The Reoccurring Problem Of Homelessness In Philadelphia, Philadelphia

Homelessness is a reoccurring problem throughout America, that millions of people struggle with. People from all ages, races, ethnicities, and backgrounds live their lives each day, without food, water, and a roof over their head. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is ranked as the 10th highest city for the amount of homeless people Philadelphia has in its city. Homelessness in Philadelphia is a intractable problem that needs to be addresses in order to aid and save thousands of people who sleep on the streets each night. In a documentary, a homeless man named Joe tells his story about living on the streets in Philadelphia. Joe ended up on the streets after his divorce. He started working for a concrete business until it went out of business. Joe
As seen on Ellen Degeneres and the local news, this pizza place has their walls covered in sticky notes. A worker at Rosa’s Pizza states that “the sticky note program started in 2013 and one day a gentlemen came into the restaurant and asked if he could pay for two slices of pizza, but only receive one. The other slice should be given to someone who is less fortunate who can’t afford to eat”. The owner then left a sticky note on the wall to remind himself that someone had paid it forward. Customers saw this sticky note and was curious as to what it was for. This started a chain reaction, and now so many people come from all over to not only buy a slice of pizza for themselves, but to also pay it forward for someone else. With this, Rosa’s Pizza feeds from 50-100 homeless people a day. It is small acts of kindness such as this one man wanting to pay for a piece of pizza, to start a chain reaction. Many homeless people have shared their story, and it inspires those to continue helping out as much as they can. Robert was a homeless man who lived on the streets of Philadelphia. For dinner, he would come to Rosa’s Pizza to get a slice so he didn’t have to use the very little income he was receiving. Robert now attends a Community College in Philadelphia. He states that, “When it’s all said and done, the best thing to do is
Providing permanent supportive housing is a cost effective solution that could help prevent homelessness. “Permanent Supportive Housing is long-term (not time-limited), safe and decent living arrangements linked to supportive services for homeless and disabled individuals and families. This housing enables persons experiencing homelessness to live independently” (Hersh 2018), this cost effective solution will save each person an average of $7,700 each year. An academic article over a study on the affects of permanent supportive housing states that, “More recent research has found significant cost reductions associated with "housing first" programs (immediate housing without requirements for sobriety, treatment session attendance, and other barriers to housing)” (Poulin, Maguire, Metraux, Culhane 2010). With the addition of more homes, more people can be taken off the street and put back up on their feet to try and find a stable job and source of income. Opportunities for Employment and Education are two solutions that are easy to manage and cheap to provide. Philadelphia could provide computer classes, career training, readiness workshops, life skills workshops, GED classes, etc. These programs could help homeless civilians learn basic skills that they may not have ever learned. Furthermore, they can take these skills into the work force in order to find a consistent