{"id":4798,"date":"2022-07-15T16:54:15","date_gmt":"2022-07-15T16:54:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/?page_id=4798"},"modified":"2022-09-28T19:10:32","modified_gmt":"2022-09-28T23:10:32","slug":"michael-waters","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/what-we-do\/programs\/housing-and-shelter\/portraits-of-strength\/michael-waters\/","title":{"rendered":"Michael Waters"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-page\" data-elementor-id=\"4798\" class=\"elementor elementor-4798\" data-elementor-post-type=\"page\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"has_eae_slider elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-7773ef9c elementor-section-height-min-height elementor-section-stretched elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-items-middle\" data-id=\"7773ef9c\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;stretch_section&quot;:&quot;section-stretched&quot;,&quot;background_background&quot;:&quot;classic&quot;,&quot;jet_parallax_layout_list&quot;:[]}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-background-overlay\"><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"has_eae_slider elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-1ae092c0\" data-id=\"1ae092c0\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-4c1cf7d7 elementor-widget elementor-widget-heading\" data-id=\"4c1cf7d7\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"heading.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 18-04-2024 *\/\n.elementor-heading-title{padding:0;margin:0;line-height:1}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title[class*=elementor-size-]>a{color:inherit;font-size:inherit;line-height:inherit}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-small{font-size:15px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-medium{font-size:19px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-large{font-size:29px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-xl{font-size:39px}.elementor-widget-heading .elementor-heading-title.elementor-size-xxl{font-size:59px}<\/style><h1 class=\"elementor-heading-title elementor-size-default\">Michael Waters<\/h1>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"has_eae_slider elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-1765be2a elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"1765be2a\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-settings=\"{&quot;jet_parallax_layout_list&quot;:[]}\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"has_eae_slider elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-3600e6e1\" data-id=\"3600e6e1\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c4a7897 elementor-widget elementor-widget-image\" data-id=\"c4a7897\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"image.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 18-04-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-image{text-align:center}.elementor-widget-image a{display:inline-block}.elementor-widget-image a img[src$=\".svg\"]{width:48px}.elementor-widget-image img{vertical-align:middle;display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"514\" src=\"https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Mike-Waters-photo-1-1280x856-1-768x514.jpg\" class=\"attachment-medium_large size-medium_large wp-image-4800\" alt=\"michael waters\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Mike-Waters-photo-1-1280x856-1-768x514.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Mike-Waters-photo-1-1280x856-1-300x201.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Mike-Waters-photo-1-1280x856-1-1024x685.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/Mike-Waters-photo-1-1280x856-1.jpg 1280w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-57e84a33 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"57e84a33\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.21.0 - 18-04-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mike says he\u2019s \u201ca street boy and don\u2019t take kindly to threats\u201d but in reality, Mike comes right back with actions to help and heal, keeping lines of communication open. Kindness is Mike\u2019s MO.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Sitting in Mike\u2019s office, I am fascinated by the stuff that he has brought to create this haven for residents, especially a Bob Marley poster, with Marley\u2019s profile in a full, all-out laugh; the same Bob Marley who wrote <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Redemption Song<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. I get a sense this is the place for residents to get down to business, or to let down their guard and speak about something they haven\u2019t shared in a long, long time. Mike often says, \u201cIt\u2019s okay, it\u2019s okay.\u201d He is a force of acceptance and respect all bound up with his off the wall humor and professional demeanor.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Because of the barrage of residents at Mike\u2019s door this morning we move to the shelter\u2019s upstairs conference room so that he can tell part of his story. It is quiet here and Mike\u2019s 6\u20198\u201d frame eases into a chair. His stature could easily be used for intimidation, but, instead, is part of his kind demeanor.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Prison<\/span><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I was an addict which prompted me to make poor decisions. My first priority was getting my drug of choice to help me cope or become oblivious to life. They gave me 5-15 years, my first number ever. I committed a crime but the system took it to another level. It was the year of OJ (Simpson). They were not playing with domestic violence.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I said \u201cthis is not what happened.\u201d They said \u201cdon\u2019t worry about it. We\u2019ll fix it downtown.\u201d My wife, said \u201cThis is not what happened. Mike\u2019s an addict, he needs help, not jail.\u201d They said, \u201c<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ms. Waters,<\/span><\/i> <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">we don\u2019t need you.\u201d<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> The state picked it up and for four years we said \u201cthis is not what happened.\u201d They said \u201cdon\u2019t worry about it.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I never said I didn\u2019t commit a crime &#8211; but 5-15 years? People laughed and said, \u201cMike, I\u2019ve done much worse than you.\u201d I had a judge who was notorious for harsh convictions. It was her election year.