Viewpoint: Summer brings new challenges for our unhoused neighbors
Jill Bonny
Well, summer is here, and for many, that means camping, days at the lake, gardening, and just getting outside. For us at the Poverello Center and others working with people who are unhoused, we prepare for a new set of challenges.
Warmer weather doesn't mean the need for shelter and supplies disappears. Heat and wildfire smoke can be just as dangerous as winter weather, especially for medically vulnerable individuals. Instead of helping people stay warm, our focus is on keeping them hydrated and cool.
Summer also brings increased visibility of unsheltered homelessness as more people are outdoors during the day and sleeping outside at night. While I understand that a more noticeable unhoused population raises concerns, it also creates an opportunity to connect with more people.
Our Homeless Outreach Team (HOT) provides food, water, cooling relief, basic necessities, and gear to chronically houseless individuals living on the streets. More importantly, they build relationships and trust so we can connect them to community resources and help guide them toward stability.
Unsheltered homelessness affects the entire community, but people experiencing homelessness are also members of our community. It’s sad to know and see that so many are struggling. Some individuals face serious mental health issues, which raises safety concerns, and in other areas, trash is an issue. However, moving people around every few days makes it very hard to locate them and build trust, which is essential for connecting them to resources that help them find safe shelter.
For over 50 years, the Poverello has been a refuge for those with nowhere else to turn. It also makes us a target and an easy scapegoat. But we aren’t responsible for low wages, gas prices, grocery costs, sky-high rent, or a lack of accessible mental health care and substance use services.
We provide food, shelter, help, and hope every day to members of our community in crisis. We are a compassionate space where people understand that people are facing tough challenges, such as navigating disability, illness, trauma, domestic violence, losing a job, or struggling to pay rent.
We make sure people get a hot shower, a tasty meal prepared by caring hands, and a hot cup of coffee. We can help them get an ID, apply for a job, apply for benefits, and do their laundry.
We will also continue to be an active part of coalitions and workgroups to find solutions to our bigger community issues. Some of these are easier to resolve, and some will take years. But we are here for all of it, and we encourage members of our community to take an active role as well.
If you want to learn more about what we do and the people we serve, come volunteer. You can do it once, and if you like it, make it a regular thing. You can also donate. Of course, monetary donations are always great, but during the summer we need water, sunscreen, socks, hygiene supplies, and, as always, coffee.
Together, we can keep moving forward to make Missoula what we all want it to be. A place full of fun, art, community, and people who care about each other, and where everyone has a safe, stable, and affordable place not just to live, but to call home.
Jill Bonny is the Executive Director of the Poverello Center.