Timothy Goodwin

It is by intuition and the inspiration of Julie Marks’ latest works that I write this entry.
So either my intuition is way off kilter-caused by the voices inside my head-or what I have to say has credibility and merit and should be considered carefully…

The project begins with the construction of the finest homeless shelter in the country—”Illumination House“-one that would be a model for a chain of homeless shelters across the nation. The construction of the shelter would involve those individuals who are already homeless but have skills of general laborers and/or contractors.

The project would be overseen by a contractor who would have a supervisor to see to the operation and organization of the laborers. Laborers would be paid the same wage as any other laborer with the same experience.

The shelter would consist of sixty rooms—much like a hotel, and like a hotel would have running water in each room. Fifty-five rooms would be used to house the homeless; the other five rooms would be for staff members and security. There would be a meeting hall—where people would meet once a week so that staff and homeless members could go over their daily progress that is conditioned to getting the homeless into homes of their own.

There would be an activity hall. A laundry facility; and each person would be given clean socks, underwear, and products for personal hygiene, once a week, along with a gratuity check of $25.00 every week.

There would be a kitchen and dining facility. And there would be a chapel—however, those that are to be brought in to speak, would first be evaluated by the Director to determine if the message is going to be encouraging, or discouraging to those homeless members. I lean more toward the Unitarian Universalists, rather than the Fundamentalists; they would not be allowed to preach in the shelter—I don’t care how much fire and brimstone they use…

There would be work-programs available, and programs that teach Computer Jobs Training, Construction, Small Engine Repair, and Financing.

There would also be a program for people to encourage further education, and the opportunity to get GED.

The idea here is not to try and keep the shelter full, but to find ways to encourage those individuals that are homeless from breaking the cycle of their current condition, so as to allow others to do the same.

Those who enter the shelter would be recognized to be on a 90-day program—30 days of which would be probationary. If people are genuinely interested in getting back on their feet, they would have no problem with the program. Substance abuse of course would not be tolerated, and would be grounds for immediate eviction, as would be fighting, or carrying weapons.

I realize that the probability of back-sliding exists, and people who exhibit good intentions, that find themselves back-sliding will not be dealt with harshly; rather they will be given several opportunities—including rehab; if in the event the solutions offered don’t work, the person unfortunately will be forced to leave the premises, until such a time as they can show themselves to be clean and sober.

That is my plan to alleviate homelessness in the country.

I’ve offered a solution; the rest is up to us…

In closing:

I don’t want a grant from the government, rather I would like to be successful enough where I can afford the project from mine own finances, which means I have to be a million-dollar best-selling author; I don’t consider that an impossibility-just an improbability; but that wholly depends on whether or not people are interested in my work enough to buy my books. You see, I already have one out there-“Pariah” which can be purchased at Amazon, and which you are probably not aware of due to the lack of my current publisher’s attempt at promoting and representing my work.

Be that as it may, this is my dream-to build “Illumination Houses”-and if I get rich off my work, the dream will be a reality…

Warmest Regards to All,
^V~