas near the Grace Market Place, so they will have access to water, meals and other amenities.  According to the latest count, about half the people who were living in this area have moved out on their own, or with help from the good people of Occupy Gainesville, and between 20 and 30 camp sites remain occupied.

 

We have set SATURDAY, JULY 5 at 10 a.m. as moving time for those who remain in Tent City.  We are asking anyone who has a pickup truck or van to help.  People who may not have a large vehicle, but do have strong backs, are also invited to come and help.  Helpers should wear gardening gloves.   Generations of homeless people, some with severe addiction issues, have lived in this area, without access to water or to garbage pickup, so conditions are not good.  Tomorrow morning, I’m doing a walk-through of the area, with Bud our van driver.  We are going to take another count of who is there and who will need help.  People will be told to have their things packed up and ready to go for the 10 a.m. July 5 moving day.  For any further information, helpers can call me at 372-4825.

 

Freeman is going to make a little map of exactly where helpers should meet, and I will send that out ASAP.

 

 

PROGRESS REPORT ON THE IMPACT OF GRACE MARKET PLACE

 

IT’S WORKING!!!  Every Thursday we are finding fewer people at the Tent City stop and fewer people living in Bo Diddley Plaza!  I believe that almost half of those living in Bo Diddley have moved, and that is WONDERFUL news!!  No one wants to live on the sidewalk in the middle of a downtown area.  In talking to these folks, I have learned that most of them are afraid of living in the woods or are too old or too disabled to walk or bike back and forth from the woods to services.  They have been more or less trapped there, looked down upon by snoots and prey to drug dealers and other bad guys from the housed community.  On a recent visit Freeman and I made to Grace Market Place we found some folks who had been living on the plaza and are now volunteers at Grace Market Place.  The readers of this newsletter have played a major role in this transformation, by donating tents and money to buy tents.  Until we get everybody moved out there, we still need donations of tents or money to buy tents.  As of this moment, I have six tents in stock, and four of them are going out today to women who have been living in Bo Diddley.  I hear through the grapevine that some of you  have been donating tents directly to Grace Market Place, and that is fine also.

 

Thank yous and blessings to everyone!

 

arupa

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Home Van needs tents, tarps, bottled water, insect repellant, Vienna sausages, creamy peanut butter, jelly, candles, white tube socks, batteries, and games. Call 352-372-4825 to arrange for drop off. Financial donations to the Home Van should be in the form of checks made out to Citizens for Social Justice, Inc., earmarked for the Home Van, and mailed to 307 SE 6th Street, Gainesville, FL 32601, or can be made online at http://homevan.blogspot.com/

 

THE HOMEVAN IS A PROJECT OF CITIZENS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE, INC. (FDACSREGISTRATION #CH35643). A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE (800-435-7352) WITHIN THE STATE.REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE.

HOME VAN JOURNAL 5/10/14

THE BIG PUSH FOR TENTS, TARPS AND CAMPING EQUIPMENT

 

Our major project right now is furnishing tents for people who want to move out to 39th Avenue, to the woods near Grace Market Place.  I’m usually pretty conservative about spending money on items other than food and water, especially in the summer, but this is our big chance to help people move away from lives of misery, sleeping on pavement, or in illegal campsites where they have uncertain access to water, no place to dispose of garbage, may be far from services, and are subject to eviction at any time.  When the City came up with 2000 one-year bus passes, that was the turning point.  Every day this week someone has come to me for a tent, and there is an air of optimism among our friends.  This is the first big break the unsheltered homeless people have received.  In bad weather people near the market place will have a place to go – not just in winter when the temperature goes below 45 degrees.  There is a horror in people sleeping outside when it’s 46 degrees and raining, or during violent thunder storms, or when hurricanes are on the way and they may be bashed by a tree falling on their tents.  This horror is ending for those who move!  As time goes by more services will be added and as more members of our community get involved with their homeless neighbors, more people will make their way out of homelessness altogether.  So this is everyone’s big chance to make a real difference.  If you can donate a tent, if you have some camping supplies you don’t need anymore, if you can donate some money for buying tents –please do this!  Although people moving from Tent City may already have tents, many of them are so old and ratty they can’t be moved without falling apart.  The whole community needs to come together and make this happen!

 

In the meantime, we are doing our summer water outreach, and will continue to do so as long as it’s needed.  The move to 39th Avenue is going to be in stages.  It will not be, as my hilarious husband says, “The Homeless Rapture.”  So we need water donations also.  And BUG SPRAY!  All campers, in town and out on 39th Avenue, are being tortured by clouds of mosquitos.  Every can of bug spray donated is an answer to prayer at this time of year.

 

THE FUTURE OF THE HOME VAN

 

The Home Van is not going out of business (some people heard that rumor).  We will continue to do what we can, as long as we are needed.  Freeman and I are Taoists and we will be following the Tao of this change, seeing where we are needed.   To the best of my knowledge, the Williston Road encampment is not being closed down.  The portion of Tent City that is along the bike path will be closed down on June 1, so far as I know, as the owner wants to sell the land.  We are hoping that the people there will move to 39th Avenue, and will do whatever we can to to support that.  Some of the folks from Occupy Gainesville are also very active in supporting this move.  They have been scouting out good campsites on 39th Avenue and furnishing transportation for people and their belongings. 

 

peace and love to everyone,

 

arupa

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Home Van needs tents, tarps, bottled water, insect repellant, Vienna sausages, creamy peanut butter, jelly, candles, white tube socks, batteries, and games. Call 352-372-4825 to arrange for drop off. Financial donations to the Home Van should be in the form of checks made out to Citizens for Social Justice, Inc., earmarked for the Home Van, and mailed to 307 SE 6th Street, Gainesville, FL 32601, or can be made online at http://homevan.blogspot.com/

 

THE HOMEVAN IS A PROJECT OF CITIZENS FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE, INC. (FDACSREGISTRATION #CH35643). A COPY OF THE OFFICIAL REGISTRATION AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE DIVISION OF CONSUMER SERVICES BY CALLING TOLL-FREE (800-435-7352) WITHIN THE STATE.REGISTRATION DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT, APPROVAL, OR RECOMMENDATION BY THE STATE.