They saw me coming...

The lounge in the Night Shelter. 

The Dunedin Night Shelter. (we so want to buy these buildings)

Phoenix Lodge - medium term accommodation. 

An old steam train ran excursions over Labour Weekend locally. 

I treated myself to a nostalgic visit to take some pics.

I love the sight and sounds of a steam train... a big pollutant though.

To ensure I do not burn up too much fossil fuel and to keep some retirement time for me, I have been trying to make a rule that I do not go into town on Mondays and Wednesdays. It has been a dismal failure and my diary for the week ahead informs me that I will not succeed this week either. Last Wednesday we wanted to spend a big part of the day in the garden. We wanted to make a trip to town though, to buy some plants and I needed to take some photographs at the Night Shelter.  It was to be a quick visit to town, and then back into our garden. It did not work out that way.
Just as we were preparing to leave, my brother visiting town from Melbourne, Australia, phoned me.  After a short conversation we arranged to have lunch with him and his wife, no other day suited.  Then as we began to drive down the street, Keith, a Night Shelter Trust colleague rang. He had completed his part of a project and we made a plan to meet at the shelter so he could pass it on.  All was well, with these two positive extras our visit to town would be only slightly longer than we had planned.
"Can you help us?" times two.
I arrived at the shelter and proceeded to take the photographs I needed. One of the guys from Phoenix lodge, (the medium term accommodation place out the back of the shelter) came home, leaving a friend of his sitting opposite. I saw that this friend was taking a real interest in what I was doing and was coming closer. The Phoenix guy, who I had met twice before, reappeared and I noticed them on the other side of the road conversing together and looking at my van. Eventually he came over and knocked on the shelter door. We greeted each other and then he questioned me. "You work here don't you?" he said. "Well I spend a lot of time here." I replied. "Is that your van out there?"he continued.  "Yes that is my beat up van." I responded. "Well it is like this." ... and I love this part, "I just paid for two bookcases for my sister at the hospice shop, but we need to pick them up and move them to her new flat in Caversham. You wouldn't know anyone who could do that for us would you?" By this time his sister, who looked like a man, had joined him. "Well I couldn't do it today." I said - I can take a hint. "But we need to pick them up today?" they pleaded. I looked at these two. Both had tattoos all over their faces and arms, and I felt sorry for them.  I knew he was recently released from prison. They were both "the forgotten people" of our society and our economic system. Most people would not give them the time of day, though every contact I had with him had been pleasant. "Ok" I said, "I have to go to lunch with my brother in a few minutes, but after lunch, at 2:30 we will come back, pick you up and we will go and get them." When I got into the van, my wife who had been watching from the van, rolled her eyes and said, "You are going to move something for them aren't you?"  She knows that I am the softest touch in town. We went to lunch and talked too long, so that it was past 2:30 by the time I picked them up. I took them to the hospice shop, we loaded up the bookcases and I delivered them to the sister's new lodgings. I have seldom heard so many expressions of "thank you."  They even offered "$5 next benefit day." I refused that, but knew that they were really appreciative.
On our way to buy our plants, we were stopped outside a second hand shop while waiting for the lights at an intersection. My wife looking at the furniture on display, decided we needed to come back and look at a certain chair. So after buying our plants we returned to the shop and negotiated the purchase of the chair. While loading it into the van, I recognised a couple walking along the footpath. I knew them because of past contact and I knew that they were poor.  I greeted them as they walked by and the wife came up to me and pretty soon got to the point of her visit. They were running late for a bus to go to a certain place where they had a cleaning job to do.  Would we, by any chance, "be going in that direction?"  - It was not really where we were headed but I said, "OK, hop in, we'll give you a lift." Once again, my wife rolled her eyes and cleared the stuff off the back seat of the van.
There is a saying in NZ often used when somebody takes advantage of another. "Well, they saw you coming, didn't they?" Why did I mess up my day helping these two couples? At the fire station I was part of a conversation where firefighters were laughing about the characteristics of some of their colleagues. "We are all different!" I commented wanting to bring some balance, "We can't all be perfect."  "You know what happened to the last perfect man!" somebody chided, "He got crucified!"  The man sitting next to me said, "There's a lesson in that for you Dave. - If you spend your time helping others they are still going to crucify you. Why do it?"  
Why do I help such as these? Why do I spend my time helping the homeless, when one of their number kicks the shelter door in, and another abuses our manager?  My fire fighters and others often chide me saying I need to be more selfish. "They saw you coming!" is a phrase I often hear from them, with the implication that I am too easily taken for a ride. They have said this about such things as the Christmas Day dinner we hosted for 25 years; or Habitat for Humanity projects; the drop in centre; the Night Shelter and other things I have done.  Why do I do it? 
Connection, community and solidarity.
There is a massive and growing gap between the rich and the poor in our country. (and other countries) I am not that rich, but these people are poorer than I am. They are at the bottom end, with little hope of climbing any further up. Life is so difficult for them that they often adopt unacceptable coping mechanisms just to survive. They are treated not just as poor, but often it is assumed they are bad, or weak. They see themselves as inferior, even though they may come across as bombastic and tough.  I reach out to them when I can, and when I deem it wise, so that for a time the gap is bridged.  These people who cannot afford the transport I have, can have for a short time the benefit of having a vehicle. I go out of my way because it reminds them that they are not totally forgotten, that somebody, at least for a short time, shares their journey in life. It is a way of linking arms and saying, "We are in this journey of life together. You are my brother or sister." - I happen to think these sorts of actions make a difference in our community. I might get "crucified", or used and abused, but at least I tried to express the essential unity of humanity.

