the right trail to home sweet home · in greensboro. the day shelter’s goal is to provide the...

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VOLUME 1 ISSUE 4 FEBRUARY 2011PRINTING NEWS THAT DOESN’T FIT.

By Chris Davis

Everyone wants a home they can call their own; a place to spend time with loved ones. A permanent resi-dence gives many people a sense of security and ac-

complishment. It is necessary for homeless individuals to obtain permanent housing because, let’s face it, there’s no place like home.

Many homeless people face challenges when it comes to finding housing. A few of these barriers include having a felony record, poor credit and low income. Teresa Hicks and Trailways Housing believe that a person’s background should not limit their security and privacy. This organization advocates for decent, affordable housing for low- to moder-ate-income people because everyone deserves a second chance and genuine assistance. However, locating affordable housing in a safe community proves to be a difficult, if not an impossible task.

Finding housing for women and children is the most challenging part of Hicks’ job, but it is also where her passion lies. “My heart just goes out and everything stops for them,” she said.

Continued on page 5

The right trail to

Every homeless person has a story. Help our newspaper share these stories with our Greensboro community.

Please make your checks payable to “The New Greensboro Voice” and

mail donations to:The New Greensboro Voice

Elizabeth Chiseri-StraterDepartment of EnglishHumanities Building

UNCGGreensboro, NC 27412

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Teresa Hicks dedicates her life to helping homeless individuals find decent, affordable housing in Greensboro. Her office is located at the Interactive Resource Center. Photo by Alexandria Stewart.

home sweet home

The New Greensboro Voice

Food for Thought:A Black Man’s Prayer

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Website: http://thenewgreensborovoice.wordpress.com

E-mail: [email protected].

Twitter: http://twitter.com/greensborovoice

Connect with us Online

Join Our Team:Members of Greensboro’s community who are interested in issues around homelessness and poverty publish The New Greensboro Voice. Please join our team.Meetings are held at the Interactive Resource Center’s Board Room on Tuesdays from 9:00-10:00 a.m. and Fridays from 1:00-3:00 p.m. We welcome all interested reporters, editors, photographers and designers.This issue was produced by: Lynne Buchanan, ReporterAtilah Claiborne, InternElizabeth Chiseri-Strater, EditorChris Davis, Reporter Hillary Dooley, Copy EditorRobert “Shorty” Decker, Reporter Jill Dragon, Research & DevelopmentAndre Fernandes, ReporterWhitney Johnson, DistributionBob Norfleet, VolunteerJulia Patt, Volunteer David Reed, Design & LayoutClarette Sutton, ReporterKevin Vaughn, ReporterMary Yost, Editor

Mission Statement:Our newspaper aims to serve as a vehicle for elevating voices and public discussion on issues that are not frequently covered in mainstream media outlets. These issues include homelessness, facing potential homelessness and the resources that are available to help those in need.This newspaper is for everyone: homeless individuals, housed individuals, students, parents and anyone else who wants to have their voice heard.We hope the awareness gained from our newspaper will encourage the community to have a discussion about issues and people that are normally ignored.

Clarette Sutton is a youth advocate and minister who spends much of her time helping others. She is founder of

EMOTIONS Organization, and Prayer, Praise and Healing Outreach Ministry of Warsaw, N.C.

By Clarette SuttonTed Williams is the homeless man with

the “golden voice” who became an over-night sensation. His poverty caused many people spoke of his demise instead of his success. For example, Dr. Phil continued to dip in his past instead of trying to lead Ted into a productive future. He asked a question that not only surprised Ted but also me. “What was the worst thing you did in your past that you didn’t get caught doing?” Dr. Phil questioned.

Was that a question toward redemp-tion? No. If Ted won the lottery, would Dr. Phil have asked that question? Many people appear to want Ted, and other homeless individuals, to fail.

It is hard for a homeless person who has battled addictions to move forward because someone is always trying to dig in the past. Ted never said that he has not been to jail and he never said that he has not done drugs. He was driven into his present situation from the deep closets of his past. My advice to homeless individu-als is to stand your guard toward your success. Do not let anyone take that away from you.

