Helping the Homeless of Nashville

Homeless folks struggle to eke out a life on the streets every day of the year. I don't even begin to pretend I have a full understanding of all the causes for homelessness. Some folks have drug or alcohol problems. Some suffer from domestic abuse and head to the streets to avoid it. Some find themselves on the streets due to mental illness. Some are on the street as the result of multiple or even a single indiscretion. Some are lifers on the street. Some are homeless for only a short period of time. Some have recently become homeless because of their bottomed-out economic situation. Some hold jobs but simply don't make enough from one week to the next to secure and maintain a place to live.

Regardless of the reason why, the facts remain the same. Folks are homeless, they're vulnerable, and you can help in ways perhaps you haven't of. This time of year I wanted to highlight a few ways for individuals to help for a couple of reasons.

• One, its getting friggin' cold on the street, and warm, safe places to stay can be scarce. Support organizations need volunteered time and financial support to provide housing, food, clothing, and other types of relief.
  
• Two, an attitude of giving is in the air this time of year, and folks are seeking ways to help with dollars and/or time.
  

Here are a few ways to get involved - especially if you are in the Nashville, TN area.

Wednesday, December 9 - Project Homeless Connect at Municipal Auditorium in Nashville - Project Homeless Connect is a one-day event to provide one-stop professional support, community agency services, and quality of life resources to homeless individuals and families. Homeless individuals and families can get medical assistance, shoes, foot care, dental care, haircuts, job assistance, legal help, etc. PHC has several opportunities to help - including helping at some of the individual support booths, data entry as folks are processed through the reception area, greeting folks with a smile, etc. Visit PHC on the web, follow them on Twitter @PHCNashville, and volunteer by clicking here. I'll be there from 8:00 until noon helping with Room in the Inn's booth.

(Hat tip to Kevin Barbieux)

Sunday, December 13 - Eddie & Martha Adcock will host the 10th Annual Bluegrass Benefit Concert to support Room in the Inn and the homeless at the famed Station Inn.

Wednesday, December 16 - Nashville Unlimited - Each December, Nashville session bassist Dave Pomeroy hosts Nashville Unlimited, a Christmas music show, to benefit Room in the Inn, a phenomenal ministry supporting Nashville's homeless. This year's concert is December 16 at Christ Church Cathedral. No tickets are sold, and an admission price isn't set. People who attend are simply asked to donate at the door what the heart and wallet agree to. Admission is first come, first serve until the pews are full and fire codes say "no mas". The artist line-up is never announced in advance either. You can always expect Nashville Mandolin Ensemble and Three Ring Circle to perform (Hint: Buy NME's out-of-print Gifts CD if you want to really enhance your Christmas music collection). But everyone else is generally a surprise. In past years, I've seen folks like John Prine, Emmylou Harris, The Steeldrivers (vid), Riders In The Sky, and Tommy Emmanuel (vid). Here is my blog entry about the 2008 show. Wait...was I really still blogging on MySpace 12 months ago? Wow.

Outside of Nashville? Don't worry about it. The one truism about homelessness is you can find such folks in just about every city. Simply find a way to get involved to help.

An additional way you can help year-round is to prep a few "manna bags". Do you travel? If so, grab the unused soap, shampoo, and hand lotion from your hotel room and add it to a ziploc bag when you return. Add a few other essentials or nice-to-haves (e.g. a pair of socks - priceless for life on the street, small tube of toothpaste, toothbrush, prepaid phone card, 2 or 3 Nutrigrain or power bars, a bottle of water, disposable razor). Voila! - you've got a manna bag you can give someone living on the street! Keep a couple of these in your car, and give them away when you see someone in need. You obviously don't have to be in Nashville to make this effort happen.

For more ideas about what to include, visit these sites:

• The Homeless Guy - Gift Bags
• All Pro Dad's Play of the Day

For a first hand blog account from someone who lives on the street, read The Homeless Guy's blogs (different entries at each blog):

• Wordpress
  
• Blogspot
• Facebook
  

TMC

Eliza Gilkyson to put you in Christmas spirit

Hard to believe Thanksgiving is behind us and its now a push towards Christmas. Where exactly did 2009 go anyway?

Rather than charge all-out, full-speed, max-stress towards Christmas, relax a bit and enjoy the journey of the next few weeks. Perhaps you can start by enjoying this laid back 2004 show from Eliza Gilkyson.

