Left to right: State Representative Bo Mitchell, Steve Earle and Mayor Freddie O’Connell
A Personal Reflection
My connection to the Grand Ole Opry is a story woven with irony, chance, and profound influence.
The Grand Ole Opry was a place my uncle Hal Durham dedicated four decades of his life to — first as an Emcee at the historic Ryman Auditorium downtown, as Program Director at WSM Radio, and ultimately as General Manager when the new Opry House opened in 1974.
Through my uncle, I was inadvertently introduced to Steve Earle by T-Bone Burnett, an encounter that significantly altered the course of my life. That chance connection opened doors I never anticipated, reaffirming how moments of irony and chance can shape our futures in unexpected and meaningful ways.
The Beginning of a Quest
The idea to organize a benefit concert first took shape in 1986, during my time working at the Multi-Service Center for the Homeless with the Cambridge Department of Human Services. My role was to help place homeless families into permanent housing. At that time, Philip Mangano, the director of the center, had brokered a deal with Harvard University to host a benefit concert at Harvard Stadium.
Around the same period, T-Bone Burnett had just released a new country album, which gave me an idea. Eager to bring high-profile artists to the event, I mentioned this to my uncle, Hal Durham, encouraging him to invite Burnett to the Grand Ole Opry. My ultimate plan was to surprise Burnett at his appearance with a request for him to reach out to Pete Townshend of The Who and other renowned artists, to perform at the benefit concert and help make a difference.
The Irony Unfolds
On September 17, 2025, I was in the audience as Steve Earle was inducted into the Grand Ole Opry — a moment that felt almost surreal. It was on that very stage in 1986 that I first became aware of Steve Earle.
After weeks of persuading my uncle to book T-Bone Burnett, he unexpectedly called one day. He asked if I wanted T-Bone Burnett to appear at the Opry. He said, “If you want him to play, he will. If you don’t, he won’t.” I was stunned by such an offer and quickly said yes, hoping Burnett’s appearance might help us gain access to major acts.
Fast forward to Burnett’s performance at the Opry in 1986. My uncle introduced us backstage. I vividly remember: T-Bone Burnett had asked my uncle why he hadn’t asked Steve Earle to perform at the Opry. At that time, I had no idea who Earle was, but I made a mental note to check out Steve Earle’s music.
That’s Show Business
That night at the Opry, my uncle pointed to Dolly Parton’s sister and said, “See that woman over there? That’s Stella Parton. She’s been asking me to put her on the Opry for six weeks. She asked if Burnett was my nephew.” Clearly, T-Bone Burnett wasn’t as well-known in 1986 as he is today.
Afterward, T-Bone and I went out to eat, and he promised to speak with Pete Townshend and get back to me. Unfortunately, he never returned my calls. That’s show business — you win some, you lose some.
The Dream Became Reality
A few weeks later, I was back in Boston, and to my surprise, Steve Earle was performing at the Paradise Club. I attended his show and was blown away by his performance. He had just released Exit 0, the follow-up to Guitar Town. My curiosity about Steve Earle grew even more after witnessing his live set. I shared my plan to organize a benefit concert for the homeless with him. Without hesitation, he agreed to participate. That moment created a great positive visitation of energy in my life.
Steve Earle profoundly influenced my life. His generosity in performing benefit concerts inspired me to start Fearless Hearts for Homeless Children in Boston. His support turned my dream of using music to help the homeless into reality. Steve’s active participation helped me find my path as an advocate for the homeless.
Left: Steve Earle; Right Hal Durham
Irony and Influence
My Uncle Hal had a major impact on my life. I had the honor of delivering his eulogy, during which I stated he was always the smartest person in the room—though he never needed to prove it. His intelligence shone through naturally, with grace and dignity. He was a steady, rational voice during some of my traumatic early years.
Steve Earle is a passionate and determined man. He has composed many outstanding songs, and on September 17, 2025, the Grand Ole Opry became even better by inducting him as a member.
Last night, two men—Hal Durham and Steve Earle—occupied my thoughts at the Grand Ole Opry. That, truly, is irony.
AUTHOR, STREET CHAPLAIN, ACTIVIST & NONPROFIT LEADER
LINDSEY KRINKS
BY BRAD DURHAM
Recently, Lindsey Krinks visited McMinnville and spoke to a group of people working with unhoused individuals in the community. Not only did Krinks travel 70 miles to reach McMinnville, but she has traveled a great distance in her lifetime—going from South Carolina to David Lipscomb University, then to Vanderbilt Divinity School. She has made her way from Tent City to Otter Creek to Legislative Plaza. Throughout her journey, she has undergone transformative experiences rooted in a spiritual quest.
After inviting Lindsey Krinks to meet with us, I read her book, Praying with Our Feet. As I read her autobiography, I couldn’t help but think of Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey. The hero embarks on an adventure beyond the ordinary and returns with a message. Lindsey’s story mirrors this: she has faced moments of almost breaking down physically, mentally, and spiritually—yet she persevered and was transformed. Her drive to serve the poorest of the poor—the homeless—has fueled her journey.
For me, reading Lindsey’s book felt like uncovering stories of saints such as Saint Francis of Assisi and Mother Teresa—people who led lives of profound transformation and became signposts along the journey of imitating Christ.
Lindsey Krinks is the real deal—she is a street chaplain, author, activist, and nonprofit leader. She is the co-founder of Open Table Nashville. I’m grateful she visited us to share her story and an excerpt from her book, Praying with Our Feet.
After the meeting, I asked Lindsey a few questions. The following is part of that interview during lunch at The Local in McMinnville.
BD NEWSLETTER: What motivated you to work with the homeless?
LINDSEY KRINKS: Growing up, members of my family—their experiences with homelessness—shaped my perspective. My cousin and uncle experienced homelessness, and I initially thought it was a personal decision on their part. But when I got to college in Nashville, I realized that poverty is much more widespread than individual choices. I started re-reading the Hebrew prophets and the Gospels, and a conviction grew in me: if we are truly followers of Christ, we must go where Jesus went. We are called to the margins—to love, to extend our hand, share food, and provide shelter. And if we take Matthew 25 seriously, we are also called to find Christ there.
Understanding how widespread and systemic the problem is—beyond personal failures—has deepened my call to be the hands and feet of Christ. Compassion at this larger level is justice. That’s a significant part of what pulled me into this work. But once I built relationships with people on the street, I was amazed by who they are and what they had survived. After forming those relationships, there was no way I could go back to anything else. It has been the most raw, real, and transformative experience I’ve ever been part of.
LINDSEY KRINKS SPEAKING IN MCMINNVILLE, JUNE 20, 2025
BD NEWSLETTER: What influenced you to attend Vanderbilt Divinity School after graduating from David Lipscomb University?
LINDSEY KRINKS: I started becoming involved with issues of homelessness and affordable housing during my time at Lipscomb. Influences included dedicated teachers, books I was reading, and a service club that truly changed me.
I was introduced to authors like Shane Claiborne (The Irresistible Revolution), Dorothy Day (The Long Loneliness), and saints such as St. Francis and Mother Teresa. Those are the things that started working on me as I graduated from Lipscomb as a young adult and thinking about what I wanted to do in the world.
I met Charlie Strobel, founder of the Room at the Inn and homeless services in Nashville—someone I considered a literal saint living among us.