Ted is on the road to redemption, but he needs the support of others. I hope he

finds peace within himself because that is the best rehab a person can get.

Here is a poem I wrote about Ted and other individuals in his situation:

A Black Man’s PrayerIt was overnight and it happenedGod answered my prayer.But tomorrow cameand there was the road to fame.Everywhere I went,people knew my name.Another black man that thinks he can go to the topin a nation where racism cannot stop.They talked more of his failures than of his endeavors.And they talk, curse, they balk.

2011 Point-in-Time Count for Homelessness UpdateThe annual point-in-time count of homeless individuals in Guilford County took

place on Jan. 27. The report released by Partners Ending Homeless revealed that there were 1,064 homeless people in our county on that night. This number suggests that on any given night, there are over 1,000 people without permanent shelter who may be liv-ing on the streets, in camps, shelters or in transitional housing

The data from this count, which was published in The News & Record, also showed a 55 percent increase in the number of military veterans, a 32 percent increase in domestic violence victims and an 8 percent increase in the number of children who are homeless. This report card and its implications will be discussed at a Feb. 17 meeting hosted by Partners Ending Homelessness.


Change of address: The IRC is movingBy Kevin Vaughn and Bob Norfleet

Another freight train slowly passes Greensboro’s Southside Depot as it takes a swing to the

left and roars over a very old Washington Street bridge. It then passes within 25 feet of a seemingly abandoned building at 407 E. Washington St. As I stand in the ship-ping and receiving room at the back of the building, I can feel the floor shake. I can almost hear the music of an old Johnny Cash song. The whistle blows in the dis-tance, taking my mind back to my assign-ment.

This is my first visit to the future home of the Interactive Resource Center (IRC) at the corner of East Washington Street and South Murrow Boulevard. Liz Sey-mour, the executive director of the IRC, pulls into the concrete parking lot to show me the building. She is excited to check on the progress of the construction. The completion date is scheduled to occur near mid-March, Seymour said.

The purpose of the IRC is to serve homeless and nearly homeless individuals in Greensboro. The day shelter’s goal is to provide the necessary services to help each guest move out of “homelessness” and into a job and independence.

The “day room” is the largest, heated space and will serve most of the clients. A small kitchen in the front of the building will handle pre-packaged lunches. Just outside the kitchen will be a coffee bar. A much larger connected room to the west will be used for storage.

“Everyone at the IRC is excited,” Sey-mour said. “People are especially pleased about the central location of the East Washington Street building.”

The property was a gift from the Stras-ser family. It was the headquarters of their business, Southern Plate Glass. One of the family members sits on the IRC’s board of directors. After 10 years, the family will

re-assess the building’s usage as well as its value to the community to determine if any changes need to be made.

The IRC is currently located on the third floor of the Bessemer United Meth-odist Church. They offer limited services because of the small space.

“We’re at about 3,000 square feet now,” Seymour said. “The new building is 22,000 square feet in all but we’ll be using 14,000 square feet to start.”

The IRC currently sees between 60 to 70 people per day at the Bessemer Street location. Jenny Hudson, the office man-ager at the IRC, said that she has seen more people than she expected this year, so she is thankful to have the extra space at the new location. There, the number of guests served will easily double. The new location will allow both interns and staff to more effectively serve clients.

The IRC will be adding new services at

the Washington Street location.“We plan to have a garden replacing

much of the concrete parking lot,” she said. “We’d like to have exercise equip-ment, and I know there will be other things.”

The only downside of the move: the Bessemer Avenue location has no “train music.”

Chris Davis and Shorty Decker march in the A&T Homecoming Parade to raise awareness about the Interactive Resource Center’s new location on East Washington Street. Construction is expected to be completed by mid-March. Photo by Mary Yost.

Bob Norfleet is a North Carolina native. He gradu-ated with sociol-ogy and econom-ics degree from Guilford College.

He later spent six years as an officer in the U.S. Marines. After that, Bob was a banker for 40 years and retired in April 2010. He now does volunteer work with the Greensboro Urban Ministry and The New Greensboro Voice.


