Willie Maddox
Willie died in August of 2009. A friend remembers: One night we both were at a meeting. He missed his bus. I was driving, so I invited him to my place. I was worried about having to wrestle with him if he got intoxicated, but the next morning I found him sitting watching Day Star, […]
Willie Griggs
I wrote Black poetry in the 60s to the mid-70s. It was a flavor of the times–about opening your eyes to who you were as a black person in America. I was with a group that combined poetry with singing and dance until we got it just right–juuust riiight. If you listened to our poetry […]
Tim Mruk
I was the oldest son of 10 kids. I heard a lot of abuse in my family. After my dad died, my mom couldn’t afford all us kids, so she pushed me out. When I got out of prison after 25 years, no one was happy to see me. I didn’t feel wanted by family. […]
Steve Golak
My name is Stew Golak, but I never go by that anymore, only “Tiger.” I’m 73 but don’t feel that old. I was born in Buffalo. The winters there are terrible. Oh, man! You think you have a lot of snow here, you ought to go to Buffalo. We came to Cleveland, and I went […]
Raymel Johnson
I became homeless after a few wrong choices back on New Year’s Eve, 1999. I put all my belongings in two large garbage bags and took them to a friend’s house for safekeeping. That night I met someone who gave me her last $8.00–she’s been my friend ever since. Because of the holiday, buses were […]
Ralph Pack Williams
There has been a strong upswing of people sliding through the cracks, becoming homeless. Thirty years ago there were tons of cheap hotels, cheap apartments, flophouses, around here in Cleveland … these were the good days of homelessness. We all have to admit how horrifying it is now, how almost impossible it is, to afford […]
Marvin Harris
I was an issue, for years trouble at the shelter. You’d see me under the influence, raising hell, and good at egging others on. Then, and there’s no way to explain it, you didn’t see me in trouble. If the group was drunk and dumb, I was sober and working. I only had what I’d […]
Marco Henderson
Between living, volunteering, and now working at 2100, I understand these guys pretty well. There’s guys here who have done time in prison, so their life is already full of bosses; guards, social workers, unit staff-authority that can put you in the hole. Some people you see ranting and raving, they just want respect. You […]
Jeremy Moses
I’m 19, one of the youngest people here, and my 3rd time in a shelter. Before 2100 I was at Project Hope in Painesville, and before that Union Mission in Norfolk, Virginia– I got left there by people who I thought were my friends. I’ve been in shelters because I have no where to go. […]
