Foo - Peanut butter strategy

For years, I've walked/biked through some urban areas where I work where homeless people often wander or gather. They used to ask me for money, but I've heard everything from "I need enough money to buy a can of Fix-a-Flat" to "I need just 47 cents more for bus fare" to "I'll be honest with you, I just want to get a beer." There is almost no way of knowing where the money will be spent, unless you'd like to place a bet on something other than the stated need. I used to try to help, and often did by asking people to walk with me to McDonald's, but often they'd say, "Oh, just give me the money instead..."
I hate to be distrustful, but I want to help, not support a bad habit.

The other day, I got up from bed and made a peanut-butter-and-banana sandwich, put the other half of the banana in a baggie and grabbed a soda out of the fridge. I decided the best defense was a good offense, and I came up to a guy that wasn't expecting me. I said, "I've got something for you," and handed over the lunch. He looked truly thankful, told me so, and smiled a warm smile as he partially emerged from his homemade lean-to made of cardboard.

Finally, I could be satisfied that I made helped someone who needed it without contributing to their problems. I've decided to do this more often. Cheap, but effective: peanut butter (have to include a drink! ;) )

My brother has a problem and when he asks for money he gets food. This is the safest thing you can give them, it is hard to convert a PJ&B into anything else but lunch.

I tried to give the rest of my noodles from the saturday market to a man asking for money, and he got all upset and said he doesn't eat people's leftover food, because he doesn't know where the people have been, and he can never trust anybody. :rolleyes:

At any rate, that is the best method. Most of the time when I have done that, it is returned with gratitude.

The guy that turns away the offer of food over money is the guy that walks around the corner at the end of the day and gets in his late model pickup and drives to his middle-class house. There are a couple of guys around here that panhandle for a living(and it is pretty good one made an estimated $50,000 from begging at a big intersection six days a week.)

In my area there is an organization (Boomtown Cafe, Seattle) that provides low cost meals to homeless and impoverished people. They also sell meal coupons to use in lieu of monetary handouts. I buy booklets of coupons and give them out to the street people I meet.
It provides them with a good meal they can trust (and that *is* a concern. How eager would you be to take food from someone you didn't know?) and I know they are not using what I give them for drugs.

In the 80's when I lived in the QUeen Anne area of Seattle I had a friend who worked at a local burger joint (Dicks) every once and a while we would take the left over burgers and walk over to the Center and hand them out to the homeless guys that hung around the fountain. I will have to stop by the Boomtown and buy some of those coupon books. I long ago stopped handing out money to them instead I give to the Union Gospel Mission, but I like the coupon idea a lot.

I tried to give the rest of my noodles from the saturday market to a man asking for money, and he got all upset and said he doesn't eat people's leftover food, because he doesn't know where the people have been, and he can never trust anybody. :rolleyes:

At any rate, that is the best method. Most of the time when I have done that, it is returned with gratitude.

sounds like a troll, we have a friend staying with us ( homeless right now ) he eats the kids leftovers (ever seen a kid eat, yeech!) we dinner him too, but not always- Where did this guy come from? He obviosly wasn't starving- I've been that poor before-or worse- oh, maybe it's his PRIDE. bet if you went down the line some poor kid would have loved the noodlz. not all poor homeless people are drug addicts- some i've seen forego their meal panhandled to feed a pet, or friend. don't let the noodler get you down- you offered yours- trust is HIS prob.
Best to you and the writers of above posts -with your humanity and caring- hope you have a great christmas- you deserve it.

p.s.gonesh9- what is the photo in your avatar of? looks like a Kirlian photograph of a plant?

when i lived in chicago, i'd shop in a walgreens or something and buy a cheap disposable razor and some toiletries (soap, etc) and give it out.

my responses varied with their request.

With Christmas near, my wife and I are thinking about making some real suppers for homeless folk. We want to take my 8 year-old daughter along for the experience.

I know there are bigger charities that do this on a large scale, but I like the idea of doing it myself. It will make Christmas even better for us, and maybe someone else, too.