From Glad To Sad

It was a good feeling earlier today--writing about Jimmy Buffet and Stephanie Kaple. It is a happy story. They are two more reasons why there is hope for reducing and ultimately eliminating homelessness.

Now I must write a story that is not so happy. It furthers awareness that we still have a long way to go. It is about my friend, Bob, who is on the verge of being homeless in Billings, Montana.

Bob is 55, with some heart problems. He lost his job some time ago and his unemployment has run out. He is unable to find steady work. His landlord has told him he must pay--or go.

Bob is trying. Last week he found temporary employment--cleaning stalls at night during the Montana State Fair. It wasn't easy work for a man with a bad heart, shoveling manure from ten at night until dawn. It wasn't easy, but he did it.

Now it is over. The state fair ended Sunday. Today, Tuesday, Bob has nothing in his future but a knock on the door. Where does he go then? To a shelter which has a limit on how long he can stay? Where does Bob go?