$20 to Save a Life Plan
$20 a month is all it takes to save and change a life and get our homeless people of Chattanooga of the streets. I was watching TV and saw a commercial about giving $19 a month to save dogs and give them a better life. I thought why we do not see commercials about saving homeless people from the street. We sometimes see commercials about feeding homeless around the holidays or giving them some food, clothes, or a tent to keep them warm. I am just as guilty as others who think that the city (the Mayor and the Council Men) should do something about the homeless when it is in our power to make the change. When the tornadoes hit area and surrounding areas we didn’t depend on the mayor or anyone else for us to pitch in to help those in need. I have notice about myself and others that when there something in our lives that we don’t like or need fixing such as when the washing machine, oven, heat, or other object in our homes, we rush to get them fix. Many of us ride by the homeless, feel for them but do nothing for them and sometimes we do to make our shelves feel good about ourselves because we must tell everyone what we did. I am not talking about everyone because there are people out there every day helping the homeless and I thank the Lord for you. The population of Hamilton County is 367,804 people if half of the people would give $20/month that would be $3,678,040 enough to get our homeless people of the streets and that is not including the churches and companies. I know that I spend more than $20 a month on just junk food and things that I don’t really need and so do some of you. I don’t think that this plan may work I know that is well because God told me it would. Think about this the next time you see that homeless person on the street as you ride by with that coke and chips in your hand. Love is an action word so Chattanooga let us love our homeless people to get them off the streets and into a nice place to live. May God Bless You!
The Plan
We needed two or three locations depending on the level of the people on the streets, there are three groups. One group are the mental that need special help, many of these people will not be able to enter the work force or function on their own. The location will be designed for permanent living. The second group are those who just need a helping hand to get them back on track, they are willing and able to work. These are the people who may have one misfortune to happen, like the loss of a job due to something out of their control or sickness. This location needs to be individual living space because there are some families on the street also. These individuals are already equipped to work they just need a job and a place to stay until they can move out on their own. These are the individuals that can be used to fill many of the opening around the city, we will also provide transportation to work and back. They must agree that since they do not have to pay anything to stay in the facility, they must save half of their paycheck in an account that is set aside for them. This is for the second and third group, when they are ready to live on their own and have enough in their account for them to move into an apartment. Third group are the one who do not have the work or life skills to work a steady job or take care of themselves for lack of knowledge, but they are physically able to work. Their locations will be set in home environment way. That they can be trained how to get alone with and work with others. They will spend eight hours a day learning the skills they are lacking in that will help to be able to live on their own. Everyone in buildings 2 and 3 must agree to the rules that will be determine for the program.
Things that will be needed:
Three Building that the city has. We must start to realize that we are the city and that the city belongs to the people that pay taxes. The ones we put in office are elected by us to work for us, so the buildings are ours and we have a say to what is to be done with them and our tax dollars, time to speak up.
Volunteers:
Companies and individuals that have the resources to remold the building. Plumbers, Carpenters, Electricians, Painters, and people who know how to paint, Designers, and laborers. We have enough people in our city with willing hearts to help get this done.
Employees
From the money taken in we will hire professional individuals who are really qualified and have a heart for people to work with the people in each location. These will be good paying jobs with good benefits, this is one of the main reasons for the twenty dollars a month to pay these people.
Now the hard part.
For Chattanooga to become an extraordinary city in this area it will take us doing something that is extraordinary, work together as a city. We must form an administration that is trustworthy and have the skills to develop the financial structure for the program. This group will be made up of an equal number of members from the four main racial group in the city Spanish, Others, Black, and White. We have qualified individuals in each of these ethnic groups that works in finance every day. An administration group over each location will be needed, they will be paid. These individuals need to be chosen by the people of the city so a group will be formed to decide how these people are to be chosen, I don’t know how to do everything. A report will be given every month every month informing the community of how well the program is do. Some of the things that the report will give will be how much money is taken in and from where, this is important because it lets the community know that the commitment is being kept. The three areas it will report are community, churches, and companies. How much is going out and where is it is going. The general maintenance and cleaning of each location will be done by group two and three.
The Benefits For This Program
- The first thing it will do is to eliminate the homeless problem, sanitary problems with all the trash that accumulates at these sites.
- Clean up the appearance of our downtown and other areas of the city.
- Create a healthier environment for all.
- People that are mental and need additional attention, it will bring them out of the cold and off the streets.
- Get the treatment that is badly needed. This will increase and better their lives. This will give the a since of belonging and knowing some care.
- Those that have limited skill, it will allow them to gain the skills they need to become productive citizens.
- Those that are homeless because of unforeseen circumstances and willing to receive help that will give them confidence to return to the workforce along with a normal life.
The Benefits For The City
- Homeless arrest will go down.
- Homeless hospital visits will go down.
- Homeless crimes will go down.
- The Homeless will have housing land jobs.
- This will save the city money.
- The citizen of the city will fell gracious for taking a part in, taking the homeless off the streets.
- Jobs will be created.
- People of the city will be involved.
Finance Group needed, consisting of:
- Law team
- Accounting team
- Top Administrator to manage over 3 building administrators
Action Plan
- Make a call to all pastors and Community Leaders.
- What will be needed from the pastors and community leaders?
- Take plan to their church and community.
- Take plan and explain to their parishioners and community leaders, community leaders will take it to their community.
- Meet again to get feedback.
- Each church will need to make request for construction crews.
- Start organizing with individuals for remodeling of buildings.
- Administration moving forward.
Submitted by Mr. William Thomas and Pastor Alonzo NobleContact: noblealonzo86@gmail.com and williamthomas1961@gmail.com