I took a few years off after college to work on the streets. I spent two years with AmeriCorps in a homeless outreach program within a mental health agency. The questions of faith, suffering, and liberation kept haunting me. I wanted to explore these issues theologically, which led me to Vanderbilt Divinity School. I knew the school had the tools I needed, and I also had gained tools at Lipscomb. Vanderbilt welcomed me warmly. As a young Church of Christ member, I had a phenomenal experience—meeting others wrestling with Scripture, reflecting deeply, and sharpening my faith and commitments.
BD NEWSLETTER: In your book, you mention a Vanderbilt professor who asked what you were running from. Could you describe the context of that question and how you found the answer years later?
LINDSEY KRINKS: During my first or second year at Vanderbilt, I was part of a small group discussing pastoral care. I was exhausted, burning the candle at both ends—working at shelters, trying to help everyone around me. It’s common for “fixers” to go full throttle…but if done excessively, it’s unhealthy.
My professor noticed I was doing good work but not in a sustainable way. After I expressed my exhaustion, she asked, “What are you running from?” I was defensive and replied, “I am not running from anything.”
It took digging into therapy to realize and say, “Oh, I keep falling into this over-functioning fixer role because of the family system dynamic that was ingrained in me. I was also struggling with survivor’s guilt. I work on the margins and was seeing people on the streets dying from preventable causes. Globally, I was seeing poverty on an enormous scale. Looking at my own family system, I’ve lost cousins and uncles—one of my uncles died on the street and another uncle died after getting out of prison. I’ve watched family systems implode. I had been navigating survivor’s guilt. I believed that if I’ve survived these toxic systems, then I had to try to pull everyone out of these systems.
We see this with war veterans and people who survive childhood trauma. Once I got to the root of that and started to name it, I could begin to respond from a place of love rather than guilt. Love is a deeper well—one that says I am committed to working toward a world where everyone is whole and can thrive.
Yes, I was taken aback by that question from the professor. When someone sticks a finger in our wounds, removes the Band-Aid, and says, “It’s here”—ouch! I encourage all of us to do that kind of work.
BD NEWSLETTER: There’s a point in your life that you describe in your book when you decided to dedicate your life to working with the poor. Can you describe how that commitment manifested?
LINDSEY KRINKS: I’ve always been drawn to healing work. My dad was a pediatrician, and healing felt like a natural calling—it was ingrained in me. I initially wanted to pursue physical therapy in undergrad because the medical field made sense to me. I also wanted a comfortable life, and I saw how some family members worried about finances, so I wanted to avoid that stress.
It was through rereading the prophets and the gospels—holding up examples like Dorothy Day, St. Francis, Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, and others—who leaned into discomfort to become personally transformed and participate in larger societal change through faith. Once I started working on the street, met Charlie Strobel, and connected with friends on the streets through the Nashville Homeless Power Project, everything fell into place.
There’s a quote I encountered in college that resonated deeply: You are not called to be comfortable; you are called to be faithful. That shook me up.
My faith drew me toward the margins. That is where I discovered that God didn’t need to be taken there – God was already present in the tents and alleys, the underpasses and camps. As Jesus says in Matthew 25, you will meet him on the margins: “When I was thirsty, you gave me water. When I was hungry, you gave me food. When I needed clothing, you clothed me…
There are these passages in scriptures. It was absolutely a calling.
Three alarming facts about the high cost of homelessness have been discussed recently in a local McMinnville group of homeless service providers and volunteers. Number one: the homeless live about 30 years less than Americans who live in a home. Number two: It cost the taxpayers less to place a homeless person into permanent housing than to keep a person in the Warren County jail for a year. Number three: The homeless are a portion of the self-pay patients who are uninsured or underinsured, costing Ascension Saint Thomas River Park Hospital several million dollars a year in charitable health care.
Dale Humphrey, President and CEO of Saint Thomas River Park Hospital, informed the group earlier this month that homeless men die about 30 years earlier than their peers who live in a home. Clearly, anyone who lives on the street, under a bridge or in a tent for an extended period of time pays the highest price of homelessness. Being homeless without proper housing is not healthy. While the homeless’ illnesses may not be much different than the non-homeless population, the homeless illnesses are usually much more severe and typically managed worse due to difficulty in cleanliness, nutrition, access to follow up care, and access to proper medication. Humphrey stated that stress is obviously a contributing factor.
Dale Humphrey also informed the group that the hospital has $7 million in charitable health care per month, and a significant portion of that charitable health care is contributed to the McMinnville homeless population.
Left to right, President and CEO, Dale Humphrey and Sheriff Jackie Matheny, Jr.
During the February meeting, Sheriff Jackie Matheny, Jr. spoke to the group and stated that at least 12 of the 258 inmates in the Warren County Jail were homeless. Sheriff Matheny also confirmed that the minimal cost to the taxpayers to keep someone in the local jail is $41 dollars a day. Taxpayers pay more to keep someone in the Warren County jail than taxpayers pay to keep someone in subsidized, affordable housing. See the image below for a detailed illustration.
* The cost of arrest, investigation and legal fees are estimated.
A local nonprofit or city/county government can apply for HUD funding to provide permanent supportive housing for the homeless. HUD offers rental assistance that pays 70% of the rent on privately-owned apartments. The subsidy for an $800 apartment would be $560 a month. That is $18.60 per day, which is 45% of the cost to keep someone in the Warren County jail.
Common themes from both Sheriff Jackie Matheny. Jr. and Dale Humphrey were the high rates of recidivism and recycling of the same homeless population through the jail and hospital. Placing people who are experiencing homelessness into permanent supportive housing can extend lives — in addition to saving taxpayers and the local hospital a lot of money. All of this begs the question of how to develop a cost-effective solution to homelessness in McMinnville.
BEYOND THE BRIDGE: A POSITIVE SOLUTION TO HOMELESSNESS PROMO
Readers of this newsletter are encouraged to see the film, Beyond The Bridge. The film is a documentary about solutions to homelessness. The filmmakers traveled over 40,000 miles and studied positive solutions to homelessness. The film highlights solutions in two cities. Beyond The Bridge is showing at Otter Creek Church on West End in Nashville at 6:00 PM on Thursday, April 3. Tickets are free and must be reserved online. This is a link to information about the film and tickets:https://asolutiontohomelessness.com
Full disclosure, I have been promoting a plan to create affordable housing for 10 homeless people in McMinnville. I am personally looking forward to learning more about positive solutions to homelessness from Beyond the Bridge and the discussion after the film. Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell and the filmmakers will be at the event.
For more information, please attend the monthly homeless meetings in McMinnville. The next meeting will be Friday, April 25, at 11:00 AM, at St. Matthews Episcopal Church.
Ryan Heatherly, Senior Pastor at First United Methodist Church
By BRAD DURHAM
One of the most historic churches and buildings in downtown McMinnville over the past 135 years that continues to serve the community is First United Methodist Church. Ryan Heatherly is in his fourth year as the Senior Pastor for First Methodist. He is an intelligent, well-spoken man who has a heart for ministering to the poor in McMinnville. Ryan has taken an active role in leading the volunteer-operated Cold Weather Shelter at the First United Methodist Outreach Building which is located in the old H.G. Hill grocery store building next to the Church.
Recently, I asked Ryan Heatherly to answer five questions, and the following are Ryan’s answers to those questions.
BD Newsletter:Can you give me a brief biography — for those who do not know you?
