Stone Soup Station

I'm increasingly seeing women among the faces of vets needing services that mob our lobby on a daily basis and we have been working on some policies to fast-track these ladies in order to remove them from the testosterone clouds common in many military gathering spots.   I've got to admit however,...

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Good to see that Charlie is making some headway on the Homeless Court issue; all the work and effort Lt. Swisher and I have done to improve officer treatment of the homeless on the streets has begun paying off, as has her desire to begin seeking alternatives to incarceration by...

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These guys were warned by several prominent veteran's groups around the Nashville area that what they were doing was scandalous and dishonest, not to mention quite probably illegal.  They were actually given the option of packing up their buckets and bs and moving on before these news stories began breaking....

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Over the past several weeks, more and more people who thought they'd never find themselves homeless or very near it have come to see if there is anything I can do at all to help stave off their fall to the street.   It's been a grueling time, both for them and...

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Ken Kraybill and I will be putting on the second Spirit of Motivational Interviewing webcast today at 12 noon CST and if you are/were interested in attending, I hope you were able to register early, as I understand we've reached capacity for the virtual meeting room and it may be...

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It looks as tho many of us, self included, may have jumped to conclusions about what caused Cherokee Wolf's death.  To the foster parents who have endured both misery and accusation, I apologize for all of us who thought the worst before the evidence was presented.    I know when little children...

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Mr. Williamson obviously doesn't spend much time around folks experiencing homelessness because if he did, he'd know that almost half of them (44 percent or so) have jobs.  I'm not tossing him under the bus here, just pointing out the fact that like many other Americans, Mr. Williamson is ignorant...

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Nice to see a musician w such fame and influence is actually helping with the homelessness problem in this country and one visit to Jon Bon Jovi's  Soul Foundation will prove that the man is serious about what he's doing.   Bon Jovi and Jimmy Wayne both are doing more than many...

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Over the past couple of weeks I've been working closely w The Center for Social Innovation's (C4SI)Training guru Ken Kraybill  (pictured far left in the flick here) on a webcast that provides information on the spirit of Motivational Interviewing.    I've had the distinct pleasure of working w Ken before; BigWillyC...

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If you're thinking about helping veterans in need, I strongly encourage you reconsider before giving to one organization in particular you might run into that sets up professional panhandlers in store parking lots around the city here in the greater Nashville area.  This group, the "Veterans Support Organization" appears to be...

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Yesterday Roland Huddleston, a 7 year veteran of Operation Stand Down Nashville, retired Navy man, and perhaps the finest client advocate anyone on the street can have, retired from his position at the front desk. Roland had been experiencing some personal health issues lately and the hectic pace at the front...

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I appreciate more than I can say that Juliet Mason didn't just jump to the conclusion - like our men folks in Blue did - that this was a "homeless man" behind her ripoff.  I get more than a little tired of the jump to conclusions by police because it...

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Got the latest info from Suzie Tolmie over at MDHA regarding this year's annual point in time homeless count here in Nashville, and - surprise surprise - we experienced about a 7 percent increase from last year; we were at just under 2,000 and jumped to somewhere close to 2,400...

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One of the reasons I've not posted for several days is that I've been extremely busy with regular work as well as a new project related to Motivational Interviewing with Outreach Guru and all around good guy Ken Kraybill that will be broadcast on February 25th.  Registration is free so...

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Go watch this.  Go NOW please. Jeannie, thanks for a superb piece........

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Once again fire, police and paramedics have converged on the camp for an emergency related to fire.  This worries me considerably, since Channel 5 is also reporting, "city officials warn more fires may be coming to Tent City" regardless of the temperatures."  This has been one of the most compelling...

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I'll never forget the day Tasha and I went to pick up our first batch of papers; we were both so damned excited and giddy we could barely contain ourselves!  Everyone involved at that time was dreaming that we'd one day make it to this point, and while I no...

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Poor guy.  It's tough out there, ain't it, Jimmy? I wonder how he would deal with this situation if he was forced to cath himself twice a day to urinate?  Or had to maneuver a wheelchair the full distance?  Or suffer from degenerative eye problems that leave him legally blind?   ...

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Self-Care: The Great Debate “The Voice of Self-Care Wisdom” vs. “The Voice of the Work” Wisdom: “Stop denying. Listen to the wisdom of your body. Begin to freely admit thestresses and pressures that reveal themselves physically, mentally, and emotionally.”Work: “Work until the physical pain forces you into unconsciousness.” Wisdom: “Avoid isolation. Don't do...

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Another bitterly cold weekend with snow flurries flying.  I've been in Nashville only about four years now, but I don't recall it being this damned cold here - for so long - since I've been here.  (No, this is NOT Nashville; the pic here is of my home in Nevada!)   I had...

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Just a couple of quick comments here:  If nothing else comes out of this event, I would hope that we as a city and a community of human beings make resources available to assist pregnant mothers who for whatever the reason, find themselves homeless in the final portion of their...

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I was wandering around on the HRC website this morning when I came across this little gem about teaching others on the issues of homelessness.  This page then led me to a newer section known as the Homeless Hub which was literally chock full of goodies related to teach about...

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This is probably the best idea I've heard yet to assist the good peeps of Tent City, and credit must definitely be given to both Jeannie and Doug for their amazing perseverance and dedication in assisting the camp.    There is no doubt the city would like to see Tent City closed,...

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When we sat around a table that first meeting, strategizing about how we were going to get the paper going, I think people like Sharon here were all of our ultimate dream. We knew that most folks who are experiencing homelessness would gladly work day and night for a livable wage...

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Spoke w Clifton prior to the count about the announcement and he said they would start with 30 meters initially, and plans for a lot more are in the works.  As I said previously, Denver's program made a believer out of me, even though there are some things I find...

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