By Andre Fernandes

One could almost believe this was a waiting room for some new talent show on Fox, not

the day room of the Interactive Re-source Center. Kiki, 19, and Nik, 24, huddle over a Mac laptop equipped with Logic Pro 8, a program Nik uses to create his own beats. Kiki raps alongside him.

“I can freestyle and write,” said Kiki, a musician who has videos on YouTube (femalerida100).

Nik, an A&T graduate, contributes music reviews for Qthequestion.com. He showed me one of his reviews for Rick Ross’ album “Ashes to Ashes,” whose cover portrays the man using an ashtray as a piggy bank for $100 bills.

“Whoever has money to burn like that you don’t need to set it on fire. You see all these people in here are homeless?” said his friend Bilal.

Music plays a central role in the lives of many homeless individuals. Bilal is a 46 year-old-man who enjoys the music of famous musicians and of his friends, Nik and Kiki.

“Whenever I think of music, I think of history. Everything that was written you can think of a time and place you were at. Not only in your life, but within yourself,” Bilal said. “It takes you back, it makes you remember.”

Unlike many of his generation, Bilal enjoys rap music.

“When people rap, I listen to ‘em,” he said. “But they’re going to tell you something that hurt ‘em, something that they love.”

The Music Man, Richard Thornton, is a 56-year-old professional singer and bass player who has played with fa-mous musicians such as Tyrone Davis, whom he considers a mentor, and The Temptations and George Clinton.

“We weren’t allowed to listen to music in our house,” Richard said. The first time he heard R&B hits like Mustang Sally and Stand by Me, he fell in love. By the time he was 12, Richard was sneaking out to a friend’s house to listen to records and, at 14, he was making money playing in clubs.

His father, a mechanic, didn’t support Richard’s love of music, and chided him for wasting time with his instru-ment. However, later in life, his father became one of his biggest supporters.

On his deathbed, his father had a vi-sion that Richard remembers acutely. He said that Richard was sitting on a hill with him and they were surrounded by people.

“And I looked at you and asked you where did all of the people come from, and you didn’t even respond; didn’t even look up,” Richard recollects his father saying. “You just kept doing what you were doing. Don’t you ever stop doing that.”

Richard discovered later in life that his father played music when he was young.

“It’s in my blood,” Richard said.Richard recently left Detroit because

of the state’s notorious job woes. His story is like that of other musicians. It is filled with highs and lows, drugs and women, and plenty of stories. Richard is eight months clean following a re-

lapse that broke a 15-year clean stretch. He is creating a band with local musi-cians and said this is his first time in a homeless shelter.

“I guess I would like to minister through music. Not necessarily in a church, but it could be,” he said.

Andre Fernandes is a 25-year-old graduate student pursuing a degree in cre-ative writing at UNCG. He is a

Brazilian-American who roots for the United States when they’re playing basketball and Brazil when they’re playing soccer.

Music makes you remember

Many homeless people have a connection to music because it helps them express emotions. “Kayne West” drawing by John Oluwarotimi.

Homeless musicians share their stories


The right trail to home sweet home (continued)

Teresa Hicks enjoys Chris Davis’ company. Photo by Alexandria Stewart.

Chris Davis is 28 years old and the proud father of three children. He was born in Greensboro and moved to Ger-

many when he was 4 years old. He traveled a great deal because of his life as a military child. Chris moved to St. Louis when he was 15 years old after living in El Paso, Texas, for five years. He returned to Greensboro in September 2010. He is pursuing a career as a commercial truck driver and is a reporter for The New Greensboro Voice.

Greensboro has one emergency shel-ter for women with 17 beds. If a woman has a child, the two cannot stay at the emergency shelter. Therefore, these women are often forced to stay in abu-sive relationships to maintain housing.

Hicks also focuses her energy on helping people convicted of felonies. In Greensboro, felons cannot apply for Section 8 housing vouchers, which pro-vide rent subsidies to recipients to assist them with monthly rent payments. Hicks encourages felons to apply for the vouchers so that they can appeal the de-cision if they are rejected.

“People are in prison for years, and when they get out, they enter into city shelters like Greensboro Urban Minis-try,” Hicks said. “These shelters only house individuals for two months.”