Ryan Heatherly: I have been a pastor since 2014. Grew up in Union City in West Tennessee. My dad was a teacher. I was always going to be in the public education system. I went to UT in Knoxville, and since my dad was an employee of the state of Tennessee, I received a 25% discount on tuition.
Since I didn’t know what I wanted to do, one day my dad said, “What about business?” And I said, “Okay.” That sounded reasonable enough, and I got a marketing degree. After graduation, I went into sales. I did professional sales for about eight years. My last two stints in sales were during 2008-2010. The economy was not doing well and was in the tank. In 2008, I was laid off with about 10,000 people in the company. I was doing logistics sales.
During this time, I made a connection as I was finishing a graduate degree at UT, so I went into medical sales. But that didn’t go well either. I was terminated for not hitting my number.
Through a series of interviews that followed after that and some assessments I had to do to try and get my next job, I felt a call to the ministry. That decision was validated by some interesting, unforeseen spiritual encounters and experiences. Long story short, I went into ministry as an underpaid and overworked youth director at a small church.
In that I found my calling…something that others saw in me that I did not see in myself. I feel like I found a purpose in my life that was missing running in the rat race of life, trying to chase a number.
I grew up in a small, rural United Methodist Church, which is why I am in the United Methodist Church. It is native to my experience and my Christian faith. I grew up in a youth group, and at various times, my parents were youth leaders. I got real involved in the church as a young person, especially in high school.
My hobbies include playing golf and basketball. I played a lot more golf in my childhood. Through golf on the high school golf team, I got involved in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Faith and sports have always been interesting to me. At various stops in my ministry, I have tried to incorporate those two things. I eventually laid down my golf clubs. My son is 11, and I spend a lot of time in the gym with him coaching his team and playing basketball. I would like to see the resurgence of a church league here in town.
I am married, and we have been married since 2010. We have one son. For about three years we were foster parents. There is a 21-year-old young man out there somewhere who means something to us. He reminds me a lot of the cases that I try to minister to today…that rings true.
BD NEWSLETTER: What is your vision for the Emergency Cold Shelter for men at FUMC?
Ryan Heatherly: I would say that is still in formation…part of my vision is owed to my experience when I was serving at Grace United Methodist Church in Mt. Juliet. We were one of the suburban churches helping at Nashville’s Room In The Inn. Room In The Inn is an ecumenical effort to house people during the cold weather months. As a volunteer and pastor on staff, I was one of the volunteers who would stay overnight with the homeless guests. We partnered with a Catholic Church in town a couple of miles away. They had the space, and I volunteered there.
My vision is rooted in that experience in which a lot of churches can work together. Volunteers can make sure that people do not freeze to death during the coldest months. I think the role I am in now is more challenging because it is more organizational. I am trying to help lead our church and others in the community to share in this ecumenical effort. I have seen this work in Nashville and suburban areas.
I think it has the potential to work well here in McMinnville, and we are planting seeds for cooperation among churches. There is one Gospel. There is one Lord. The message that is inescapable is Jesus Himself was a person who bounced around from place to place. He ministered to the impoverished, the unfortunate, those on the margins.
If we are going to believe Christ, if we believe His words and witness, I think some ministry to serve those who are less fortunate and to help them on their journey as their friend has to be part of our ministry. I think our campus at First United Methodist Church is extremely versatile. We have three different buildings.
When I came to McMinnville, I learned that we had an outreach building. One of my predecessors, Adam Rush, was instrumental in getting some of the ministries going with the homeless. There were showers and other resources for people in the outreach building, and I think he helped support those efforts.
For us to have an Outreach Building, I think it would be a shame to call it that and not live up to its name. If we are going to have an Outreach Building, it is imperative that we reach out to those in the community. Some of those in our community walk by our church several times a day. Some are homeless. Some are struggling with addiction. Some need mentors. Some have skills that can be used in the life of the church that are often overlooked.
I would like to see how we can leverage those skills among the people that we serve. Maybe they can be of help to the needs of the church and community. They could be put in places where they would be valued and relied upon. A small example of that is the rodent problem we have in the basement of the Outreach Center. A homeless guest helped me make a mouse trap, and I am going to put that in the basement and see if it works. I brought the tools and he did the labor, and together we did it. FYI – We just caught our first mouse!
I would like to figure out how we can help support people to move ahead in life. I don’t think many people say when they are growing up that they want to be homeless. I have never heard anyone seriously say that or sarcastically say that. Yet, that is where they find themselves. Some people are ready to work and walk through that process, and others may not be. I think it is important to be willing to work with anyone to see who is the most ready to benefit some guidance, support and nurturing. In some cases, they may need to be challenged to utilize their gifts and capabilities.
In summary, my experience at the Room In The Inn, the reality that we have an Outreach Building at First United Methodist Church, and the general life and witness of Jesus.
BD Newsletter: What part of the Gospels, teachings of Jesus inspired your vision?
Ryan Heatherly: Beginning with the Scriptures, I also think there is an experiential component to it as well…If I think about the early life of Jesus from his earliest days, his family was on the run. They were refugees in Egypt for some length of time. They settled in Nazereth, and as an older person, Jesus made Capernaum his hometown. He probably stayed with Peter’s mother-in-law a lot of the time.
Jesus himself said, “The Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head…” This was something that he was probably accustomed to, maybe comfortable with – not having a home. Jesus had a purpose, but he appeared to be comfortable with being homeless. That was part of his greater purpose. He was not settling down; he was always on the move. He had a nomadic lifestyle. I think He used that to do the greater good, to serve his ultimate calling — to save the lost.
There is an inescapable scripture that is well-known and cited often — Matthew 25:31-46. I just recently preached on this and used it as a platform to talk to our congregation to use our Outreach Building as a Cold Weather Shelter. I acknowledge the fact that we often do not know what is helpful and what is hurtful for underprivileged people or someone who lacks housing.
Jesus said, “Whatever you did to the least of these, you did to me.” On the flipside, whatever you don’t do for the least of these, you don’t do for Me. I think that is an inescapable challenge for those of us who take Jesus’ words seriously.
In that passage, He introduces the idea that it is a judgment of nations, which we sometimes overlook. I think that as one of the most privileged nations, we need to take seriously the call to think about those who are less fortunate. While we may be a rich nation in comparison to other nations in the world, I think it is our duty and responsibility to minister to those who don’t share in that prosperity.
At the conclusion of His teaching, Jesus said in Matthew 25:45, “In truth I tell you, in so far as you neglected to do this to one of the least of these, you neglected to do it to me.” When we leave somebody else out, Jesus would say that when we are overlooking Him, leaving Him out…we are leaving Him out of the equation of our life and our calling.
BD Newsletter: Do you have a strategic plan for the shelter and people experiencing homelessness in McMinnville?
Ryan Heatherly: I think our strategic plan is unfolding, coming to the surface. We may not have a strategic plan written down, but I also recognize that we could talk about things for a really long time and not act upon them. We are learning a lot. I am proud that we actually doing something as a church and community with the space and resources that we have.
We have plenty of resources in terms of financial contributions and human capital to do something that is worthwhile. Initially when I made the appeal to the congregation to go forth with this Cold Weather Shelter…I felt as though it was a need. We have the resources. We also had some experience with it on a short-term basis last year. We are now at a point to make a go at it, and along the way, we can do it increasingly well.
