Spring Planting Party this Saturday

If the Wigshop were to be a sorority (one can only dream!), I'd like for us to have two philanthropies: CAC Beardsley Farm and Food in the Fort. We've made friends in both organizations and we really like what they do for our community.

My friend Jess Wilkins has recently been crowned the "Food in the Fort Gardens and Lunch Coordinator" which means she is the liaison between the two groups. She would be the one to come to our chapter meetings and tell us how to be involved.

Let's pretend now we're all dressed in white sitting on the floor of a room in Panhallenic (does that place still exist?). I introduce to you, Jess, Food in the Fort Gardens and Lunch Coordinator.

You may remember reading about CAC Beardsley Community Farm in a posting last October when B wrote about her visit. Well, this time the good people at the farm have teamed up with local nonprofit Food in the Fort, a part of Redeeming Hope Ministries, to bring fresh, locally grown, and sustainably farmed fruits and veggies to the homeless and underprivileged of Knoxville.






















This Saturday their inaugural Spring Planting Party is taking place to kick off the 2011 growing season. It is an opportunity for people to come out to CAC Beardsley Community Farm, take a tour of the farm, learn Gardening 101, and enjoy some coffee and pastries. We will also be planting tomatoes, peppers, cauliflower, and broccoli that will benefit Food in the Fort. If you have no idea about gardening, come and learn. If you have every idea about gardening and want to put your skills to good use, come and show off. If you have nothing to do this Saturday morning come and enjoy what should be lovely weather and an even lovelier cause.

Here is what you need to know:

Saturday, February 19, 2011
9-12 (Rain or Shine) at
CAC Beardsley Community Farm,
(1719 Reynolds Street, Knoxville, TN 37921)

Contact for more information or questions:

865.546.8446,
BeardsleyFarm@gmail.com
Jess@RedeemingHope.com

A courtesy RSVP is warmly encouraged and recommended, but not required. We hope to see you there!

Thanks, Jess. Meeting adjourned.

The Amplifier: Knoxville's first and only street paper

Today we have a guest post from David Morelli who has been working with Redeeming Hope Ministires to launch the Amplifier. Don't know what I'm talking about? Read on.



Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

The Amplifier launches today!

The Amplifier, you say? What in the world...?

The Amplifier is Knoxville's first and only street paper!

Street paper? Again: what in the world...?

A street paper is a cool, entrepreneurial way for the "winners of capitalism" (i.e., the homeless or radically poor) to pull themselves up by their bootstraps, the good ole American way. It works this way: a vendor--typically a homeless person operating as a free agent--buys issues of The Amplifier, at cost, and then turns around and sells them to the body public for a dollar. He then reinvests the markup, purchasing more inventory and earning an income. Voila, microcapitalism at work for the least of us.



The Amplifier is run out of the basement of a group of community-minded people in Fort Sanders. Check out their website.

So, if you see someone, whom you may ordinarily brush aside as panhandling, trying to gain entrance to our wonderful consumer economy by selling something that's not a windshield wash at a stoplight, then I implore you to swat away your preconceived objections and spare a buck for a fledgling, home-grown paper that's just trying to make it out on the streets of our scruffy city.

Random thoughts while driving through Broadway and 5th

I drive down Broadway quite a lot in one week, as it is near where I work and live. I finally took some photos of some changes on 5th and Broadway for you all.



First of all, Minvilla Manor is almost done (or maybe it is done by now). It looks very nice, if I do say so myself, but (of course) I have a couple of complaints. I know because of certain constraints they couldn't, but I wish they had kept the white brick (because boy do I have a thing for white brick). Unfortunately for my taste, they had to revert back to the historic surface, which is unpainted brick.



What is funny and a little strange to me though, is that when they tried to take off the white paint, they found it too difficult, and so decided to spray paint the whole building "brick" color. My hope was that once they saw the difficulty in scraping off the white paint, they'd think, "The white stays," buuuut they didn't.

