By Cori Walters

We’ve all heard the old adage “just pull yourself up by your boot straps.” But what if you have no boots? Those living with food insecurity or being unhoused face a similar dilemma.

Let’s start with why people are hungry or homeless. Take a minute to think about all of the people you know and all of their different stories. All of those stories are similar to the stories for those who find themselves in the vulnerable situation of being hungry or homeless.

There are plenty of myths about hunger and homelessness: People who are homeless are lazy, are men, don’t work, are uneducated, are addicts, are not from Issaquah, are mentally ill and are indifferent about our community.

In truth, we cannot put anyone in a perfect little box or make assumptions. At the Issaquah Food and Clothing Bank the majority of our families utilize our services because of a health crisis, job loss, underemployment, unemployment, the cycle of poverty, fixed incomes and more. At the same time, we’re also there to help individuals who are struggling with addiction and mental health instabilities.

We see ourselves as an emergency crisis intervention and stability support agency. We are a stepping stone that provides support to all people no matter where they are in their life and we hope that we can play a role in increasing self-sufficiency.

Many of the people we serve are women and children who are homeless. The Issaquah School District has documented 120 children in unstable housing. A total of 58 percent of the people we serve are our most vulnerable populations: children under age 18 and senior citizens. The majority of the households we serve actually have a least one income (if not two), but their wages just aren’t enough to make ends meet.

I’d like to paint a picture of what a typical day on the streets might look like for someone who is homeless. One awakes either in a shelter from a cold restless night or, if lucky, on a friend’s couch. They try to find a place to take a shower, try to figure out a laundry plan, worry about food for the day and struggle to find funds to cover their basic needs. Then they have to figure out where and how they will spend the rest of their day with the constant search for a safe place to sleep later that night.

On top of this is the need to carry all of their personal belongings with them, which, among other things, makes it hard to land a job interview.

My point? Things are complicated and we shouldn’t make snap judgments or assumptions about people. Like the people you know, everyone has a story to tell. And for some of them, it includes being hungry and homeless.

Cori Walters is executive director of the Issaquah Food & Clothing Bank.