11-1-16

Dear President,

Although I am not directly associated with homelessness, I see homelessness everywhere I go, whether it’s in my hometown or in a city over 100 miles away. I know that everyone has seen homelessness at some point in their life, and it as if everyone overlooks it. I wanted to write to you about a problem I see all the time, and it’s happening everywhere.

I’ve done multiple mission trips with my church in the past where I have directly come in contact with many homeless. I have traveled to Washington DC twice during two local trips and Georgia once in an out of state trip. During these trips, I have helped aid homeless in various ways such as feeding them or giving them new clothes to wear. The look on these people’s faces when we give them them these things is just amazing. I don’t just notice the homeless on these mission trips. I see them all the time here in my hometown and practically everywhere else I travel. I cannot stand seeing a person begging for a dollar on the street any longer.

The good news is, the majority of the states have been experiencing a slight decrease in their homeless population. However, there are still too many still out there. According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, on a night in January this year, there were approximately 564,000 people left homeless in the United States, which means they were sleeping outside or in an emergency shelter or transitional housing program.

There are so many reasons that people become homeless. First of all, all of the lower class is in risk of becoming homeless mostly because of the struggle to afford housing. Unemployment, housing costs, and living doubled up all make it very hard for some people to afford housing. The other causes include traumatic events, like a house fire or job loss, a personal crisis, or a challenge with mental health or addictions.

So I am asking you President, to just take this into consideration. For this issue to come to an end, the federal government needs to expand affordable housing programs and allow more funding towards them. Once the homeless are back in housing, they need to be directly linked to mainstream services such as mental health counseling and child development services. I know that myself, as well as thousands of others, want to see this issue come to end and see regular people like us stop sleeping on the streets at night.

Sincerely,

Bryce R

Works Cited

"Causes Of Homelessness." The Homeless Hub. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

"Fact Sheet: What Can We Do About Homelessness?" National Alliance to End Homelessness:. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.

"Homelessness." Homelessness. Washington.edu, n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2016.