The front of the building with its porches looks amazing, but another sad fact/rumor I heard was that because the building is for permanent supportive housing, the front doors of each unit will not actually function, as they want people to come and go through one main entrance. This makes sense for what the building is intended, but again, that doesn't mean I have to like it.

Another interesting fixture in the neighborhood, diagonally across the intersection from Minvilla, is an archway with a lamp hanging from it.



I meant to write about this a long time ago when it first went up because I think it's pretty sweet. The archway obviously stands as a symbol of St. John's Lutheran Church's connection and service to all the people that are right across the street from them at the Salvation Army, KARM, and soon, Minvilla Manor.

Last spring, I was able to take a sneak peak of their sanctuary while on a walking tour of the neighborhood. The couple that was showing us around talked about the church's commitment to maintaining the beauty of the church (it is INCREDIBLY beautiful and well-maintained inside) and also to the homeless community around them, two things I can get behind.

Anyway, amongst other things, these are some things I think about when I drive that way, but only when I'm not trying to avoid hitting an ambulance or a van parked outside of KARM.

The truth about Beardsley Farm {it's awesome}

Even though I've heard the name Beardsley Farm thrown around quite a bit the past few years and have participated in Snow Day, their winter fundraiser, for the longest time I've had no idea what they are all about. Until yesterday.



Katie Ries invited me to take a tour of the farm. She is one of four AmeriCorps workers there, and she gave me a much-appreciated rundown of what happens on the urban development farm. If you read no further, just know this: It's really really awesome what Beardsley Farms does.

First, and I think most importantly, did you know that they don't sell any of their produce? Well, I didn't. They give it all away to organizations like the YWCA and Food Not Bombs. They also use organic practices, no pesticides and all that stuff. This philosphy in itself is pretty amazing to me: to give the very best to those that cannot afford it.



Another function of Beardsley is to provide community beds where anyone can coordinate with them about planting and harvesting their own food. Food in the Fort has about five beds that they use for their program to feed the homeless. Something I think is pretty sweet as well is that next to the community beds, they have a gleaners bed with produce that anyone passing by can take.

The more I learned yesterday, the more I wanted to know how to help them.



My first proactive endeavor is to ask you to consider going to their next fundraiser called "Raise the Roots" on Monday November 22. Mahasti Vafaie, owner of the Tomato Head, and head cook of the Maryville T Head, Robert Birkholz, are going to prepare a meal for all those attending to help raise money for the farm. The event is at the Tomato Head in Market Square and you can buy tickets in advance here.



The fact that this private event is at Tomato Head sells itself, and for a mere $25, to have a seated meal prepared by the owner of one of the best restaurants in Knoxville (and maybe the world), with all the planning and preparation that go into events like this, well, it's a steal.

Some of the ingredients will be provided by Beardsley, and Tomato Head is providing the rest. Alcohol is not included but will be available for purchase.

Need a date? As an added bonus you can take Knoxville's 72nd best blogger, yours truly. Take a ticket, gentlemen, and get in line.

***

If you can't attend the event, Here are other ways you can help and support Beardsley Farm:

You can donate money.
You can donate tools, materials, and seeds.
You can donate time by getting your hands a little dirty. Just call or email them.
You can spread the word to your friends and peers.
If you're a teacher, plan a field trip with them.



Oh, and they have bees!!

Beardsley Community Farm
1719 Reynolds Ave.
Knoxville, TN 37921

Thoughts on Homelessness in Knoxville and One Way to Help

This Saturday, August 28th at 7pm, there is a wine tasting fundraiser at S&W Grand to benefit Redeeming Hope Ministries. I asked Eddie Young, head of this organization, to tell us a little more about the event, the work he does, and his thoughts on homelessness in Knoxville.

What is the money raised from the event Raise Your Glass going toward?

EY: 100% of the funds raised will go towards our efforts in bringing wholeness and wellness to the lives of the radically underprivileged and homeless of urban Knoxville. Redeeming Hope Ministry currently focuses on four aspects of holistic initiative: food justice, aesthetics, our upcoming Street Paper, and mentoring our friends in social service areas and ultimately into housing.