It hasn’t been perfect. My vision is to get as many churches involved as possible. Because of my experience with Room at the Inn, I do not think one church can solve the homeless challenge or epidemic. It is going to take more than me. It is going to take more than one church. If we are all ministering to the same community, it makes sense to me to join hands – to try and offer the resources and gifts that each church and civic organization can contribute.
One of the things we can offer as a church is space with the Outreach Center. We can live up to our name as an Outreach Center. That is what we are doing.
I hope that I have a much more concrete answer to that question a year from now.
BD NEWSLETTER: What do you like best about living in McMinnville?
Ryan Heatherly: I really like the outdoor scene here, the Barren Fork River. One of the baptisms we had was in Myers Cove, and I like the natural scenery. The proximity to the big city life is available if you want it. I grew up in a small town, I prefer living in a smaller town. McMinnville reminds me of the small-town environment that I prefer. Having lived in suburban Nashville, I cannot see myself living in a big city and enjoying it as much.
I also like that my family likes McMinnville a lot. There has never been a day when my wife or son have said they are looking forward to the next place we will live. It is more like I dread the day we have to leave. We have moved a lot. Hopefully, we won’t have to think about that for a long time.
This morning I was reading a post on Facebook with random facts. One of the facts stated that outdoor cats live for 3 years and indoor cats can live up to 16 years. The next thing I did was google it, and this came up in my search:
“An indoor cat may live 15-17 years, while the life expectancy for outdoor cats is only 2-5 years, according to researchers at University of California-Davis. Dr. Jeff Levy, DVM, CVA, owner of House Call Vet NYC, also discourages owners from keeping cats outdoors.”
As I contemplated this, I visualized a cat I often see who lives outside. Then I started thinking about people living on the street and in tents in McMinnville. My mind also drifted to people who live outside in tents in refugee camps. Then Tom Petty’s song, “Refugee” popped into my head.
REFUGEE, BY TOM PETTY
We did somethin’ we both know it We don’t talk too much about it Ain’t no real big secret all the same Somehow we get around it Listen it don’t really matter to me, baby You believe what you want to believe You see, you don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee)
Somewhere, somehow, somebody Must have kicked you around some Tell me why you want to lay there Revel in your abandon Honey, it don’t make no difference to me, baby Everybody’s had to fight to be free You see, you don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee) Now baby, you don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee) No
Baby we ain’t the first I’m sure a lot of other lovers been burned Right now this seems real to you But it’s one of those things You gotta feel to be true
Somewhere, somehow, somebody Must have kicked you around some Who knows, maybe you were kidnapped Tied up, taken away and held for ransom, honey It don’t really matter to me, baby Everybody’s had to fight to be free You see, you don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee) No, you don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee) You don’t have to live like a refugee (don’t have to live like a refugee) Oh, oh, oh
Songwriters: Michael W Campbell / Thomas Earl Petty
Tom Petty may have been singing about lovers, but it fits perfectly as I think about people who are experiencing homelessness. However, there is a catch for me personally. During the past year, I have been volunteering to help a little with people who are homeless. I am watching people leave a building after they can eat and shower to go live outside and sleep outdoors on the actual streets, sidewalks and in tents. I have come to the conclusion that I am enabling or helping them to live there by not doing something to help them live in a home.
So, I googled “life expectancy of a person living outdoors vs. indoors.” This is what appeared on my computer screen:
Generally, a person living primarily outdoors would have a significantly lower life expectancy compared to someone living indoors, due to increased exposure to environmental hazards like weather extremes, predators, accidents, and lack of access to basic necessities, making living entirely outdoors is considerably more risky for health and longevity.
Key points to consider:
Environmental dangers:
Exposure to harsh weather conditions, including extreme heat, cold, rain, and storms, can lead to health complications and potential fatalities.
Predators and accidents:
Individuals living outdoors are more vulnerable to attacks from wild animals and potential accidents due to lack of controlled environments.
Access to healthcare:
Limited access to medical care and sanitation facilities when living outdoors can exacerbate health issues.
I don’t need medical experts to tell me that living outdoors shortens the life expectancy of someone. I have seen what happens with my own eyes. People’s health deteriorates rapidly over a few months of living outdoors or in conditions where the roof leaks and there is no electricity or running water. The hazards of living outdoors, especially when you are disabled are real. Thurman Crisp, a disabled veteran, was living on the streets in McMinnville, and he passed away on December 2, 2024 when he was crossing the street and hit accidentally by a vehicle.
Tom Petty was right, you don’t have to live like a refugee. But until I can help develop and implement a strategic plan to keep men and women from living outside in tents and living in a home, I believe that I am allowing people to live like refugees in McMinnville. And I am embarrassed to keep thinking and saying that there is nothing I can do about it.
First United Methodist Church and St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church co-hosted a night at the Park Theater for people experiencing homelessness and underprivileged children. Guests at the party enjoyed free popcorn, cookies, and drinks. In addition, children were given gifts of stuffed animals and adults received a gift bag containing a gift card, winter hat, hand warmers, and a flashlight. The movies viewed were A CHARLIE BROWN CHRISTMAS and HOW THE GRINCH STOLE CHRISTMAS featuring Jim Carrey.
A few of the gifts that were leftover at the Park Theater will be given out to guests at the McMinnville Cold Weather Shelter in the near future.
THANK YOU TO THE HOSTS AND SUPPORTERS
Thank you to Pastor Ryan Heatherly and First United Methodist Church who also hosted a concert and meal for people who are experiencing homelessness prior to the movies at the Park Theater. It was part of First Methodist’s commitment to celebrating Happy Birthday for Jesus, which is the reason for the season.
Thank you to Rev. Charles McClain and St. Matthew’s Church for paying the fee to use the Park Theater and supplying gifts for the children. Thank you to Joe Harvey for helping direct the event at the Park Theater.
A big thank you for everyone who donated to support the Christmas Party. The movies, refreshments and gifts made this a special night for many people in McMinnville.
Pastor Ryan Heatherly and Rev. Charles McClain.Stuffed animals donated for kids.Gift bags donated for adults.
For Your Information…
McMinnville First United Methodist Church hosted a McMinnville Cold Weather Shelter for men on Wednesday night, December 11, from 6:00 PM to 7:30 AM the next day. This is an ongoing collaboration with St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, HOME and volunteers.
The McMinnville Cold Weather Shelter for men will open on a contingency basis – based upon two factors. When the temperature is 28-degrees or below (or 25-degree wind chill factor), the Cold Weather Shelter will open. The other factor will be if there is a sufficient number of volunteers to operate the overnight shelter.
Please spread the word so that any male person experiencing homelessness in McMinnville and Warren County will have the opportunity to come inside during severe cold weather.
If you or anyone you know wishes to volunteer, please have them contact First United Methodist Church at (931) 473-4419.
A Message from Pastor Ryan Heatherly…
We would like to invite fellow church & community peers to join a community effort to shelter unhoused neighbors on the coldest nights. Please share as appropriate.
