Amazing How People Come Out of the Woodwork to Help.....

UPDATE: When my buddy and Homeless Task Force Main Man Tony Carter gave Jodie Jarvis my phone number the other day, Jodie was at the very end of his rope. 

He'd told me in that first phone call about all the places he'd contacted and how no one at all was able to assist him with a  "few more days" or a "few dollars to get by" until his wife got her paycheck and/or was able to pick up some work.  I completely understood what he was telling me because I've done the same thing with countless other folks hundreds of times here in Nashville, and I've pretty much received the same responses: "don't have any funds," "call back at the beginning of next month," "we don't do that here," "you'll have to go to the Mission," etc., etc., ad nauseum. 

But before we all go to rioting against the agencies who're supposed to provide a safety net for our citizens in need, we'd all better stop and take a good look in the mirror, kids, because we're the ones who put the legislators into power and we're responsible, at least indirectly, for the butchering our safety net has undergone.

This ain't the agency's fault, folks.  Just about every single agency that assists with the poor and the homeless is cashstrapped, overworked, underfunded and struggling to make ends meet themselves, thanks to eight years of Bush/rightwing wackiness that decieved us all into believing we not only had a safety net, that net made life fit for a king when you entered into it.  Worse, they tricked many into believing that somehow, the poorer peeps in our community weren't worthy of a safety net at all and that if they'd just "get a job," the whole problem would just up and fix itseff! 

Of course now people who used to believe that garbage and are now having to access that same safety net for those huge benefits they've heard about have discovered they've been given yet another load of hogwash, straight from the same people who lied to us throughout the "decade of the deceivers."

Jodie Jarvis got lucky, and he will be the first to tell you that.  He called me at the perfect time and I was able to assist him in a way that made a differrence.  Unfortunately, it wasn't through traditional methods and for that, every one of us who works in this field ought to be ashamed that we can't reach out and help the thousands of other families just like the Jarvises. 

Then we all ought to start advocating and paying attention to the legislation that's coming our way, and if there is none on the pike, then we by God ought to be putting it there by exerting pressure on every one of our legislators. 

Get involved, get a blog, get a pen and write, get on the phone, because I'm telling you right now, Jodie and his family are just the tip of the iceberg and it's very clear that our community has shown what it can do when it is concerned for one of its own.  Time to find the rest of those struggling folks out there and get them the help and support they not only need, they deserve...

 Generosity Keeps Family Under One Roof

Posted: March 17, 2009 09:40 PM

Video Gallery <1> Generosity Keeps Family Under One Roof 2:20

Westwood Baptist Church Pastor Barton Harris talks with Jodie Jarvis and offers help.

NASHVILLE, Tenn.- A Middle Tennessee family who was on the verge of homelessness now has a roof over their heads. Jodie Jarvis and his wife were laid off and they lost their home.
Jarvis and his wife have three daughters. The family was hours away from being kicked out of a motel room and living in their car, but minutes after their story aired on NewsChannel 5, Jodie's phone started ringing.
Over the past four months, the family in the corner room of the Congress Inn has shed a river of tears.
"I was running into brick walls everywhere," said Jodie Jarvis.
But on Tuesday, Jodie Jarvis broke down for another reason. In December the construction worker and his wife were both laid off. The bills piled up and the family of five lost their home and moved into a motel. Unable to pay the bill and once again on the edge of eviction, Jodie made call.
"No we're trying to stay together as a family.  We don't want to be split up," said Jarvis.
One day after his family's struggle aired on television, help came his way. Westwood Baptist Church Pastor Barton Harris was one of many heartbroken by Jodie's situation.
"We saw you on the news," said Harris. "I can go up and pay for a week for you," he said. "And we're all just a few paychecks from being in this kind of situation," he continued.
As of Tuesday night, Jodie Jarvis and his family had a roof over their heads.
"I mean I just can't believe how the people just opened their heart up to me.  It's been unreal," said Jarvis.
Jarvis said his next move is to find work, a home for his family, and eventually to pay back his good fortune forward.
Jodie Jarvis said he's touched by the outpouring of support. He hopes other families going through similar situations are as fortunate.