What will happen at the event on Saturday?

EY: The idea is for everyone to bring two bottles (of wine), one for our tasting and one for the winner's table. They can be very cheap bottles. Guests will judge the disguised bottles on a scale of 1 to 5, and the 3 winners will divide the wine on the winner's table. Winners may take home anywhere from 15 to 30 bottles of wine.

There will also be a silent auction featuring artwork from local artists.

How long have you been working in this field?

EY: My family and I moved to Knoxville just over 3 years ago. I began this particular 'ministry' about a year after our arrival. I've had, for over 15 years, a driving passion for the poor, oppressed and homeless of the communities in which we previously lived, but this is the most intensive run I've made at organizing something this comprehensive.


What is the most rewarding part of your job?

EY: You might think the 'success stories' are what rewards us the most, but I have to say that the friendships are the most rewarding. Everything we do is based on building genuine relationships. No one is our client, or the object of our ministry - they are our friends. And I love that.



Move in day: Eddie and RHM helped Arthur (right) move into an apartment.

If people can't go to the event Raise Your Glass, in what other ways can they help?

EY: Well, if you can't make the fund-raiser, I'd love for you to visit our website, www.redeeminghope.com and see how best you can plug in. Everyone has something to offer, and if you're having trouble figuring yours out, let us help!

On a different but related subject, would you like to share any of your thoughts on the 10 year plan?

EY: Lots of thoughts on the 10 year plan! I'll say this, I'm a total supporter of the plan. Are there better ways? I don't know, and I don't think anyone else has come forward with one. I think there are a lot of misunderstandings about the 10 year plan. One of those is that it's goal is to end homelessness, but actually it's plan is to rescue the most vulnerable and helpless of the homeless. If we understand this, and don't move to do something about it, we cannot think of ourselves as a very compassionate community.

Any other thoughts you'd like me to include?

EY: I would love for we as a community to make an effort to understand the plight of the homeless rather than operate on the automatic assumptions and stereotypes that we carry around. Everyone has a story. Everyone is, at least to some extent, shaped by forces not always under our control. There's only one game on the table... some get to start out with money, properties, houses and hotels, some others of us start with nothing and can't ever seem to get around the board to collect $200. It's really not all that difficult to see why some just give up trying. I can't count the number of times I've walked away from Monopoly.


You can contact Eddie for more information or to purchase tickets to Raise Your Glass: 865-237-8166 or email eddie@redeeminghope.com

A different kind of bbq quest.

Put your money where your mouth is.

Last Wednesday I saw someone do just that. The Wigshop was contacted by a gentleman to let us know of a very interesting monthly event that most people would never see or hear of. Mrs. The Pol and myself took off under the maze of overpasses between Western Ave. and Ft. Sanders in search of the Lost Sheep Ministries.

You may have heard of Lost Sheep before. They're the people who go to the homeless and needy, giving food and clothes trying to meet them where they are in their own environment.

That's where I met Joe. Joe is not a part of Lost Sheep, but piggy backs their mission. Joe is just a regular guy who saw a need, wanted to help, and stepped up.

Joe makes Barbeque, really, really good Barbeque and lots of it. He makes this Barbeque specifically for the homeless. Once a month he smokes close to 500 lbs of beautiful pork shoulders, the same he would cook for family, friends, or clients.


It was an impressive sight. Joe in his smoking trailer and cooking gear, working his heart out to serve people who would seem unlikely candidates for the first servings of great food, but that was his point. Joe told me he was convicted by the notion giving the needy the first portion, the best portion, not just the leftovers. In his mind, that is an important symbol for these people to see. That they are not just an afterthought getting whatever remain, but worthy of time and consideration and sacrifice.

There were hundreds of people there. The homeless and needy were streaming out of the woods and along the railroad tracks, there were volunteers with Lost Sheep and volunteers with Joe. They worked with the homeless to prepare the meal and set up everything, there was kindness in the chaos.