Being a weekend, hopefully we can utilize more volunteers in various roles. Breakfast should not be required Saturday, given the normal HOME schedule. Let us know if you have 1-2 men willing to stay Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, or for various other roles. Any meals should feed about 10 in number. On Wednesday, Dec. 11, 5-6 men stayed overnight + 2 volunteers. See attached for more information. Email or call me if you can help. Email: ryan@mcminnvillefumc.com Phone: 931-473-4419
Approximately 40 years ago, Joyce Tavon was one of my supervisors as I conducted housing searches for the homeless in Boston. Joyce and other friends have recently been helping me understand the best solutions for ending homelessness. Joyce Tavon wrote this article in response to the Supreme Court’s ruling that a community may ban people from sleeping outside. Link: https://www.newschannel5.com/news/nashville-advocate-reacts-to-scotus-ruling-on-sleeping-outside
How best should a community respond when a person has nowhere to live or even a safe place to sleep at night? Should we give them a ticket for pitching a tent in a local park? Arrest them for sleeping on a bench? Or can we commit to finding actual solutions to address this crisis and strengthen our communities?
Recently, in Johnson vs. Grants Pass, the US Supreme Court ruled that a community may ban people from sleeping outside even when there is no adequate shelter or housing available. People may be fined or arrested for sleeping in a tent, on a bench, or even in their own cars.
At the Massachusetts Housing & Shelter Alliance, we are deeply disturbed by this decision. These prohibitions don’t solve the problem; they just drive people further into a downward spiral. Individuals with nowhere to go will be pushed from place to place as their encampments are cleared. As a result, vital documents will likely be lost, and homelessness and all its subsequent trauma exacerbated. Homeless individuals will be saddled with criminal records that will make it even more difficult for them to secure housing or a job. Instead of solving the problem, this punitive approach will create new obstacles to stability.
At the Massachusetts Housing & Shelter Alliance, however, we are not fighting for the right of someone to sleep on a park bench – we are striving to develop real solutions. We build partnerships with city hall, the police, and service providers that solve homelessness by providing housing, engagement, and support. The alliance has done this before in collaboration with communities from Chelsea to Worcester to Pittsfield. When resources, strategic planning, and political will are brought to bear, we can significantly reduce homelessness.
Understandably, communities don’t want people to camp in their public parks and playgrounds. But banning these acts of desperation won’t resolve the crisis.
We’ve always done better here in Massachusetts. Starting in the 1980s, we provided emergency shelter as a first response. Over the years, we’ve learned that offering housing along with the necessary wraparound services is the most effective response of all. We were early adopters of the Housing First model, moving vulnerable people to affordable housing quickly and, with the stability of a roof over their heads, connecting them with essential services such as health care.
The data shows this approach works, with more than 80 percent remaining housed for as many as seven years following the initial intervention. In the early 2000s, as we added more housing coupled with the necessary safety net of support, chronic homelessness was dramatically reduced.
Recently, homelessness has been rising in Massachusetts, especially in our smaller Gateway Cities that lack shelter capacity and a robust housing infrastructure. While the media has covered the plight of desperate migrant families coming to our state, a quieter crisis was already brewing here among adults struggling with poverty, often combined with mental illness or addiction and with few options for housing, services, or treatment.
We also know that homelessness disproportionately impacts people of color. To further complicate an already complex situation, the fastest growing group of newly homeless in the country – and by all indications in Massachusetts as well – are people aged 50 and over. Many have never been homeless before. Losing a job or spouse or receiving a massive rent increase is pushing more and more older adults out of their homes and into their cars or to campsites.
The solution to the homelessness crisis is simple, but it’s not always easy, and moving forward requires political will. We need to redouble efforts to partner with our communities and invest resources in housing with life-changing services. In response to the housing crisis, the governor has called for the creation of 200,000 units by 2030 at all income levels. Based on available data, we are advocating for 10,000 of those units to be supportive housing for our most vulnerable neighbors who are experiencing long-term homelessness.
Our Commonwealth has a long history of innovation and creative problem solving. Let’s apply that can-do approach to this statewide challenge rather than penalizing people for the crime of being poor with nowhere to go.
James Albert at HOME’s Prosperity Point, May 15, 2024.
By Brad Durham
The purpose of this fundraiser is to help provide for James V. Albert’s emergency housing, food, and daily needs until he is placed into permanent housing. Any of these funds that have not been used for emergency purposes will be used to help James once he has permanent housing. Tuesday, May 21st is the last day to contribute to this fund on the app (see link below).
First United Methodist Church is receiving all monies for the James V. Albert Fundraiser. The Mission Committee is overseeing the distribution of the funds.
If you do not wish to donate online, you can mail a check or cash to:
First United Methodist Church c/o James Albert Fund 200 West Main Street McMinnville, TN 37110
JAMES ALBERT’S TRAGIC ACCIDENT THAT COST HIM HIS ARMS
10 years ago, James Albert lost both arms at the shoulder in an accident working on electrical lines. The company he worked for will not release any information about the accident without a subpoena from a lawyer. Whatever money was received in a settlement was spent a long time ago. This is something that James and I will look into with a lawyer.
HOME (Homeless of McMinnville Effort)
HOME has generously paid for James Albert’s initial stay at the Scottish Inns, and on Wednesday, May 15, James moved into a tiny house at Prosperity Point. Prosperity Point is owned and operated by HOME. Sheila Fann, HOME Co-Director, told James Albert that he can stay at Prosperity Point until July.
RELEASE OF INFORMATION
James Albert signed a Release of Information form with me for the purpose of helping him secure rental assistance (vouchers -and Section 8) from HUD via the Crossville Housing Authority, in addition to supportive services from various agencies. There are housing vouchers for homeless individuals, and as soon as we have James’ physical social security card, we will submit that application. That should happen very soon.
I am not comfortable releasing or sharing all of James’ personal information publicly, yet I am going to share some so that it is clear what resources are being pursued for him. His personal history can be shared to some degree, but for various reasons, it is not appropriate to share all of his history.
WHY MONEY IS NEEDED FOR JAMES V. ALBERT
When I asked HOME if they could pay for a hotel room for James Albert on Wednesday, May 8, I was told that I would have to be his case manager. I said that I would take care of James, and that my focus was to get him into permanent housing as soon as possible.
The process of securing rental assistance unfortunately can take months to complete. I want to make certain that there is money to provide emergency housing until James is placed into permanent housing. There is no guarantee that James can stay at Prosperity Point until he has a permanent place to live.
James receives a disability check from Social Security and some money for food with his U Card. His insurance is with United Health Care, and it is very helpful. Vanderbilt Hospital is where James receives all of his medical care. Meals on Wheels started providing James with meals last week. James regularly attends a few free meals offered by churches during the week.
Any money that is not used for James’s personal items and emergency needs will be put toward his permanent housing. Presently, there is no guarantee that James will receive rental assistance, and there are long waiting lists for all public assistance housing in McMinnville.
EXISTING SERVICES THAT ARE BEING PURSUED
The Upper Cumberland Development District (UCDD) has referred James Albert to the CHOICES program. Services that may be provided include homemaker aid, personal care, meals, legal aid, etc.
Home health care is something that is also being pursued. James is very good at scheduling his own doctor appointments and transportation to Vanderbilt University Medical Center. James takes meds daily, and he can cook and prepare meals for himself.
HOLES IN THE SAFETY NET FOR HOMELESS PEOPLE IN MCMINNVILLE
One of the reasons I started this fundraiser for James Albert is because there was no place for James to go or stay when he became homeless. James said, “I would have died if I had not gotten into that hotel when I did.” He was homeless for three days.
