There it stood, a three-foot-tall Christmas tree marking the entrance to a litter-strewn encampment in a wooded area near a railroad line on Springfield’s north side. The tree was decorated with about a dozen ornaments, with a dirty pink jacket serving as a skirt. A few steps down a hill from the tree was a […]
homeless
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From the streets to stability
William Guyer PHOTO BY PATRICK YEAGLE It only took about a month for William Guyer of Springfield to go from employed to living on the street, but it took him almost a year to get back. Guyer’s story is one of injustice, heartbreak and determination. Although he ultimately climbed out of homelessness, he says he’s […]
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Inside the Bel-Aire Motel
Joe Landry (left) and Franklin Fite (right) both say the Bel-Aire is their home. They say they don’t want to leave and have nowhere else to go. PHOTO BY PATRICK YEAGLE Franklin Fite is a collector. The small, one-room apartment he shares with his wife at the Bel-Aire Motel in Springfield is decorated with Pez […]
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Telling their stories
Springfield photographer Adam Smith, left, is producing a documentary film about the homeless people with whom he spent the past three months. Bill Guyer, right, is one of Smith’s subjects in the film. PHOTO BY PATRICK YEAGLE In the middle of the gazebo at Washington Park in Springfield sits a homeless man named Bill Guyer. […]
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Inside the House of the Rainbow
In a humble house by the railroad tracks, a recently released ex-con sits idly on a worn-out couch, smoking a cigarette and ashing in a tuna can. He’s explaining his views on society with an air of irreverence, as one who has seen just about everything. He gives a pseudonym – Tom Bennett – to […]
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Homeless population wants to be part of the community
After several years of being unsatisfied with conditions of the homeless, several Springfield groups want Mayor Mike Houston to get more involved. On Feb. 13, Homeless United for Change, an advocacy group of homeless residents, pastors and other activists, gathered to talk to Houston about the conditions of the homeless. The group requested a meeting […]
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Panhandling defended
Don Norton of Springfield has been homeless before, and he expects to be so again. Norton and his partner, Karen Denene Otterson, live with a friend who is planning to get married, meaning their welcome will wear out soon. “Unless I can find substantial support to get into another home or an apartment, I may […]
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Budget cuts tie Helping Hands
Without access to a car, 49-year-old Lloyd McCullough walks more than four miles, six days a week, to get from Helping Hands shelter on the corner of 11th and Adams streets to his stocking job at Menard’s, on the northeast edge of town. Homeless since a breakup in May, McCullough hopes each night that his […]
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Plan calls for 100 new affordable homes
The City of Springfield plans to build and rehabilitate hundreds of homes as part of a strategy to end homelessness within two years. The city’s 2010-2014 Consolidated Plan, created by the city’s Department of Opportunity, Planning and Economic Development (OPED), lays out plans to improve affordable housing, economic development, infrastructure and public services using millions […]
Posted inArts & Culture
While you are sleeping
Springfield continues to have a large homeless population. And while you and I are tucked in our warm cushy beds there are people on our city streets hoping for a warm blanket or sleeping bag to shield them from these unusually chilly mornings. If you have items to share please call Peg Knoepfle – 793-5074 […]