[UPDATE: For those wanting to help out, Joe says he will be continuing his barbecue with Lost Sheep the last Wednesday of every month for as long as he can.]

the homeless: another downtowner's perspective

I wrote a comment on the Pol's latest dissertation, but it was so long I decided to make it a full fledged post. I want to preface this by saying I respect what The Pol is saying. I've known him for quite some time and I know he's a feather ruffler. He wants people to think, and he does a pretty dang good job at it.

I wanted to share my perspective on the issue as someone who lives near downtown and has interacted with a lot of homeless people since I've lived in Knoxville.

Call me a simpleton, but I've always thought the issue of homelessness runs a lot deeper than what government will do for the homeless. I think it's easy for downtowners to have a holier-than-thou attitude concerning the matter. The recent controversy about the County Commission's decision has made me realize that downtowners feel like we are bearing the brunt of this problem and are resentful about people who don't want to share the load. But if you are a downtowner, may I pose the question: How are you physically helping the problem aside from complaining about it or blaming others? I know I have to ask myself this a lot.

Homelessness has been a problem in Knoxville far longer than I've lived here, and I think downtowners can be just as negligent about this issue as people out West. There are probably just as many North Knoxvillians who want to transplant the homeless shelters from Broadway and Magnolia to a more desirable location- out of sight.

No matter where there is talk of building more shelters or homeless housing, nearby residents will complain. All this is to say, as downtowners we can't make a sweeping claim that we accept the homeless out of any love or care. Most downtowners accept homeless people just because we have no other choice.

I think the decision to refuse homeless housing out West reflects the opinions of most of Knoxville, not just people out West. Yes, as downtowners, we've learned to be cordial to the homeless when they panhandle us on our way to work, but that's not enough. Our cordiality isn't pulling anyone out of their hopeless state.

The homeless problem is not just where are we going to put these people. The problem is how, as citizens of Knoxville, are we going to love and care for the homeless to help give them the best life possible, whether they are grateful or not, whether they change or not. Then we change the question of "What are we going to do with them?" to "How is MY thinking and perspective wrong regarding the homeless? What can I do to help?"

I am a firm believer that you don't have to join the Peace Corps to help people in need. You don't need to move to a leper colony to help people the way Mother Teresa did. Knoxville has its work cut out for it. I personally don't think anyone should be allowed to make decisions on the homeless until they've hung out outside of Knox Area Rescue Ministry, but what is my opinion worth... I'm not in politics.

The Homeless? Not MY Problem!!

Seriously, why are West Knoxvillians being complete and total d-bags?

Ok so maybe not all of them wanted to keep the homeless, well, homeless. But enough of them did that the County Commission voted overwhelmingly to make sure that the homeless were not exposed to the horrors of suburban life. (Again why do we have dual government?)

It infuriates me to no end to know that two hundred people turned out at a meeting the other evening to talk about how the homeless didn't need to live at Lovell Rd. and Pellissippi, while these are probably the same people who donate to the Love Kitchen and KARM. Stop living your dual lives of not having to see anything unpleasant while pretending to care about the "sufferings of others"!

Heaven knows you wouldn't want you 8th grader to know that there are people who are trying to get their lives together living near them. No sir, lets build them a nice complex off Magnolia Ave. where people like THEM should live.

My favorite question from the forum the other night, "Don't we have any say where these people live?" And the response, "You don't have any say in where they live just a you don't have any say where African-Americans live."

It's time for a reality check for our suburbanite citizens. You don't get to have your cake and eat it too. You don't get to live 15 minutes from downtown, use city services and enjoy the benefits, without having to do you part in a joint effort to solve real problems (i.e. The Ten Year Plan).

No, the homeless aren't pretty, but we're not talking about putting the pan-handlers in Turkey Creek (Though they would do alot better) we're talking about housing for people who are taking steps to improve their situation in life. To no longer rely on handouts and to become "productive" citizens and maximize the abilities and talents that they have.