McMinnville needs full-time staff to help navigate anyone who is homeless to a safe and secure emergency place to live; in addition to directing homeless individuals and families to existing services. The predominant alternative for most individual homeless people is to live on the street, under bridges and in tents – which people are doing right now in McMinnville. Nothing good happens on the street, under bridges and in tents.
MY FOCUS FOR JAMES ALBERT
I asked James what he wanted, and he said that he wants a permanent place to live. He does not want to live in a group home. I told James that I would do my best to help him get rental assistance and a permanent place to live.
The solution to being homeless is a home, a permanent home. The stress that James was under in his former living situation led to him becoming homeless. Being on the street for a few days with no arms led to more stress and trauma. It created health concerns and James immediately scheduled his own appointment with a Vanderbilt doctor.
HOUSING FIRST – RAPID REHOUSING
The approach I am taking is an innovation that began decades ago in the work around the country to solve homelessness. The plan is to put homeless people in housing first with supportive services. If someone becomes homeless such as James, that person is rapidly put back into permanent housing.
James Albert became homeless for the first time on May 4th. He has never been arrested. He is fully capable of living independently with supportive services.
Several weeks ago, I began the process of asking Nicole Mosley, City Police Commissioner and Sheriff Jackie Matheny, Jr., if they could provide data on how much money was spent arresting and incarcerating homeless individuals in 2022 and 2023. I also asked Dale Humphrey, CEO of Ascension Saint Thomas River Park, how much money he thought the hospital had spent caring for the homeless population in McMinnville during the past two years.
I believe a business approach to solving homelessness in McMinnville will reveal that putting homeless people into housing first with supportive services will be cost effective. The savings of placing homeless individuals into housing with services versus the cost of arresting, prosecuting, incarcerating, and health care should be significant. A study should also reveal that the same people who become homeless keep recycling through the courts, jail and hospital.
FUNDING FOR HOMELESS PROGRAMS AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING
In late April, I visited with Vivian Walker, Homeless Program Advocate for HART (Homeless Advocacy for Rural Tennessee). The following is from the HART website:
WHO IS THE HOMELESS ADVOCACY FOR RURAL TENNESSEE CONTINUUM OF CARE? HART is the Upper Cumberland Continuum of Care that covers an 18-county area in Tennessee. We are a collaborative and diverse group of community-based social service providers, county and city officials, private citizens, and faith-based organizations that began meeting in 2001.
Since 2003 this Continuum has been awarded over $6 million in HUD funding for homeless programs through the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. Programs that have been awarded HUD funding include faith-based, private, and government funded organizations.
WHAT IS A CONTINUUM OF CARE? The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) allocates homeless assistance grants to organizations that participate in local homeless assistance program planning networks. Each of these networks is called a Continuum of Care (CoC).
The CoC awarded $833,377 for the Upper Cumberland in 2023 to assist the homeless. 16 of the 18 counties in HART did not apply for funding. Not a single nonprofit from Warren County has ever applied for the CoC funding for the homeless.
Another source of funding for the homeless and affordable housing is the THDA (Tennessee Housing Development Agency). The THDA is another routing source of HUD money. This is a partial list of what the THDA provides:
Housing Choice Voucher
Low Income Energy Assistance Program
Low Income Water Assistance Program
TNHousingSearch.org
Tax Credits
Section 8 Projects-Based Assistance
POSITIVE SOLUTION TO HOMELESSNESS IN MCMINNVILLE
In January, I invited Philip Mangano to speak to people working with the homeless in McMinnville, including County Executive Terry Bell, Mayor Ryle Chastain and City Manager, Nolan Ming. Mr. Mangano served as President George W. Bush’s Executive Director of the White House’s U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness.
The heart of Mangano’s presentation was housing first, a concept to end homelessness, not to provide endless services. Mangano stressed that data clearly supports the housing first policy. Mangano said, “Mayors know the cost involved related to caring for a homeless person. A homeless person incurs expenses that a community pays for such as health care, mental health, police, court costs, addiction, etc.” Mangano stated that a city spends between $25,000 to $138,000 a year in services for a homeless person who can ricochet through law enforcement and health care systems in the community..
A permanent home is the most cost-effective solution to homelessness because it stabilizes the homeless person. When a homeless person is safe and secure in a home, the health care, mental health care, and other services are more easily identified and effective. The services follow the homeless person into a home.
It is my hope that a nonprofit in McMinnville can apply for HUD money from the Continuum of Care and THDA. A stronger safety net with full-time staff can be cost-effective in serving the homeless.
One thing every homeless person like James Albert wants is a permanent home. I firmly believe with our community’s support, McMinnville can provide a stronger safety net and more positive solutions to homelessness.
I have known James Albert since January. We met at the outreach breakfast at First United Methodist Church’s Auxiliary Building. James Albert peaked my interest because he could eat and do so many things — with no arms. When I saw him early last week on the street, I was shocked to learn that he had become homeless. Immediately, I knew that I had to try and help him.
A SEVERE DISABILITY
It is not easy doing all the things you have to do to survive and thrive when one is homeless. If you are homeless and have no arms, taking care of yourself becomes more challenging. James lost his arms in a tragic accident working on electrical lines 10 years ago in Murfreesboro. The settlement money no longer exists. The reality is that he cannot work and needs rental assistance, as well as supportive services.
James can make calls on his phone, which was broken. We are in the process of getting James a new phone. He can prepare a lot of his own meals, change his own clothes, take a bath — by himself.
A TEAM OF SUPPORT
I contacted Sheila Fann at HOME, and she said HOME would help pay for a hotel room for a few nights. I immediately began trying to learn the details of why James is homeless. I asked James to sign a Release of Information form (which he did by writing with a pen in his mouth). HOME has been helpful. Ryan Heatherly, the Senior Pastor at First United Methodist Church has been helpful. Jimmy Haley has been helpful during the Saturday morning outreach and in many other ways. Several people have donated money to help James Albert, and I am very grateful for each gift.
AN APPEAL FOR DONATIONS
I am making another appeal for donations. The link will work this time, and I am asking everyone to share the link with people they know. If 400 people donate $25, we will reach our goal of $10,000.
First and foremost, money will be spent to provide safe housing for James until permanent housing is secured. Efforts are being made to get James into housing other than a hotel, which is burning cash. There is no emergency housing for homeless men in McMinnville. That is something that will hopefully change in the future, but right now, I am an advocate for James and asking for help — to keep him safe.
The second emergency expense is food. A lot of meals can be donated, but that requires coordinated volunteer help. Connecting James to free meals and food is part of the present effort to help him. Unfortunately, there are times where James needs meals — the morning, certain evenings, especially on the weekends.
There are other everyday items James needs such as body wash, detergent, laundry mat services, etc. Some of these things can be donated, and sometimes they are not readily available. James also needs help paying for the UCHRA bus. Everything is being done to stretch every dollar, and what is not spent on emergency expenses will go toward providing items for permanent housing.
James receives disability from Social Security and some food assistance through his insurance. One of the reasons James is homeless is because there was a disagreement over handling his money with his helper, whom he lived with for 10 years. I am not sure of all the details, and that is water over the dam. Steps are being taken to ensure that James will personally manage all of his money in the future. Last week he set up his own bank account to make that happen.
OTHER WAYS TO HELP
LANDLORDS. Once James has a rental voucher, his rent will be guaranteed. A landlord will not have to worry about nonpayment. And James will have a team of supportive services helping him.
