ISU Bengal

Issue date: 10/17/07 Section: Life

Some 44 poor and 31 veterans came to take advantage of the wide array of services provided from the 2007 Homeless Stand Down, sponsored by ISU, on Saturday at the Bannock County Fairgrounds.
The event had countless sponsors so that free flu shots, free shower and haircuts, and phone calls could be provided. But those weren't the only things of use to the attendees. There were clothes, coats, and boots and shoes. Several booths were stationed to help people locate resources like jobs, health care, counseling, and cash assistance.
The Stand Down was organized by Melissa Hartman, the Bannock County Service Coordinator, who has been active with the event for seven of its eleven years. When asked about poverty she said, "the Mckinley acts says, homelessness is someone without adequate nighttime residence. That could be staying at your aunt's house on her couch or if you have an apartment with no heat. "
"It's a great cause and Melissa has worked very hard to keep it going," said event volunteer Stephani Bercier.
It was a sacrifice for many of the beneficiaries to be there.
"Look they're here today when it's there cream. It's Saturday, this is their money day," said Hartman looking at the hairdressers cutting away and trying to keep up with the demand of the long line of people waiting for their cut and style. "And they're dong a great job. I've seen so many braids today."
When visitors first walk in, they're invited with a smile and long line of food. The ISU Culinary Arts program cooked a large breakfast with food furnished from the Veterans' Service Organization. After breakfast, visitors could hop on a bus and take a nice long hot shower, come back to the event have their hair cut, their nails checked and manicured by ISU nursing, and then their teeth looked at by ISU Dental Hygiene Department. They were then furnished with clothes and hygiene products. All left over clothes from the event were donated to the Salvation Army where once a week clothes are distributed freely to the poor.
Many varieties of counselors were available to discuss ways of improving their situation. One of the people they might have talked to was Donna Summers with the ISU Center for New Direction. The booth was there to help with jobs, education, and career planning, with personal counseling for any of those issues. "And it's all free," said Summers.
An event like this took 100 volunteers, 30 sponsors. a board of directors, and a year's worth of planning. But it didn't go unappreciated. "It's a beautiful event. I'm glad Pocatello does this," said Monte Stevenson a homeless person who travels across the country promoting homelessness awareness. "This is a really great event because I do a lot of homeless work across the United States and this is great," Stevenson said.
But not all events go according to plan, "They (shelter employees) brought us up here cause the bus system wasn't running, and I don't know what was up," said Stevenson. He heard about the event at the shelter and was able to find transportation to the fairgrounds but there could have been many that didn't have transportation and couldn't find a bus to take them.
Many veterans volunteering, like former Green Beret John Amodie, stayed afterward to help, "Can't leave till it's all cleaned up," Amodie said.

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