Time for some shame and guilt. I'm sick of hearing people I work with out west talk about how they don't like downtown because of the homeless people. Well guess what, here is an attempt to solve one of your complaints and if you would simply accept a mild amount of unpleasantness the 2 times a week you drive by some new apartments or see a KAT bus, it might not be as big a problem as it once was. I'm sure there would be some landscaping so maybe you wouldn't even have to see the buildings.

Or you can continue to be self-righteous navel gazers who think that if you build a big enough gate around your subdivision it will all be ok.

PS - Don't use the liquor store argument- it's not like alcoholics wouldn't just ride the bus to buy a drink anyways. It's just a cop out and again these people are trying to clean up their lives.

**Edit**

The liquor store argument was simply that there was a liquor store withing 2 minutes of the proposed location, which naturally made that site a "terrible" choice.

our (ten year) plan

In an email I received today, I saw a link to this site: http://knoxtenyearplan.org/, the city's decade long plan to end chronic homelessness in Knoxville. Kudos to the government for adopting a blog-like site, with updated posts and even a tag cloud in the side bar. This makes it easy to surf around and find the info you want. Aside from a good wed presence, how is this program doing? I was surprised to see that we are already in Year Two of the proposed ten years. That means eight years until the plan is supposed to have worked. Living downtown, it doesn't seem like much progress has been made. If anything, there seems to be more of the "chronic" homeless type around than there was two years ago. True, soon Volunteer Ministries will soon be moved from the gentrifying 100 block of Gay Street to their new facility in the "Homeless District", sandwiched between 4th and Gill and Mechanicsville. That's a change.

But is it progress?

I am still educating myself about the 10 year plan. Maybe it will ratchet up its efforts as the decade goes along. But based on the last two years I'm not optimistic. What do you think?

A Feast for the Senses

Two things led me to getting a card to the public library downtown. One: I no longer have full access to Hodges Library, and Two: I am too cheap to get internet for my apartment. I’ve been a card owner for a few months now, and I admit, I’ve only checked out a couple of books, but who needs books anyway when there are so many other things to offer?
The public library downtown is like another dimension. It is also a single girl’s best friend. I mostly go there to use the computers. I guess you could say I’m a regular now. I see a lot of the same faces. From what I gather, a lot of them are homeless. I could be wrong, but there is evidence for my assumption.
I have learned to love the public library for its many eccentricities. There are things you can count on there, like a good friend.
1)Background music. When I use a computer, someone near me, usually right beside me, is listening to music at a very high volume. They don’t have an ipod, but a discman, and those headphones with the silver wire across the top and the big black cushy earphone covers. If I had to make a “best of the public library mix,” it would include Creed, Nickelback, Beyonce, and a lot of death metal. I get to rock out, at absolutely no cost.
2)The wait is never too long for a computer. Everyone’s sessions are timed. Equality for all. 65 minutes is all you get, or 30 on the express computers. You can even reserve a computer if you think that far in advance.
3)Free definitions. Whoever said librarians were quiet was off by a long shot. I had no idea you could call a librarian to get definitions of words. They have a dictionary at hand, ready and waiting. And when you call, you can be assured that not only you will be enlightened by the definition but also whoever else is in the building. Wikipedia, Shmikapedia.
4)Maybe now I subconsciously go for a small ego boost. I am not bragging on this one. This is just a fact. At some point in the game, I get hit on. I might be walking from the front door, perusing the cds, or typing away, but I can always count on it. It never fails that a man, usually with a beard and a dirty shirt, will always be kind enough to tell me how beautiful I am. I have yet to think of a proper response to this. For now, I immediately look down, or away. Anywhere but in eyes of my beholder.
5)FREE CD and DVD rentals. The objective here is to be open-minded. See the selection as a learning experience, not as sparse. I finally learned that I don’t really like Ella Fitzgerald and also what Kathy Bates looks like in the nude.

