Dear Next President,

Although I am only 13 years old and five years away from voting I have a major concern about the homeless situation in our country. I have seen the homeless population increase not only in my area of the state but, all over the United States. This doesn’t affect many families but many families are only one paycheck away from being homeless. Homelessness comes in all forms. Single people, a family whose breadwinner lost their job, a wife who lost her husband in a tragic accident, a veteran who fought for the freedoms we cherish everyday. Regardless of why it is really sad to see what mankind goes through everyday. This subject is something that really hurts me to see people go through throughout their everyday lives.

In 2014 there was almost 50,000 homeless veterans across the United States. When my Pop- Pop was a lot younger at one point in his life he was homeless. In January of 2015 564,708 people were homeless across America that night. Homelessness is not something that is a joke, it is something very serious in many ways. Those people can’t have a job because they have no house or phone to get in contact with. They are not able to have access to clean clothes everyday or hot food. They aren’t able to have a nice bed at night, for them it may be in a cardboard box on a blanket. One time I went to Philadelphia to visit family and I could count how many people were living on the streets. That was when I realized that this was a problem that needs to be solved.

I have become more interested in the problem and now two times a year I visit a homeless shelter to help serve the people. Most of the people there have some kind of mental issues that causes them to not maintain a job. I understand the problems the people have and I can talk to them about why they are homeless or just how they got here. I learn many things about the people and many times they are there both times I go.

People will make a mistake sometime and it may cost them their house, job, and even family sometimes. They will get punished for their actions in many ways including getting their home taken away. People get addicted to drugs but the family isn’t a fan of drugs so they give them a chance to change but, they don’t. The house that they live in may catch on fire and they could lose all their belongings but, not have enough money to support a family and household. I am not saying all people shouldn’t be homeless I am saying that the number of homeless people can be reduced by a lot.

So President it is all up to you. Are you willing to give job opportunities to homeless people and give them a place to live like a shelter or will you just blow it off. Taxes can be given to help the homeless get on their feet and give them a nice outfit for a job interview. Make a group of people in every state that will go out and help the homeless whether it is giving them money or buying them a meal. Anything that can help a homeless person can mean a lot to them. This country is in your hands and that is that. I hope you can take care of this country the way that would be the best.

Sincerely,

David A., Pennsylvania