PERSONAL NAVIGATORS-ASSISTANTS. James needs personal navigators/assistants who can help direct him to various places such as free meals, where to get his clothes washed, help with cleaning his living space, preparing meds, etc. Someone needs to check with James each day presently and in the future. This volunteer position will often require running errands and sometimes taking James where he needs to go.
THE PARABLE OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN
A couple of weeks ago, before James was homeless, someone reminded me of the Good Samaritan parable. Someone asked Jesus who is my neighbor? Jesus replied by telling the story of a man who was beaten and robbed by bandits, and was left half dead. A priest was traveling and saw the beaten man, but walked by him on the other side of the road.
In similar fashion, a Levite saw the wounded man, but also passed him by. Then a Samaritan traveler came to the location and saw the man. He bandaged the man’s wounds and took him to an Inn. He paid the innkeeper and asked him to take care of the man. The Samaritan also promised to pay any extra expenses for the man on his way back.
Jesus asked, “Which of these three do you think proved himself to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the bandits?” The answer was the man who showed pity towards him. Jesus said, “Go and do the same yourself.”
CALL TO ACTION
If for any reason you are compelled to help James, please do one of three things.
1. Click on the link above and make a donation.
2. Seek out landlords who may provide a permanent place for James to live.
3. Become a personal Navigator/Assistant one day a week for James.
4. Please share this appeal to help support James with 5-10 friends.
Call or email me if you wish to help with housing or personally assisting James Albert.
Cell: (615) 838-4426 Email: brad412@benlomand.net
If you wish to mail a check or give cash instead of donating on the above link, please make checks payable to:
First United Methodist Church c/o James Albert Fund 200 West Main Street McMinnville, TN 37110
Professor and author Marybeth Shinn in her office at Vanderbilt University. Feb. 29, 2024.
By Brad Durham
On Thursday afternoon, February 29, I visited with Beth Shinn in her office at Vanderbilt University. Near the end of our conversation, she said something that stood out, “Homelessness is the worst manifestation of income and racial inequality in our country.” Shinn’s statement clearly illustrates the challenges facing the homeless population.
The following are excerpts from my interview with the professor and author of IN THE MIDST OF PLENTY – HOMELESSNESS AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT. I highly recommend purchasing the book and reading it. There is a wealth of research and positive solutions for ending homelessness in Shinn’s book.
Brad Durham: Please describe your background and position at Vanderbilt University.
Beth Shinn: I am a professor at Vanderbilt, and I have been studying how to prevent and end homelessness for over 30 years.
Brad Durham: Would you say that you have a passion for researching that and looking at solutions for homelessness?
Beth Shinn: That is my central focus.
Brad Durham: What made homelessness your central focus?
Beth Shinn: When homelessness started going out of skid rows and onto the streets, I was a young mother in New York. My kids would say, “Why is that person living there, why is somebody sleeping there? It is pretty hard these days to recapture the shock that we had at first seeing this in the mid-1980s.
Brad Durham: When did you start at Vanderbilt?
Beth Shinn: 16 years ago.
Brad Durham: In your 30 years of research, what have you found to be the best approach to solving homelessness?
Beth Shinn: We have a lot of evidence, and it is different for different folks. For families, a large-scale experiment that I was involved with, The Family Option Study, randomized nearly 2,300 families to housing intervention services. What we learned was that giving families access to housing vouchers that held their housing cost to 30% of their income not only ended homelessness, but also has radiating benefits for other aspects of family life.
Access to the vouchers reduced psychological distress and substance abuse, it reduced domestic violence, food insecurity… Some of the things that can cause homelessness were reduced simply by making housing affordable. Kids school attendance improved; their behaviors improved. We are in the field now with a 13-year follow-up to that study to see how long the affects lasted. How did being a kid in one of those families that had access to housing vouchers change the trajectories into adulthood? In another year or so, we will know the answer to that.
For folks with serious mental illness and substance-abuse problems, the approach that is evidenced-based and seems to work best is the original Housing First approach to supportive housing. People get housing with private landlords directly from the street without any prerequisites, and services under their control. The wraparound services are the ones that the people choose. Wraparound services include mental health services, substance-abuse services, but also vocational services for people who ask for job help, educational services, recreational services to help people build community. That approach has been shown in experimental studies to work much better than approaches that require people to be clean and sober before coming indoors.
There are some advantages to scattered-site housing with private landlords as opposed to putting people with problems all in the same buildings. Being in the same building is more convenient for the service providers, but not necessarily for the environment that people are trying to manage.
We also know something about the prevention of homelessness. The biggest issue there is identifying the people who are at-risk. The most common program is eviction-prevention. But most people who are evicted, do not become homeless.
One study in Chicago looked at people who called up the eviction hotline and qualified for the program. They compared people who called at times when there was money and when there was not money. What they found out was that when people called up when there was money, about half a percent became homeless in the next six months. When people called up and there was no money available, less than 2% of the people became homeless over the next six months. So the eviction help reduced homelessness, but 98% of the people who called up even when there was no help did not become homeless.
Eviction prevention helps, but that is not where most people who are experiencing homelessness are coming from. People who have a place from which they can be evicted are better off in terms of housing than folks who don’t.
Resources are the problem. We have shown that with resources, we can end homelessness. The country has cut homelessness for military veterans in half since 2010. That happened because we put in the resources. There was supportive housing for veteran families and other programs. There was preventive screening for veterans who came into veteran health services. They were asked questions about current homelessness, worries about insecurities about the future…
I don’t believe anyone should be homeless. We can fix it if we wanted to, but fixing it involves both getting people who are currently homeless out of that state and stopping generating more. At this point we are pitching people into homelessness faster than we are getting them out. Homelessness is rising.
Mayborn Building, Vanderbilt University…location of Professor Shinn’s office.
Brad Durham: How do you change the public will so that the public cannot stomach having homeless individuals living on the street and in tents? There is a tent city area right outside downtown Nashville, not too far from us right now.
Beth Shinn: That is a good question. In this part of the country, one could appeal to moral values and religious tenets, “love thy neighbor.” If I could answer your question, I would be shouting it from the rooftops.
There is a lack of affordable housing. Nationwide, we have the highest level of “worst case of housing needs” since we started tracking these things. Worst case housing needs are people who are below 50% of the median income and are paying more than 50% of their income toward housing or living in seriously deficient housing. At this point nationally, we have 8.5 million renters who fall into that category as of 2021, which is the most recent report. That is the highest number we have ever had.
Those are people who are really strapped…people who are living below 50% of area median income and are paying more than 50% of their income for rent, which does not leave much room for paying anything else.
Brad Durham: How would you define homelessness?
Beth Shinn: There are two basic definitions of homelessness. There is what the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) uses, which sometimes is called literal homelessness. Someone who is sleeping outdoors or a place where people are not intended to sleep such as a bus station or in a shelter or other homeless serving programs.
There is a broader definition that the Department of Education uses that includes additional folks: the largest group is people who are doubled up in other households because they cannot afford a place of their own. There are some additional groups such as folks staying temporarily in hotels.
Those are the two big definitions. We try to count the people who are homeless according to the HUD definition in January. That number is going up. We try to count the number of people in schools who fit the Department of Education definition. That doesn’t count anyone who is below school age. In Nashville, that number is looking worse as well.