St. David's Episcopal Church - Austin, TX
December 10, 2004
KGSR FM broadcast

DISC ONE
01. Children Go
02. Sanctuary
03. Prayer 2000
04. Announcer
05. Dreidel Dreidel
06. Dark Side Of Town
07. What Child Is This?
08. Interview

DISC TWO
01. Winter Wonderland
02. Instrumental
03. We Three Kings
04. Intro
05. Easy Rider
06. In My Dreams
07. intro
08. false start
09. Peace Round-> O Come O Come Emanuel-> Peace Round
10. talk
11. Down To The River To Pray
12. Auld Lang Syne
13. Peace Call

Sample Track: Children Go

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Full Show: MegaUpload Zip File

TMC

2009 entry no. 5 of I'm Thankful For...

Final in a series...a cornucopia of random stuff

I'm thankful for:

• the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day. I expect their games on TV just as much as I expect the sun to rise in the east.
• brown sugar pie made by my mother. For 364 days of the year, its a toss-up between my two favorite desserts made by her - this one or her banana pudding. But on Thanksgiving Day - its brown sugar pie hands down.
• the beginning of Christmas show season. From childhood to adult age to parent age and beyond, I still enjoy watching shows such as A Charlie Brown Christmas, How The Grinch Stole Christmas (the cartoon narrated by Bela Lugosi - not the Jim Carrey movie), Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase, and of course all the Rankin-Bass Christmas episodes. And as much as I cringe to admit it publicly, I even bought The Homecoming on DVD last year. I never much cared for The Waltons TV series, but I think this movie is a classic. (12-02-2009 edit: It was Boris Karloff not Bela Lugosi who had the Grinch voice over. To quote Bugs Bunny, "what a maroon". DOH!)
  
• four cups of coffee in the morning.
  
• a day with immediate and extended family on Thanksgiving Day. The meal was overwhelming, the discussions were great (except for that annual, awkward, under his breath rant from my mumbling, bigoted, racist uncle), and multiple vintages of homemade wine made by a non-bigoted uncle were tasted-tested by folks from Tennessee, Mississippi, Georgia, and Florida who gathered under one roof today.
• John Irving's novels.
• Americana music and its fan base. I've listened to this type of music for the better part of 20 years. Yet until recently, the type of music I've grown to enjoy really didn't have a genre label. Also, my immediate circle of friends didn't know about and/or particularly care for artists such as Joe Ely, Robert Earl Keen, Blue Rodeo, Townes Van Zandt, Wilco, Roger Miller, etc. The web has helped me realize, however, how many others do enjoy this type of music.
• NASCAR and Nashville Predators hockey. Can't get enough of either.
• the four distinct seasons and three grand divisions of Tennessee.

TMC

2009 entry no. 4 of I'm Thankful For...

Today's thankful theme...this nation, its liberties and freedoms, and those that defend them now and have defended them in the past.

• My father served in the Air Force in the 1950s.
• My great uncle, who I never met, served in World War II...but never returned.
• My son's scoutmaster served in the Navy during World War II.
• Several co-workers from days gone by served in various branches before working for us.
• We just extended a job offer to a college senior to work for us beginning next summer. He served proudly in the navy before returning to school to get his degree.
• The son of a friend of mine is a member of the Kansas National Guard. He is currently deployed to "parts unknown" for an extended hitch.

I couldn't be prouder of this last young man. We first met when he was about 10 years old. He had just caught the fever of NASCAR racing - something I jumped on myself in the mid 1970s. He, his brother, his dad, random others, and I went to several races together in the early 1990s - Daytona, Talladega, Charlotte, Atlanta. As a matter of fact, it was he and his brother who hung the nickname "toomuchcountry" on me. Well, actually it was spoken as a bit on an insult. But I've worn it as a badge of honor ever since. Fast forward about 20 years, and this now almost 30 year-old "kid" is serving his country in uniform. He's not my child, but he certainly has my admiration and pride.

The freedoms we have today - the freedom to blog, tweet, text, and e-mail; freely worship the risen Savior or even a friggin' shrubbery; say what we want and listen to what we want; not testify against one's self; not have the po-leece come rummaging unreasonably through all your stuff; to own a gun; etc. - these are precious to this nation and us as individuals.

They have been repeatedly attacked by many different forces, but they've also been repeatedly defended by the folks in military uniform. If you are reading this and are serving or have served in the military - thank you!

I cannot imagine living in a country without these freedoms. I cannot imagine not having a military committed to defend them. And I cannot imagine a Thanksgiving without turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, and the NFL.

TMC

2009 entry no. 3 of I'm Thankful For...

