Channel 5 Lends A Hand

Received a call today from a gentleman we'll call "Jerod," and Jerod has found himself in a world of hurt.  He's been laid off and has been working at odd jobs while his wife continues to work fulltime.  They have three daughters, aged 12, 11 and 9, I do believe, and right now they are staying in a hotel room courtesy of a local downtown hotel that is not known for its generosity when it comes to folks who've run out of money.

I knew that Jerod would receive the traditional "can't help ya, go to the mission" speil no matter who he called, and he called everyone today, from Metro Action to Ladies of Charity to a dozen local churces to Safe Haven.

The problem is that Jerod and family aren't chronically homeless but rather, newly homeless.  They are trying desperately to make ends meet on one wage earner while Jerod tries to find additional employment.  They were renting a home here in Nashville but the landlord found himself in dire financial trouble and couldn't make critical repairs to the property Jerod resided in, so Codes shut it down, which forced Jerod and his family to scramble to find another place to go. 

They ended up in a motel because they, like thousands of other fine, hard working folks, are barely keeping their heads above water at the moment and couldn't scrape up the almost $2000 necessary for first and last, deposits and the move itself.  

We got in touch with the good folks at Channel 5 today and we're hoping someone might be able to help once the story airs because tomorrow Jerod and his family will be on the street, living in his van. They damn sure need a hand-up at the moment, and sadly, they are far from alone.

Maybe too people who are watching will begin to realize that there is an increasing group of homeless folk out there who deserve far more than what they're able to get from our supposed "safety nets" that we've been told allow folks to live like royalty on taxpayer dollars.

I doubt Jerod would describe his experience as one fit for a king; lets hope someone that can help him get through this rough spot does help.  Right now it's his only hope and his wife and daughters are depending on it.....