About a third of the people who experience homelessness are a part of families. The age that you are most likely to be in a homeless shelter in the United States is infancy.
Brad Durham: The Finnish model in your book is encouraging and inspiring. They eliminated homelessness.
Beth Shinn: We are wealthier than Finland. We could choose to do it. It’s a choice.
Brad Durham: Do we have the federal and state money to do it in Tennessee?
Beth Shinn: There is money through HUD, and the housing choice voucher program is something that needs to be expanded. The other thing the Feds do is the Low Income Housing Tax Credit, and that helps developers create more affordable housing. Even with that tax credit, developers cannot develop and maintain housing that poor people can afford. LIHTC helps developers provide housing to people who are at about 80% of median income. Getting that down to 30% of area median income is really tough, and that is where the need is.
If you look at the people who are experiencing homelessness, they are around 15% of area median income. Disability benefits are too low to afford a studio apartment anywhere.
State and local funds can help, but regulations are part of what is causing homelessness. In Nashville, we have down-zoned the number of units that are permitted. In 1950, you could have built a duplex or triplex in a place where now only single-family homes are permitted. We need to allow for greater density. We need housing on transportation corridors. Some people like to say that it is the housing and transportation cost that we should be looking at together. It doesn’t really help if you can get housing way out (from work) because it increases the transportation cost of commuting to work.
Zoning requirements for parking are another thing that makes housing more expensive to build. Nashville is removing zoning requirements for parking downtown. There is a tradeoff between having more parking spaces or more housing units.
The Tennessee state legislature has tied our hands to incentivize developers to build affordable housing. You can’t say in Tennessee that we will give you a zoning variance to build more units if 10% of them are more affordable. The legislature has nixed that from happening.
State and local funding can help, but state and local regulations hurts. We need changes to state and local regulations to make it more possible to build affordable housing.
Brad Durham: Are you optimistic in what you are seeing in your research, or are you pessimistic about the numbers you are seeing in respect to solving homelessness?
Beth Shinn: What leaves me optimistic is that we generally know what to do. It is really at this point a question of resources. We have shown that we know how to end homelessness with families. We have shown how to end homelessness for people with serious mental illness and substance abuse disorders. We have shown how to end homelessness for veterans. It is matter of resources and political will.
It is not a matter of the poor are always going to be with us and we don’t know what to do, so we should just bury our heads in the sand. We have a lot of knowledge. We know something about prevention. We could know more there. We know something about what is generating homelessness. There is a GAO report that indicates that for every $100 increase in rent in a city (technically a continuum of care) there is a 9% increase in homelessness.
We need to build things that are not all mansions. We need to build smaller homes, what used to be called starter homes. Not everyone needs three bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms and a white picket fence. We need to offer more kinds of housing to people.
For a list of who attended the meeting, go to the end of this letter.
On Friday morning, January 26, a group of 14 McMinnvillians gathered for a presentation by Philip F. Mangano. Mr. Mangano served as President George W. Bush’s Executive Director of the White House’s U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness. Brad Durham, who worked with Mr. Mangano in Cambridge, Massachusetts placing homeless families into permanent housing, invited Mangano to McMinnville.
HOUSING FIRST SOLUTION
The heart of Mangano’s presentation was housing first, a concept to end homelessness, not to provide endless services. Mangano stressed that data clearly supports the housing first policy.
COST-EFFECTIVE SOLUTION FOR CITIES
It is cost-effective to place a homeless person or family in permanent housing versus a shelter or transitional housing. Mangano said, “Mayors know the cost involved related to caring for a homeless person. A homeless person incurs expenses that a community pays for such as health care, mental health, police, court costs, addiction, etc.” Mangano stated that a city spends between $25,000 to $138,000 a year in services for a homeless person.
STABLIZES A HOMELESS PERSON
A permanent home is the most cost-effective solution to homelessness because it stabilizes the homeless person. When a homeless person is safe and secure in a home, the health care, mental care, and other services are more easily identified and effective. The services follow the homeless person into a home.
WHAT EVERY HOMELESS PERSON WANTS
Mangano emphasized that there is one thing every homeless person says that he or she wants — when asked — is a place to live, a home. Although the housing first solution appears to be self-evident, Mangano stated that homeless advocates often act out of genuine compassion by providing transitional housing and services that create a perpetual cycle of services that sadly do not end homelessness.
Another major desire homeless people ask for is a job. Mangano said, “Homelessness results in an unraveling of social capital – the loss of friends and family.” Clearly, when an individual or family is homeless, that person or family have busted through every possible safety net and hit the street. A homeless person is completely alone…lonely. A homeless person intuitively knows that a job will provide friends — the social capital everyone needs.
Philip Mangano suggested a book by Robert Putnam to better understand how the social fabric has diminished in America’s recent history. That book is Robert Putnam’sBOWLING ALONE: The Collapse and Revival of American Community. The book was developed from Putnam’s essay entitled, “Bowling Alone: America’s Declining Social Capital.”
A COMMON FRUSTRATION AND PERCEPTION
Several members of Friday’s gathering stated that there is no affordable housing in McMinnville. Mangano replied, “Homeless advocates in every city say that. That is a common perception. The response requires innovative thinking and a commitment to housing first principles.”
THREE BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS
Philip Mangano worked with three researchers and authors who have worked with executives in the corporate world to find solutions to business problems. These authors helped research and provide the framework for successful housing first models and policies.
Using Gladwell’s book and homeless research as a resource, Mangano said, “Investing resources into the most challenging and difficult parts of homelessness from an economic perspective leads to a decline in homelessness.” Conversely, providing compassionate emergency services without a housing first policy does not effectively create a decline in homelessness.
Mangano’s alluded to examples of creative solutions involving converting motels into housing that have services onsite. He also mentioned manufactured housing as a cost-effective solution for a homeless person or family.
Clayton Christensen’s book, THE INNOVATORS DILEMMA offered examples of how businesses seeking to move to the next step often failed when using the solutions suggested by the sales force. On the other hand, businesses seeking to move to the next step often succeeded when their researched focused on the consumers and solutions they wanted.
SUMMATION
The general thesis of Mangano’s presentation was that research and data from across the country, in large and small cities, clearly shows that housing first is the best solution to homelessness. Creative innovations to decrease homelessness have often come from unsuspected sources such as private industry and listening to the homeless population. The solution that works best for everyone is housing a homeless person or family — not long-term emergency services that allow the homeless to perpetually experience trauma and instability.
PEOPLE ATTENDING THE MEETING
Carrie Baker, UCHRA Director
Terry Bell, County Executive
Courtney Breedlove, Program Director, Families in Crisis
Brad Durham, Private Citizen
Sheila Fann, Connie Fox, Co-Directors of HOME
Beth Gallagher, Private Citizen
Jimmy Haley, former Mayor and County Executive
Steve Harvey, City Alderman
Ryan Heatherly, Senior Pastor, First United Methodist Church
Rayah Kirby, Realtor
Philip Mangao, President & CEO American Roundtable to Abolish Homelessness
Nolan Ming, McMinnville City Administrator
Rev. Charles McClain, Priest, St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church
Kristy Stubblefield, Executive Director, Families in Crisis
As the meeting came to close, members expressed the desire to work together and collaborate, to meet again in three weeks. It is hoped that the meeting will lead to some type of homeless alliance in McMinnville.
BD Newsletter 
You must be logged in to post a comment.