By Various Authors, as noted

Editor: [This email arrived from Bethel Superintendent Seigel today]

I received the following email from Pastor Samara Jenkins of Spanaway United Methodist Church today. It is worth reading to understand the Catch 22 aspect of being a homeless family in this area. We had new first-day-of-school pics again today because we welcomed another new family who has been unhoused for months. Four children, two with no shoes that fit, haven’t had a shower in days because they always miss the time that the day shelter is open. 

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So, they came here to Safe Parking at Spanaway UMC. There are no services here, unfortunately. No showers, no laundry, no shelters, no case management. Just us, and a parking lot, and 3 other families. We are up to 22 people now, and twelve children. One family has been here for almost six months. More on them in a minute. 
I start making calls. beginning with Sprinker Rec, “This is Pastor Samara at SUMC, do you have showers? We have a family here in Safe Parking, and they need some help”. “No, we shut them off, it was too much trouble”. After having the door shut over and over again, we reached out to the Bethel School District Superintendent, Tom Seigel. “Let me make a few calls”, he said. And before you know it, I got a text message from Darius Alexander asking if I was at church, it was 6:30 pm. He was on his way to take the family over to the local high school for showers with towels from his own home. He took them to dinner and made arrangements to have Dani from Mckinney Vento meet them at the church to enroll all four children in school the next day. He also told them he would take them shopping before they started school the next week. The following day, Dani came, armed with her laptop and a smile, Dani spent a few hours listening to their story and getting the kids all set for Thompson Elementary. The day before school started, they took them to Walmart and got all four kids new clothes, shoes, backpacks, and school supplies. Their pictures show just how much it meant to them. Darius met them on the first day of school and came back at lunchtime to make sure they were settling in okay. Their dedication, compassion, and love are unmatched, and there is NO way we could do what we do without our community partners. Our twelve children are part of the Tacoma, Franklin-Pierce, Bethel, and Puyallup school districts, yet only ONE family has case management through any agency. 
Remember the family of eleven? They are the only family with case management presently, and have been pending approval for apartments for over six weeks. The agency that is handling their case was to pay all of their move-in costs, as well as purchase furniture and other needed items. I was notified two days ago that the agency is now out of funding, and will NOT be able to assist these individuals with those costs. If we are not able to find another funding source, they will lose the opportunity to finally move from their vans to housing. 
I read a lot every day about things being done for the city of Tacoma. I read a lot about what is being done to “end” homelessness in Pierce County. I read about millions of dollars, affordable housing, rent control, etc. Our families have followed every direction, filled out every application, stood in every line, called every number, and told their story time and time again. And the system, at least in the “desert” of Parkland/Spanaway, continues to fail them, create barriers, and rely on us, regular everyday people, to bridge the gap, without resources, without case management, without answers. 
If only love were enough. For now, it has to be. The question remains, what happens to these 22 people when we can’t help? Or, what if we weren’t here? Putting people in parking lots, or even into shelters only makes the issue of homelessness tidy for appearance’s sake, however, they are still here, tucked away, trying to be NORMAL, taking first day of school pictures, hoping for the best, bathing in sinks, sleeping outside, making the best of their situation. They are HUMAN BEINGS, not a problem to be solved, and they deserve better than sound bites and platitudes, and a parking lot with a portajohn and cold water in a sink and no way to do laundry when fifteen people get the stomach flu. 

Grace, in ALL ways, Always! 
Pastor Samara Jenkins
She/Her/Hers
Spanaway UMC, Spanaway WA. Orting UMC, Orting WA.

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It would appear there is no “system” at all to help these families. Just an underfunded patchwork that apparently fails more than it succeeds. The Bethel personnel that intervened went above their “job description” requirements to intervene.
Yours,
Tom Seigel