Isolation is one of the consequences of poverty. It has a direct bearing on health. Chronic isolation, which is frequently experienced by people in poverty and the elderly, is a predictor of functional decline and death among people 60 and older.
For many, poverty poses a choice between isolation and shame. This might not make sense to someone with a steady income. A person who wonders why someone would isolate themselves from others just because they are poor is often the same person who judges the grocery cart of those using SNAP and says pull yourself up by the bootstraps or you need a hand up, not a handout. These people dont understand the shame that is felt by those who have to come into a food bank, or who have to ask for help with utilities or medicine.
One of the ways Humanity House reduces the shame felt by people who need some help is never judging a person or their circumstances. We ask questions to get information so that we can see if there are other long-term ways that we can help those in need.
We also have a contract policy for people who ask us for financial assistance, which requires them to pay it back or pay it forward through volunteering. We ask them to pay it back in a way that will not hurt their financial situation. It is totally at their discretion. We have people who pay it back all at once. Others pay it off a dollar or two a month, and others volunteer their services to our projects.
This does a couple of things. One is that it allows us to have a volunteer base for many of the things that we do. The garden, Fresh For You produce distribution, Drop and Swap clothing exchanges, Santas Toy Shop, lighting up the Humboldt and Iola town squares for Christmas, remodeling our building, and helping others with building projects are all projects worked on by volunteers who dont have the funds to repay utility assistance but have the time or manpower to help.
The main reason that we ask the person to repay is that it reduces the shame one feels when having to ask for help. It helps them understand that though they are in a tight spot, they are valued. We value their word and love when they come in every month with a payment, no matter how small. This gives us the chance to check in with them. We are able to make friends with them and cheer them on as they finish their schooling, get a promotion, celebrate a childs name on the honor roll, or complete a rehabilitation program.
To deal with the isolation that poverty brings, we always invite them to our classes. There is nothing like sitting down with some strangers who are playing a game or learning a new craft or life skill and making new friends that you would never have made out in the real world.
Our hope is that you will drop all of the shame-inducing phrases from your vocabulary, come to a Humanity House class, and make some new friends.
You can check out our class schedule for February by following Humanity House on Facebook or just drop by our office and see whats happening.
Kindness matters!