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After four years I go to the Parole Board. It\u2019s like The Big Sweat, going to the Parole Board. I\u2019m there for like a minute and they say, \u201cStep out.\u201d They call me back and say \u201cWe don\u2019t know why you\u2019re here.\u201d I say, \u2018That\u2019s what we\u2019ve been telling you.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe\u2019re going to let you go &#8211; mitigating circumstances,\u201d they say. I was a drug abuser, not a wife abuser. Four years, but nothing compared to this guy I used to walk the yard with. They had the DNA to prove he didn\u2019t commit the crime. It was before the time of <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Project Innocence <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and he stayed in there for years.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What makes me angry is how us crack addicts from the city were viewed as fiends and jailed. No one considered helping us with our addiction until crack reached the suburbs. We needed help, not prison. We are human beings &#8211; addicted and under the power of a drug that makes us do the absurd, the tragic. I\u2019d do anything I could to get me out of the hell I was living in my head. On the outside I looked okay. I was a manager in retail, a double life until the last few years when I was incapable of work. Still, nobody to blame but myself.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Addiction<\/span><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Out of prison I was chasing drugs and alcohol again. When I first came to 2100, I walked down St. Clair on a summer\u2019s night and thought, \u201cWow, I really hit the big time now.\u201d Meaning, nobody wants to be bothered with me. When you get to a homeless shelter, you get to the reality that the people in your life don\u2019t want anything to do with you anymore.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I was bad. I\u2019d crawl up to 2100 to get a bed, made sure I had a few 32-ounce beers to make it through the night. Just wanted to get sent to the overflow site at Aviation High School, it was quieter there. (Mike laughs as he recalls Dudley, another addict at the shelter). Dudley, on a scale of 1-10, is a 9 for personality. He told me \u201cYou know Mike, you can stay here.\u201d The shelter had started programming to address issues the guys had. Dudley took me to Richie (Richard Bartow, staff coordinator of the Recovery Dorm at the time). He said, \u201cRichie, this guy needs a bed.\u201d Richie looked at Dudley. Richie looked at me. Then put his head down on his desk. This was Richie\u2019s way of humor or he was praying about another one coming along. Richie took me in.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Richie saw something in me which had always been there but clouded. Now I look at others this way. I will never ever give up on a guy. I may have to tell him, \u201cCome back and see me a little later.\u201d But giving up on a guy? No, that\u2019s not my territory, that\u2019s God\u2019s territory.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I did a lot of recovery work and went on shelter retreats for addiction. I was starting to trust these people. I wanted to do right, but as an addict I just didn\u2019t know how. The disease fights you, wants you dead. Kathy Walker (on staff) gave me one of those vulnerability assessments. You know, the one with a point system for how bad off you are. She came back and said, \u201cWell, Mike, congratulations. You just scored the worst.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Later Kathy reflects, \u201cYeah, sometimes I do that. I have to give them wakeup calls. Mike was one of those guys who you thought might be close (to the end).\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Come Christmas the retreat team was planning a party and they trusted me with a <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">big check<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for supplies. Richie knew better and begged, \u201cDon\u2019t give the check to Mike.\u201d I took that money and did what I do. Woke up in a hotel in East Cleveland on Christmas morning. I realized I had just blown off all these people I cared about. It was like in a movie: I got to walk back to the shelter on one of those cold, blustery days, streets empty. I go sit in a Bando (abandoned building). Luckily, I had 2 beers (32 ounce). Sat there all day with the wind blowing through.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They describe in AA, \u201ca moment of clarity\u201d when you know you are destroying your life. That was my moment, but it didn\u2019t mean I stopped. Just meant I kept drinking in spite of the truth looking me in the face.<\/span><\/p><h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Despair<\/span><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I understand what the men are going through- a despair you cannot imagine. The most hurtful thing you can do is tell an addict the truth. Remember Charles__? \u201cThe little short guy about 3 feet tall,\u201d as Mike describes affectionally. One day a guy comes into the dorm who was having a bad day. He says, \u201cYou know Charles, why don\u2019t you just go out and get high and die? No one wants anything to do with you. You can\u2019t stop using. You really don\u2019t give a crap about you or your family.\u201d He hit Charles with the truth. You could hear a pin drop because he was talking to every man in there. When you get to a homeless shelter you get to a point somewhere inside knowing people really don\u2019t want anything to do with you \u2013 they don\u2019t.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I can see the death in a person\u2019s face. Eyes can\u2019t focus. There\u2019s nothing there. No sense. No purpose. No hope. No way to encourage them, or even love them. You just survive. Best thing to happen is a football game on TV in the shelter. A church comes in to provide a good meal. The guy in the bunk next to you doesn\u2019t keep his radio on all night. Nobody\u2019s chasing you. That\u2019s a good night. Oh yeah, and you have cigarettes and a little jingle in your pocket, so if you need a beer later in the morning, you can get one. As long as you can have that beer you can always create your own reality. Tomorrow will be better. I have guys like that in my dorm now. When they\u2019re at that point, I just want to keep them comfortable. I don\u2019t want them to die on the street.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0I\u2019ve talked with other addicts and we say we know when death is near because we just <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">don\u2019t<\/span><\/i> <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">care<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> anymore. We say, \u201cI need some money. Let me go rob the dope man who carries a couple of pistols. If he kills me good, fine. All I want to do is get high anyway.