Baltimoresun.com Homeless Charity Isn't Enough

A letter to the editor

We empathize with the challenges faced by St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in working with well-intentioned members of the community to end homelessness, and the reflections some church leaders offered in "The challenge of charity" (Commentary, Jan. 30) illustrate the limits of charity, the promise of social justice and the importance of pursuing both.

Three years ago, in collaboration with the city, we helped more than two dozen people leave St. Vincent Park and move into permanent housing. Many had lived on the streets for a decade; most were disabled. Today, 90 percent of those people remain stably housed.

Thanks to the church's collaboration with Baltimore Homeless Services and others, more individuals will be assisted using this Housing First approach - an approach so effective that it has become the underlying philosophy of the mayor's "Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness."

The documented success of Housing First illuminates the primary causes of contemporary homelessness: grinding poverty, poor health and the woeful shortage of affordable housing. The current economic crisis only exacerbates these problems as an increasing number of individuals and families find sanctuary in places like St. Vincent Park.

The charity of a sandwich or clothing may prevent people from starving or freezing this winter - and if ever charitable acts were needed, they're required now.

But collectively we must expend even greater effort to ensure affordable housing, accessible health care and sustainable incomes for all our neighbors.