Today's shout-out goes to Boy Scouts of America...

My son and I have been involved in Boy Scouts for about the last 4-1/2 years. He has gone from a bear cub scout to an Arrow of Light Webelo scout to entry-level Tenderfoot boy scout rank to now a Life rank scout.

For me, I've gone from ...

• being on the sidelines as he and my wife worked through his early cub scout experience
• to signing-on as a last-minute, pinch-runner den leader of his Cub Scouts Webelos posse when his existing leader chose to move on to another pack
• to helping him earn his first few ranks and merit badges as a Boy Scout
  
• to observing other parents get involved with helping other kids progress
  
• to signing up as an assistant scoutmaster to help other kids
  
• to teaching a few merit badges on my own
• to having enough confidence in myself and earning confidence from other leaders and parents to plan and execute multi-day trips hours away from home.

I'm really trying not to sound as if I'm wrenching my shoulder while patting myself on the back. But I'm pretty sure my son likely would not have joined Boy Scouts if I had not stepped in to struggle my way through a year as a Webelo leader to help him complete Cub Scouts . He and I both would then have missed the fun and growth experiences we've had the last few years. Instead of trying to sound like I'm grandstanding, I am thankful for having the chance to watch my own kid grow and assist in the development of other kids.

With immense pride, I've watched my boy grow from a 10 year-old kid who I thought might flame out his first few months of scouting to one who is now a few months, a project, and couple of merit badges away from being an Eagle scout. He's gone from being a introverted kid quite unsure of himself to an introverted, developing young man seeking and performing leadership roles and who is regularly complimented by other adult leaders for his maturity and the example he sets for other scouts.

Back in June, I blogged about the passion and commitment of my son's 80+ year-old scoutmaster and the admiration I have for him. He's dedicated over 50 years of his life, time, and resources to grooming young men. In addition, he is a World War II navy vet and a lifelong resident of the community that I've called home for only the last six years. Recently, he and I were simply chatting about the Pioneering merit badge he teaches every year or two. Next thing I know, an e-mail is sent to everyone saying he and I would be teaching it between November and March. Had anyone else just assumed I'd commit to this without direct agreement, I'd be pretty bent. But because of the appreciation I have for him and for what he's done for this country, for other young men, and for my son specifically, I'm all-in. I'm truly thankful for the opportunity to spend time with him learning from him and also teaching the kids.

I didn't have the opportunity to participate in scouting as a kid other than one year of cub scouting. And serving as a scout leader certainly wasn't on my bucket list of things to do as an adult. Being involved with scouting, however, has been very rewarding. This old dawg has learned a few new tricks. Having the opportunity to work with these kids has been very cool and humbling for me - and hopefully a positive experience for them.

Test me baby. A shear lashing, a square knot, or a tautline hitch? Please, they're all mine. I own 'em. A kid who has never done more than 1 chin-up, built a rope bridge, used power tools, kayaked a river, spent a night in a cave or improved his grades from B's to A's in one grading period? Oh yeaaahhh, THAT is cause for celebration! High-fives, shoulder chucks and back slaps are the order of the day. I have no desire to be a surrogate parent for these kids nor the primary confidant of a young teen. It is awfully cool, however, when these young'uns connect with you and care enough to share some key accomplishments.

Tying this entry to my previous two "I'm Thankful For..." entries:

• I'm very thankful my employer only allows me the flexibility of being involved with my son and other scouts as often as necessary.
• I've built a lot of new friendships the last few years - both with other adult leaders and with scouts who I've seen grow from awkward kids to young adults.

I do wonder sometimes though if I maybe got involved as a scout leader simply because chicks dig a uniform. At least that was Ernest T. Bass' belief.

TMC

2009 entry no. 2 of I'm Thankful For...

Family and friends

I've actually spent more time with friends this year than family. Probably true for most of us.

A couple of uncles steadfastly fought and defeated cancer over the last 12 months. Both have been a big influence on me since childhood, and I'm glad I get to share the turkey, trimmings, and post-meal beer with them again this year.

My kids continue to give me a huge upswell of pride. I'm glad my employer allows me the flexibility to be as involved as I can with their various activities.

My relationship with my brother is essentially non-existent. I haven't heard from him in ages. He did poke up his head at least once this year to let our mother know he was still doing OK. I'm at times bent with him for tuning his mother, father, brother, sister, nieces, and nephew completely out of his life. Other times I simply feel apathetic and resigned that he has no interest in replying to the effort we've made to connect with him. Yet I'm thankful he's still around and apparently healthy and housed.