The public library is great, but you don’t have to take my word for it…

"just say no"

Michael Haynes over at Metro Pulse has a modest proposal:

Say "No" to Panhandling in Downtown

He makes several good points. Beggars are different from panhandlers. Panhandlers are not necessarily homeless. Giving money out on the street encourages repeat behavior, and copycat behavior.

I've come to a similar conclusion walking the sidewalks of Knoxville. I don't give money out anymore. At first I felt guilty. But one of the funny things is that, living and working downtown, I get to recognize the regular panhandlers. They don't recognize me; they think I'm another tourist. But I remember their stories. Sometimes I've even given them names in my head, like "Crocodile Dundee" who used to hang out on Market Square and mumble to himself. These regulars stick to the same stories- babies who need formula never grow up, bus tickets are never bought, guys have remained just out of Iraq for over a year. I realized that I wasn't helping anything by giving out cash to them. So I started saying "no."

The best thing that illustrated this to me happened at DTGB one afternoon. I was sitting having lunch with some friends in the outside patio and a guy came and panhandled across the fence. He said he was starving and needed some money to get something to eat (yeah, right). We politely declined, but I felt a pang of guilt. What if this guy really was hungry? Was I being callous to another human being's need? I've been to third world countries and have seen real starvation, so I'm a soft touch to the hunger thing. I offered him my hamburger. Instantly, you could tell that he wanted to be somewhere else. I had inadvertently called his bluff. He took the burger, but it wasn't what he wanted. He wanted cash, the thing they take in exchange for Colt 45 at Ghetto Weigels. He walked down the street and laid the hamburger down on top of a newspaper stand. Where we could still see him. He didn't care. He was off to his next panhandle.

I haven't given money out since then. Let's try Haynes's suggestion. Next time a panhandler comes up to you, tell them you don't give money out on the street. Take the money you would of given and save it. Put your change in a jar at home. It'll add up. In a year, donate that to a Knoxville homeless shelter. The tourists will still give out money, but if downtown residents and workers stop giving hand outs, word will get around. Aggressive panhandling will decline. If a whole town decides to stop giving out easy money, they'll stop and go elsewhere for it. Maybe Farragut.

A More Permanant Solution

As I sit here writing, drywall dust covering all of my exposed parts and my bathroom completely unusable, I want to bring up a topic that is near to all of us who live downtown. It's no secret that Knoxville has a homeless, shall we say, situation. Anyone who has been on the 100 Block of Gay St. between 6:30 and 8:00 Am has seen the results of the shelters closing for the day (I assume that is what they are doing). There are dozens of homeless, some call them transients and other things, wandering south for the organization that is set up right there at the corner of the 100 block, their name and function escapes me now.

I bring this up because I read and article in the Wall Street Journal from Thursday that intrigued me. I have often and loudly proclaimed myself a fiscal conservative and desire a small government with a limited scope of social services. That said I can appreciate success when i see it in the form of money saving programs that enable individuals to help themselves.

This article discusses a program/ study in Chicago (a wannabe Knoxville) where there has bee a shift in focus to housing the homeless as quickly as they can in independent housing that they, the no-longer homeless, care for. The results are trending towards a striking cost savings in health care savings per person. If anyone paid attention to the Tenn-care fiasco a few years ago we learned that we could quickly bankrupt our state if health care costs get out of hand.

This particular study dealt with people who were chronically sick and showed that housing people with chronic disease and health problems can reduce their medical costs by millions of dollars.

I want to know what Knoxville plan is. I realize we have some fantastic groups like the Salvation Army, KARM, and others. Stan has been working with a group through his church that aids men with terminal illnesses in a group home setting. Do other people know of other programs that seek to move the homeless into more permanent housing.

It's important to help these people who need help, especially if the end goal is to enable them to help themselves. I'd be thrilled to get feedback from as many people as possible who know of programs or groups and how they operate.

Write in Spellings for Knox District 1A