\u201d<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If a person tells me he wants to kill himself, I\u2019m careful and, making sure no one\u2019s listening, I tell him, \u201cNo you don\u2019t. Why don\u2019t you just come out it, I need help.\u201d The truth of the matter is the guy who wants to commit suicide is going to. He\u2019s not going to <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">tell<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> you &#8211; that\u2019s the scary part. When I finally got sober they asked, \u201cDid you have a plan?\u201d Yeah, I had a plan but I didn\u2019t reveal it. I\u2019ve had two or three attempts, drinking this much Drano (measuring with his hands), followed up with 40 ounces of beer. And you\u2019ll see the scars where I slashed my wrists. But God said, \u201cNot yet. No, not yet Mike \u2013 I\u2019ve got work for you.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p><h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recovery\u00a0<\/span><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">How did this happen? Who, really, can <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">explain<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> a person\u2019s recovery? I <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">know<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> there\u2019s something greater because I could not have done this myself. I\u2019m a crack fiend in an abandoned building.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I used to pray when I stayed in the shelter, 3-4 am, when the shelter was quietest. That\u2019s my best time to commune with the Spirit, whatever the Spirit is. I still do, before I come to work. I can\u2019t explain it, what happens in prayer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And the clincher: Richie and the team <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">didn\u2019t lose hope<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with me. I kept on with the retreat team. As a matter of fact, when they gave me money for the next event, I didn\u2019t spend it. For me that was huge. Then, after a few attempts, I completed inpatient treatment.<\/span><\/p><h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now my job is to <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">be<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> love, to <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">be<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> mercy. Not just to display it but to be this.\u00a0<\/span><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-7337\" src=\"https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Mike-Waters-place-in-text-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Mike-Waters-place-in-text-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Mike-Waters-place-in-text-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Mike-Waters-place-in-text-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/www.lutheranmetro.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Mike-Waters-place-in-text.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/>My work is here. These are my guys. I can\u2019t give up. I can always see the person. I\u2019ve been allowed to see their pain. I can see it and I can see the human being beneath. My focus is that person who everyone else rejects. I represent the convicts, the drug addicts, the homeless guys; the guys no one wants anything to do with, the deadbeat dads. I represent them all. At the base of it, they\u2019re good dudes. They got caught up. We don\u2019t know what happened. Maybe they were abused and now it comes out as self-hate.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I let the men know there\u2019s no magic here<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. I did it<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. (recovery) Just look at me \u2013 I made some different choices. I tell them I pray. I say \u2018You don\u2019t have to, but I do. Let\u2019s see what happens. Try to do the right thing and let\u2019s see what happens.\u2019<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Even yesterday my focus was___ (name of newly banned client from the shelter. Being banned is pretty hard to do in this low barrier shelter).\u00a0 I told him, \u2018Listen, it\u2019s you and me, man. I\u2019m the only one who cares about you. You know I care. But give me something to work with. Let\u2019s cut out the bullshit.\u2019<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Two, three days in a row he told me, \u2018Next time I see you I\u2019m going to smack the you-know-what out of you.\u2019 I told him, \u2018You know what man? You can\u2019t threaten me like that.\u2019 So, he\u2019s banned. But even so, I care. I told the security staff, if you find____, tell him to come see me and we\u2019ll sit down and talk.\u2019 I don\u2019t want anyone out there.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0That\u2019s what self-hatred looks like: a guy who can\u2019t even put himself down long enough to comply with the rules that will keep him off the street; keep him from freezing to death. Can you imagine the hell he\u2019s in?<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What does self-hatred look like? It\u2019s the guy who\u2019s always getting into arguments with the security staff; the loudest guy down the hall. Give me that person. The loudest guy is the most hurt guy. Give me THAT person, because I understand. I\u2019ll get him in my office and eye to eye, tell him, \u2018You\u2019re mad at yourself, I was the same way.\u2019 <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Somebody\u2019s<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> got to care &#8211; I\u2019ll do it, even if it\u2019s not at that moment because he\u2019s so angry.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There\u2019s a lot of pain here. That\u2019s why I take a lot of cursing. But just stop threatening me. I\u2019m a street boy. We don\u2019t take kindly to that. We\u2019ve seen a guy say, \u2018I\u2019m going to do this,\u2019 and they do it. But, it\u2019s rare that the person doesn\u2019t come back and apologize.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Can\u2019t sell the American Dream\u00a0<\/span><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With the 100+ men I oversee in my dorm, I can see they\u2019re stuck. I do the pep talks with them: \u2018Go get a job.