My best friend since way back when is getting married again New Year's Day. He's had a tumultuous last few years, but now things seem to be looking up for him. For that, I'm thankful.

Through work travel and a couple of NASCAR race trips, I had the chance to reunite with some friends from across the US and Canada. Plus, I met a few new folks along the way - some of whom will likely turn into friends as more years pass. A friend and former co-worker toured the world for a year. We followed him through his blog and then greeted him with a smile, a hug, and a cold beer when he returned safely to the states. A college friend who later moved to Nice, France with his wife and kids vacationed for a few weeks in the states - including a stop in ye ol' hometown. We, along with a mutual friend, and his brother took in a hockey game and caught up on life. All very cool folks - many reasons to be thankful.

Music trading, blogging, and my limited time on Twitter has resulted in some new friendships. Many say its a risk becoming friends with someone you've never met face-to-face, with interaction only through a keyboard, and no idea about the integrity of the persona reflecting back through a monitor. Yet others say I should spend more time developing friendships on the ground where I stand vs. through the web.

Whatever.

Through the use of the web, I've met some great folks who I would otherwise not have met. I'm not throwing around my home address and phone number. I'm not assisting anyone in Nigeria looking to repatriate some dollars back to the states via my bank account. I'm not posing as a 17 year-old girl looking to "meet new friends" nor searching for such a person. And, I'm not looking to the web for my deep-rooted, to-the-core, personal relationships. If I can drink a beer with you, share some tunes, chat about hockey or NASCAR, I can pretty much be friends with you.

Lastly, I've found two great benefits of web-based friendships:

• I learn about similarities and differences from others about music, life, political leanings, sports passions, business and economics, and cool things to do in other parts of the country or even the world, and
  
• Web-based friends don't borrow tools and then never return them.

TMC

2009 entry no. 1 of I'm Thankful For...

The debut of a mini-series of planned blog entries...

Over the next few days, I'm going to blog about a few things for which I'm extremely thankful. They are not intended to be in sequential or priority order. I'll just blog about them as they come to me.

Entry No. 1 - My employer

The last couple of years has been pretty tough for many companies and consequently their employees looking to continue their careers and employment.

The company I've worked for the last 13 years has fared better than many. Yet, we have not been on an island completely away from all the economic mess. About a year ago, many of my co-workers - both in my office and in our operations areas across the company - were laid off in response to economic situations present then and expected to occur in 2009-2011. Furthermore, salaries were not increased in 2009 for those who continued.

I was not laid-off in late 2008 and remain at work today largely in the same role. Even without a salary increase, I am paid a competitive salary allowing my family and me to give, save, and live a comfortable lifestyle.

Also, our annual benefits selection window opened last week, and once again we still have a pretty good selection amongst health and dental plans, discounted term life insurance, retirement, and pre-tax flex spending plans. The company also encourages us to spend time where we can supporting charitable organizations in our community. As a result, I can allocate part of my time each year working with Boy Scouts and Room in the Inn, a fantastic Nashville-based organization providing assistance to the homeless.

A good bit of travel is required as part of my job. Travel gets old a bit at times with airline delays, yet another hotel stay at the same quality yet predictable chain, and a handful of missed kids' events. But its also a lot of fun. I've been afforded the opportunity to visit a dozens of cities I would likely otherwise not have visited. These opportunities have allowed me to experience many great cities (and a couple of regrettable ones), meet a lot of great people, build new friendships, dine and drink at some first class restaurants and low rent dives, and accumulate frequent flier credits to travel outside of work with family. And with the lion's share of the costs being reimbursable company expenses, that makes the visits even better for a cheapskate like me.

Lastly and most important, I've extremely thankful to work with a team of extremely skilled co-workers. Some of these folks are on my immediate team. Some are in other functional groups within our department. Some of them blog (ahem...cough...ozzynelson, squireponderings, loisandjon, the wandering raccoon). Most of them don't. The people I enjoy working with the most are (1) those who make me laugh and (2) those who help me challenge what, how, and why we're doing. (Bonus points are also available to those who also dig NASCAR, have music tastes similar to mine, watch The Office, and don't use hair gel or styling mousse).

The group with whom I work most directly is given an lot of latitude about what things we should be doing, how we do them, and who should be hired to do them. We spend a lot of effort on that last item - finding the right folks. Without my talented co-workers, I'd have neither the enjoyment of work nor the comfort of on-going employment with this company.

TMC