A Brief Face-to-face talk with a Kid on Skid Row

Lunch at the Union Rescue Mission (URM) is served in three batches. First serve is at 11a.m., exclusively for men, who are in URM's Recovery, Apprenticeship, and Transitional Living Programs. Second serve is at 12p.m., exclusively for women and women with children. This includes women, who lives in the street. Third serve is at 2p.m., exclusively for men, who are not in the URM program;hence, every homeless men is welcome. A slice of meat, a scoop of rice or mashed potato, a half-cup of cooked vegetables, a bowl of green salad (sometimes a scoop of fruit) and a slice of bread comprise lunch. Besides serving the food, we also have to clean the tables before the next batch of people comes in.

It was during the second serve last Friday, May 8th, when I got the chance to talk face-to-face with a 4-year old girl on Skid Row. Her mom and her three sisters regularly eat at URM. Almost all the women have left the dining hall. I was cleaning one of the tables near the water fountain, when she was trying to get her drink. The mom was about 15 yards away feeding the youngest daughter. She tried to reach for the paper cup, but she was a little short. I went near her and asked if she would like my help. Instead of answering, she just stood motionless, staring at me. That few seconds of silence tore me apart. Her eyes was calm, yet sharp. She did not call her mom, but she seemed to size me up whether I was a good or a bad guy. Then, after she realized that I was one of those who served them food, her facial expression changed in an instant. I saw in her eyes a helpless child, who have been harboring pain and exhaustion, sleepy yet awake, trying to grow up fast. She smiled wryly and said, "Yes, please."

I know that these children have no other choice, but to live on Skid Row. They were collateral victims of poverty, unemployment, lack of affordable housing, substance abuse, domestic violence, changes and cuts in public assistance (welfare) program, and job loss. Statistics on families with children who are homeless each night in Los Angeles County is 29% of 84,000 homeless people.

Without help from non-profit organizations, such as Union Rescue Mission, Los Angeles Mission, The Midnight Mission, etc., these children will literally be out sleeping in tents, on cardboards, or in plastic tarps.

Yes, education in the U.S. is mandatory. Every school age child is required to be in school on weekdays, except if a child has health issue or family emergency. That 4-year old girl should had been in pre-school. However, some homeless moms just do not have the means to take their kids to school even if education is free. I probably have to be at Skid Row before 6 a.m. one of these days to check if there are orange (school) buses picking up the kids for school.

After lunch service was over, I decided to walk around to do more observation. I saw a little place called School-On-Wheels. Compared to the buildings of other non-profit organizations on Skid Row, School-On-Wheels is just a molehill. It has been run by a retired nun. It's window has been decorated with cut-up paper arts. It's facade is so modest that my heart falls for it. I hope to stop by in one of these days to check its program. If its mission suits me, especially on the spiritual aspect of its program, I probably would be giving to School-On-Wheels one day of my two days beginning next month. If not, then, I would be sticking both of my days with URM's kitchen and, later, in it's Learning Center.