Sign-Language

I am having a standoff with my calendar. It still (for a few more fleeting days) reads 'August' but recently the mornings have been impersonating mid-September. The universe is coaxing me into wearing a jacket but I refuse to bow to its wishes. The season is changing and with it comes more than a meteorological discussion. The homeless demographic of Kalispell is fluid by nature, but the transformation in the weather signifies the beginning of the end for many transient or migrational sign holders. Executive Director Chris Krager explored this topic in an excellent feature.

Our residents at Samaritan House are asked not to hold signs and usually comply with this request. Chances are, the individuals you have seen at various fixed locations (sometimes at the entrances to certain stores or intersections) are not living at Samaritan House. Many people have different philosophies regarding how to interact with sign holders. No matter what your personal ethos dictates, you have probably been placed in that awkward situation when the traffic light stops you dead in your tracks right next to a sign holder. Your car idles there, with a trunk full of groceries or other items, as the individual outside your window looks over and silently invades your personal space without moving a muscle. 

This recently happened to someone I know. She is a very compassionate woman but is also blessed with a keen sense of intuition. As her car was stopped, she rolled down down her window and offered the homeless gentleman some fruit, which he indignantly refused. She apologized and told him she figured he could use some food since his sign proclaimed he was hungry. He moved to another location. Her intention was not act as an investigative journalist or to entrap someone who was trying to scam the public; she just wanted to give a hungry guy some something to eat.

I won't tell you how to respond to sign holders but I would like to express my sadness and frustration when those who are legitimately in need are denigrated because other (less scrupulous) people have decided to feign homelessness to make money by exploiting this situation. The faux-homeless migrational sign holders will soon be moving on to warmer environments as the temperature drops but those who are truly homeless will still be among us. My point is that we should not dismiss or marginalize the genuine need or cause of homelessness in Kalispell because we are irritated with impostors. I also warn caution against labeling all sign holders as fraudulent... some are truly homeless with corresponding needs.

So, as the Flathead Valley evolves into the beginning stages of a Northwestern Winter Wonderland, please be mindful that not everything is as it seems to the naked eye. Until we can create a system and environment that addresses the causes of homelessness, we will be forced to try and be as proactive as we can, while often being held hostage to misconceptions and appearances. Always use discretion and wisdom, but not without compassion and understanding.