A woman sits on the corner of the busiest intersection in Middletown, her back resting on a hard, metal sign post, her clothing not suited for the abysmal heat of the summer day. Her middle-aged frame is curled into itself, her face mostly hidden by a white baseball cap. Her sign delivers a simple message in plain letters: Please help, lost my job, homeless, three children to care for. People nearby are leaving shops and department stores in a rush to get out of the summer heat. They can’t wait to crank the air conditioning in the cars which will carry them home. This woman has no air conditioning, no car, and no home to travel to.
Panhandlers aren’t a common sight in Middletown, but their ranks may soon be growing. Home foreclosures are on the rise, and Middletown’s rate is one of the highest not only in the state of Ohio, but the United States as well. Ohio leads the nation in home foreclosures, and Butler County, home of Middletown, ranks fifth in the state, according to Policy Matters Ohio, a Cleveland-based research group. Trenton, a smaller neighboring community, leads the county in foreclosures.
“Homelessness can happen to anyone,” said Vicki Sparks, support services coordinator for the Hope House in Middletown. Vicki wants people to know that homelessness is not what many envision. She said most of the time, homeless people are not living in cardboard boxes or eating out of trash cans, though she acknowledges this does happen more often in certain urban areas. The Hope House itself has provided services to veterans, nurses, and even once in her experience, a lawyer. Homelessness doesn’t just affect the lower-class, poverty-ridden, drug-addicted demographic. It affects all walks of life, and in Middletown, this is becoming more true for the middle-class.
According to Policy Matters Ohio, as some factories in the area shut down and others such as AK Steel cut jobs, the unemployment rate has almost doubled, growing from 3.6 percent in early 2005 to 5.4 percent by the end of the same year. Both this rate change and the difficulties in maintaining ownership of a home are factors that commonly affect members of the middle class, who are working to provide for themselves and, many times, for a family.
John, age 37, is a friendly, personable man. He has a firm handshake, looks you straight in the eye, and projects the image of someone who is completely comfortable with himself. His dark hair is neatly trimmed and short, and he wears a clean, neat button-down shirt with khaki pants that appear to have been pressed with care. By looking at and speaking with John, you’d think he’s just an average guy.
John, who asked that he not be identified by his real name in this story, is a current client and resident of the Hope House, the sole homeless shelter in Middletown. The Hope House is located within the historic downtown area of the city in an old building that used to serve as a hotel. In the foyer, there is a paging system in order to be admitted to the building. Once inside, one small chair rests in a tight corner underneath a payphone. Otherwise, there is no furniture. People mill about, and most look you in the eye and deliver a friendly greeting in passing. There is a busy feel to the place from the stream of people coming in to volunteer, residents coming home for the night, and workers answering phones or talking to each other.
“I had a normal childhood. I spent a lot of time with friends, and my mom and dad were married,” said John. He grew up in the Middletown area, and after graduating high school, he said he “tried to be a rock ‘n roll star.”
After the band failed to make it big, John left the area to join the U.S. Navy. Stationed in San Diego, he served our country for 4 years. Upon returning home, John was married, got a job with the State of Ohio, and had two children with his wife. He said his life was perfect, other than one factor: alcohol abuse and addiction.
Drinking fit in with John’s early lifestyle; he worked in bars after graduation, and played in them with his band. His drinking increased while enlisted in the military. “Alcohol was just a part of military life in the fast lane,” he said.
Post-service, John said drinking started to really affect his life. There was “lots of stress. Drinking was like medicating yourself. [I thought] if I drink, I’ll forget my problems. I would just go home from work and drink and drink and drink.” He said this problem “cost me a very good-paying job and my marriage.” Though he lost those things due to the alcohol abuse, the vicious cycle continued, and he kept drinking in hopes of drowning out the new problems.
Eventually, John found himself living in a rented apartment attached to the garage of a house someone else owned. He was still trying to “make it,” though he had lost his marriage and, more recently, his job. Unfortunately for John, the homeowners lost their home to foreclosure, and he had no other option but to seek services from the Hope House.
John’s story opens the eyes as to who comprises the homeless population in this area. The homeless are not just lower-class people with socioeconomic issues; they are the middle class, working individuals, too. As home foreclosures continue to increase and the unemployment rate also increases, these issues are only becoming far more real and close to home.
Fortunately, John is working on a happy ending to his story. He has been with the Hope House for two months and is keeping himself sober one day at a time through a 12-step program similar to that of Alcoholics Anonymous. He cooks at the shelter and spends much of his time in the kitchen. John said, “I think I feel the best I’ve ever felt.” He looks forward to starting his life over and being able to spend time with his children again. One can hope that the many others currently experiencing the pain of homelessness will also succeed, as John is so valiantly attempting to do.