If felons cannot get food or shelter af-ter two months, how can they survive? These individuals will end up back in prison if they do not have their most ba-sic needs met by the city.

When homeless individuals seek Hicks’ help, she looks at their entire sit-uation. There is no one-size-fits-all. She works with people wherever they are in their lives at the moment they need help.

“Every day is a new day,” Hicks said. “It doesn’t matter if someone messes up 50 times. Don’t give up. Today is the day we get it right.”

Hicks cannot face the challenges of running Trailways Housing alone. She works with a dedicated staff of volun-teers. Her husband also assists her.

“I am greatful for my husband, Wil-liam Hicks, who stands by my side,” Te-resa said. “I am thankful that he has love and passion for the people that I work with.”

Hicks believes that her work is a min-

istry, which helps her put others’ lives before her own. Doing so enables her to form trustworthy relationships with many of her clients.

“These people are human beings. The only thing different between me and them is that I have a house, and they don’t,” she said. “But anything else, there is no line between that.”

Trailways Housing receives support from the Interactive Resource Center, where her organization is located. Liz Seymour, the executive director at the homeless day shelter, compliments Hicks on her work.

“I’m just so proud of Teresa and so proud to know her,” Seymour said. “She just doesn’t back down. She’s just got this vision and she just goes after it. That’s really inspiring, and I think that it’s inspiring to the people that she helps, too.”

Hicks hopes to create a community that fights against homelessness.

“There is a society against cruelty to

animals,” Hicks said. “There are laws to protect these animals from harm or cru-elty from their owners. The reason the laws exist is because there were enough people who cared and fought for these laws. We have to do the same thing to fight against the cruelty that is shown to those without a home. We need to create a society to fight against homelessness.”


Be Mine: A Valentine’s Day Word SearchBy Chris Davis

X G F Q B N J H N W D O I M G Y W K L CM O S N D I I L H J V Y C R I Y X C F HJ E R Z V N E O F P E G N L F C J A W WK O U I S I U V D Q D I F O T G R N J PS Q W E J E W E L R Y L P Q B V H D E DT U K S N X B V L J J I L D A H K L E IT G G T O L O V E N O T E S S J R E V PS E C R E T A D M I R E R K K A G L O US T R A E H T E E W S S H W E V M I L CG E R E M H O T L L E E S B T W C G Y QA Q T H C L R L K H Q O Y S A S X H P AP Y E A M N X Y D P F D U C E S V T P FJ O E T L R R R T M D E I M B S O H U PR S E O B O P E W E C U P Z U D S P P WC T T T M G C T T N E L S I R R K I M ZR T S P R Y X O A I T F I A G M O V K GO G L D Q Y N M H C K T C D N K F V Z AS Z E B U Q O U J C Q P X Z A W J Q N FE R W X H R S A I N T V A L E N T I N ES V Y S G U H F K U B V O B N M A R Z S

Candlelight

Card

Chocolate

Cupid

Gift Basket

Hearts

Hugs

Jewelry

Kisses

Love

Love Notes

Poetry

Puppy Love

Red

Romance

Roses

Saint Valentine

Secret Admirer

Sweethearts

Teddy Bear

Words to Find

A family is created at WE! sheltersBy Robert “Shorty” Decker

Duke was born in Mississippi and has lived in Greensboro community for 50 years. He

is homeless and has found shelter during cold months at a Winter Emergency (WE!) shelter at West Market Street United Methodist Church.

He has been involved with the WE! shelter program since it began three years ago at the First Presbyterian Church. This program has grown to in-clude seven local churches. These shel-ters provide a family environment to homeless individuals from Dec. 1 through March 31. Different shelters have featured learning and growth class-

es, such as Tai Chi, and résumé writing workshops.

Duke became homeless 12 years ago after going through a divorce. Two years later, he lost his landscaping business. He has continually returned to the WE! shelter because he enjoys the atmo-sphere at the United Methodist Church and the camaraderie among his friends there. He is comfortable with the staff and finds solace in the daily routine. During the day, Duke works hard to find a job. However, this is challenging for a middle-aged man who has been home-less for so long.