\u2019 They lose it. \u2018Okay, get another.\u2019 Then, \u2018Get an apartment in East Cleveland, the only place you can afford.\u2019\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Me and Terry, (Terry Vaughn, Coordinator of Central Intake at the shelter), go out and look for apartments for these guys, walking through the trash to the front door. All you got to do is find the run-down properties \u2013 those are the ones our clients can afford. It\u2019s frustrating; I can\u2019t sell the American Dream. I don\u2019t know what to sell\u2026just life and hope for a better tomorrow\u2026. I don\u2019t know.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I want them to experience a good life out there. Like the guy I drove to the West side. The dude is 26 years old. I\u2019m driving down Route 2 and he goes,\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2018Wow, the lake.\u2019\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I said, \u2018You serious, man? You\u2019ve never seen Lake Erie before?\u2019\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">So sometimes when I go for a walk at Edgewater, I take a few guys with me. That\u2019s the difference between me and the college grad who\u2019s never had street experience. I learned from the heart. There\u2019s one guy in particular moving out this week. No one understands the import of this except me and Terry. When he arrived, all he could do is cuss me out. So, I arranged to have him in my dorm. I just let him sit there, covers over his head all day. I couldn\u2019t force my agenda on someone like that. After a while he calmed down and started to talk.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nobody understands what has occurred. He said to Terry and me, \u2018Thank you, I\u2019m really going to try not to let you guys down.\u2019 We had <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Talk<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> telling him, \u2018The difference between staying out or coming back is staying on your medications. You need something, you call us.\u2019\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But I can\u2019t sell \u2018the Dream.\u2019 The part of the housing piece that is missing is the follow up case management. 70% of these guys would not come back to the shelter if somebody would just follow them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I got guys right now who can\u2019t get to me \u2013 two guys. They have no food. Where\u2019s the case manager? I\u2019ll drive to the guy and give them bus passes so they can get around. But we\u2019re dropping the ball somewhere. I can do it, where are the others?\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mike understands that the problems don\u2019t end with the move out.<\/span><\/i><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I know what it\u2019s like to be without food. No money. You\u2019re just sitting in an apartment, nowhere to go. No one wants to be bothered with you. The world is going on around you. You\u2019re watching it like it\u2019s TV. You\u2019re not part of it. Just sitting there wondering, \u2018How did I get here? What happened?\u2019\u00a0<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I want them to find and sustain housing. That means, if the guy is adamant about not going into a group home, don\u2019t go force it because he\u2019s going to leave. If a guy is a drug addict, don\u2019t send him to East Cleveland. Find something else &#8211; viable, suitable housing. And then, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">stay<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with the guy.<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Housing and Trauma Informed Care<\/span><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The case workers at 2100 rely on Mike. He is the primary link for the Rapid Rehousing program here at the shelter. Mike represents the caseworkers at weekly meetings with EDEN, a contract agency of the Alcohol Drug Addiction and Mental Health Service Board of Cuyahoga County. All the shelter providers are on the call. Mike cuts through the verbiage making sure that shelter clients are in on any County decisions on housing. He has this command of the details for each client and works with all these partners to get them the mental health support, housing, or any other treatment they need. The caseworkers see him as the one to go to with any questions on their clients.<\/span><\/p><p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All shelter staff are required to go through trainings. Mike mentions a few trainings that have given him the most insight.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When Rosie Hart retired from the position Mike now holds, her advice to him was \u201cLearn as much as you can about mental health. If we don\u2019t know or at least understand the demographic we work with, we end up trying to fit them to <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">our<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> agenda instead of applying best practices for someone in their shoes. So, Mike focuses on trainings around Trauma Informed Care.<\/span><\/p><h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Society demonizes these guys. Maybe I can\u2019t do anything about that,<\/span><\/h3><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">but maybe society can see me, see where I\u2019ve come from &#8211; that I\u2019m no different from the person they\u2019re demonizing. Maybe I can represent us all a little better. Because I believe in these guys. I model the work ethic, like sweeping the dorm. Guys will ask me what I\u2019m doing, incredulous. Later, I\u2019ll see them, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the bad guys<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, making their beds. I tell you, it\u2019s awesome. The reward goes both ways- good for <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">them<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and good for <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">me<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to see their change.<\/span><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mike says he\u2019s \u201ca street boy and don\u2019t take kindly to threats\u201d but in reality, Mike comes right back with [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"parent":4732,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Portrait of Strength with Michael Waters - LMM<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Portraits of Strength gallery features LMM staff who have overcome challenges, now using them to help others. 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