How we see things.

Photo by Daniel Brown.

What we value

I have had a couple of reasons to question and reflect on what we value.  The Dunedin Night Shelter Trust is very busy trying to raise money so that we can purchase the buildings we currently rent.  The number of bed nights increased by 46% last year. We have the police, social work agencies and the hospital refer people to us. We are the only providers of emergency accommodation in town. We also have transitional housing for men fresh out of prison wanting to make a change.  Our work would be much more self-sufficient, more secure and more able to develop if we owned our buildings. Because of this we have been lifting our profile, asking for donations and canvassing as many people as we can. We want to be secure in offering a roof, food and a bed to people who have run out of options in Dunedin. As I have worked on this I have encountered three things.

(a) I read that the Government subsidised a flash golf tournament run in a tourist town about three hours drive from Dunedin. The amount of money ran to around two million dollars from memory.  They have helped this event for the last three years.  We don’t receive any central government funding, though their agencies (police, hospital, mental health teams, WINZ etc.) are pleased to send people to us. I find myself wondering, ”Just a fraction of what they are giving for golf would buy our night shelter so that we can offer a refuge for people.”  What do we value?

(b) I read an article about the local SPCA .  I think they were having an influx of cats and volunteers were feeding them. I thought how they often ask for funds and seem to have no trouble getting funds.  Full of envy, I said to myself “I bet they own their facilities!”  The picture of helpless homeless animals being neglected tears at people’s heartstrings and the local SPCA can employ people, house animals and function very well with relative ease.  I admire their work and see them as a necessary part of a caring community, but why is it so hard to raise funds for homeless people?   Somehow we think that the people deserve their plight. Now I can understand why we think that, but I would strongly suggest it is never that simple. There are complex reasons why people end up homeless, and the way we live and run our community life (education, health, family life, individualism, economy) all contribute to their plight.  Whatever the causes of their homelessness, it is not entirely their fault, and as a community we need to sense the need to provide the safety net of emergency shelter. It seems to be easy to be able to do it for animals, why not people?

(c) I had the job of sending letters asking for support from Churches.  I looked up Church websites to get their contact addresses. One Church was raising two million dollars to refurbish their old church building! Now I suspect that has something to do with new regulations relating to earthquake strengthening that have come in after the Christchurch earthquake… but two million? ....What would Jesus do? Our local church is raising funds and spending millions on refurbishing their historic building. On a good Sunday 25 people might attend Church. There are two worship centres.  Again, what would Jesus do? The sad thing is that I sent out around 50 letters to Church congregations seeking some help. I may be pleasantly surprised, but I suspect that nearly all will think there are more important things to raise money for than “Emergency accommodation for people” after all, as one lady at church told me, “It’s their lifestyle choices” that cause the problem.

And Jesus wept.

Indifference, by GA Studdert Kennedy

When Jesus came to Golgotha, they hanged Him on a tree,

They drove great nails through hands and feet, and made a Calvary;

They crowned Him with a crown of thorns, red were His wounds and deep,

For those were crude and cruel days, and human flesh was cheap.

When Jesus came to Birmingham, (or Dunedin - or your town) they simply passed Him by.

They would not hurt a hair of Him, they only let Him die;

For men had grown more tender, and they would not give Him pain,

They only just passed down the street, and left Him in the rain.

Still Jesus cried, ‘Forgive them, for they know not what they do,’

And still it rained the winter rain that drenched Him through and through;

The crowds went home and left the streets without a soul to see,

And Jesus crouched against a wall, and cried for Calvary.