Kathy Clontz, a WE! shelter volun-teer, said the West Market Street United

Methodist Church houses 15 men. There are plenty of books, games, Wi-Fi and television available for entertainment. The shelter also has an in-house kitchen that can easily provide hot meals for the guests, volunteers and staff.

These shelters are a real and tangible manifestation of the Christian spirit that is a hallmark of the Bible belt.

Robert “Shorty” Decker is a 46-year-old man who first became homeless about 18 years ago in Florida. “I am a

real hard-charger, over the topper, in-life-loomin larger,” Shorty said.


By Bob NorfleetUnder her mossy trappings of green jeans, well-worn mili-tary jacket and brown knit cap, Wanda-Jean rests her thin weathered frame on a cold bench on Market Street. That knapsack at her feet is half as big as its owner who is light of weight and, when standing, about 5’ 4.” Wanda has named her large canvas sack “Plato.” “It is,” she likes to say, “my second best friend.”

It’s late morning. Just had brunch at the Urban Ministry: ”Fish Friday,” extra crispy! Last stop yesterday was her two-person tent that was “just four blocks away...somewhere.” Today, as yesterday and perhaps forever, Wanda-Jean is homeless. She pauses on her wooden throne and counts her small savings. Taking a deep breath, she looks up the street, then down at Plato. Now studying some details in the fabric or perhaps just delaying a decision.

Suddenly, she stands and Plato is lifted onto her thin arching back. Plato and Wanda have a mission. The walk begins.

Five blocks and 25 minutes later, Wanda-Jean and her second best friend reach “my day job.” A busy stoplight. Plato is gently placed next to a rusting iron fence. A cardboard sign suddenly appears. Wanda-Jean faces the southbound traffic. Sign says, “Homeless, need help. God Bless.” She goes to work. She is self-employed and licensed by the city…to pander.

The first car, a green 1969 VW Bug, takes a quick right. Second, third and fourth car quickly follow. It’s embarrassing for Wanda-Jean and the drivers. On the sixth light change, a carpet truck stops. The driver waves $1. Wanda-Jean walks over to the truck with her bright smile and says, “Bless you sir.” Returning to her corner, she looks at the sidewalk. The

carpet truck pulls away. Sixteen minutes later, another blessing is given and received. Two minutes pass. An old blue Lincoln stops. The lady gives a $5 Hardees coupon. A garbage truck stops....too long! SUV with two large angry dogs stops. Dogs want to eat Wanda for lunch! Owner is eating…his cell phone!

Feet hurt. Getting cold and cloudy. Only 4 p.m. Water bottle break. Back to work. Rush hour arrives. Some guy shouts, “Get a job,” and drives off. Another drops a “Mr. Lincoln” on our friend. Happy time, but now getting hungry. Wanda looks at Plato. “Hey, let’s eat and pee.....that Hardees coupon works for me.”

At Hardees, it’s starting to snow. Walk again to the bench. Take a break. Walking home to “tent-down” with her second best friend.

Drawing by Jessica Hedrick.

Now and Forever: A Short Story


LAST WORD: ART & POETRY

Painting by Andrew Gardner.

My Sweet ValentineBy Chris DavisI’ve searched as far as I could, and love like this is near impossible to find.I should have searched right beside me because there you stood the entire time.

Thank you for being my friend and always picking me up when I was down.You continued to encourage me through hard times, and I’m blessed you remain around.

I am completely in love with you, and I see it in your eyes that you love me too.I’ll be everything you need me to be, and if this world were mine, I’d give it to you.

You’ve always loved me for who I am and around you it is comfortable to be myself.I know that in my heart I will always love you for better or worse; in sickness and in health.

I’ve searched as far as I could, and a love like this is near impossible to find.I’ve finally found you, and I will love you forever my dear, sweet valentine.

The New Greensboro Voice needs YOUR voice!Does your business want to place an ad in

The New Greensboro Voice? Are you a writer, editor, designer or photographer who

wants to contribute your talents to our newspaper?If so, then we want to hear from you!

If you want to contribute to our newspaper, please contact our team via e-mail at [email protected].

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