Today the students read a newspaper article about a man named Pete who would be homeless except for the generosity of a restaurant owner on 17th Ave who lets him have a room in the bcak of his restaurant. Pete has a TV and a microwave. the article eludes to a mental deficiency and explians that Pete has signifiacnt memory loss. Pete says:
"My world is small," he tells me. "It has to be or else I'd get lost in it."
pete teels how he spends most of his day looking for firewood and how he is happy as long as he has rice and coffee.

I asked the students to Blog their thoughts about Pete.

Andrea wrote:
"It seems like Pete had gone through some pretty harsh times. It would be terrible to forget half of his life. Hopefully he has some pictures of his earlier life so he can find out a little bit about his earlier life. I wonder if there is any medication that can help his mental problem? Although he has some problems he seems pretty intelligent. I like the brainteaser he thought of "if your knees bent backwards, what would chairs look like?". It is hard to believe that he couldn't confirm his condition to get government assistance until the 1980's. Before that it must have been really hard for Pete. Even now, it must be hard for him. I would have a hard time living in the back of a kitchen. What would happen if he didn't find any firewood during his morning search. He could get very cold. It seems like he is making a really good effort to improve his life. "

Blake had some suggestions:
"I think Pete is a good guy and we should let him live his own way. They should let him stay out in the woods but they should have someone to monitor him. They should help Pete get a job or build him a little cabin in the woods. Looks like Pete is trying to live a life, and we should support him. I think there should be someone that monitors the street to find and put people in the shelters. He may be doing better then other people on the street but the fact is that, he's still on the street plain and simple. Imagine if you were on the street could you get by, think about that deeply. How much do you rely on modern conveyance's? Would you give up the will to live? Or try to stay alive and move on?"

James H tried to make sense of Pete's situation:

"This article makes me very sad. Why does a guy with such great character have to live on the street? Mind you he has some friends and he does all sorts of different on his average day. I think he might enjoy where he is a little bit. I think it's good that people can get a taste of what being homeless is like. Also people can see that not every homeless guy is a drunk or takes drugs and is a bum. in fact alot of homeless people are normal just like you or me. I can't imagine not know anything of your family except for one sister, not having a sense of belonging would be devistating and could drive a person crazy. But he just keeps living life and I admire that. He doesn't diserve this at all. "

Melanie was obviously touched by this story:

"It's really sad that he can't remember anything about his childhood. I wish that we could do something to help him. I think that maybe when we are presenting we could invite parents and grandparents and ask them if they can give donations to help people like Pete. I hope that he figures out his life real soon. I think that he has a really good attitude towards the situation that he's in. He feels safe because he knows that people know him and if anything went wrong he would have them to help him. I wonder if him and his sister have a good relationship. It's good that she is trying as hard as she can to help his situation. I hope that this situation will get better and maybe he can even get better with his sickness. "

Stina voiced her concern:

"Poor Pete!! Having an entire childhood of memories gone out the window. And not knowing when your just going to black out. What would happen if he was just walking down the street and all of the sudden, he's out like a light. What if no one came to help him. He could freeze to death if he does have some shelter, It's not the same. I know I would die on the streets! In our society, we are so reliant on material things, we would be as helpless as babies with out them can we really empathize with this man if we can't fit in to his shoes and see the world through his eyes? Even if we could, if we had been in his situation, he has such low standards that he can make a terrible one look good. We should really try to think about how would live a life like that."

Joel addresses on of the most common myths about homelessness..."laziness":

"I think that it is very sad that nobody wanted to help saint Pete until the 1980s. It is very amazing how street people like Pete can work so hard to stay alive, also that proves that lots of homeless people like Pete are not lazy. I think that his sense of humor helps him sell so many newspapers because people would want to buy things from a cheerful vendor. I think that the owner of Nellie's Kitchen is very kind to let Pete live there for eight years. I cant believe that Pete stayed alive even though the government wasn't giving him the income for the severely handicapped before the 1980s. Another person who helped get Pete on his feet is his sister who tried to help him get government assistance. I really hope that Pete can get an apartment. If only a doctor could cure his illness, maybe he could be able to work harder and get a good job. It is also nice to know that if something happens to him, the people on 17th would take care of him."

Can homeless people be role models? Chris thought so:

"I think St. Pete is a role model for other homeless people. I think it is good that he is trying to get off the street. He shows that he wants so get off the street and he is not just a lazy person because he is trying to get an apartment. One of the ways he is getting this money for the apartment is he is writing the crossword in the monthly paper the homeless make called "Street Talk". I hope he gets enough money to afford the apartment he is trying to rent. I am also glad that he has a positive attitude about being homeless but not to the point that he doesn't care. I also think it is need that he survived on the street for 8 years. I also now know that not all homeless people have nothing. For example, St. Pete has a microwave and a T.V.. I think its good that the non-homeless people know him and help him. Its good of the bus driver to notice him and make him feel noticed."