homeless laundry mat

Roofless, a person without a roof or having a temporary one. We know that this effects 12 million plus Americans, more throughout the world. We do not have any real count of how many we have in Tucson. My goal is not to shift responsibility to anyone because that devised and as a community we must come together to get solutions made. The root of the issue is personal crisis. We know the issues are places to sleep, a lack of resources, hygiene, safety and more.

In looking at this Ken Lee in 2014 did a survey of more than 99 urban nomads in the Heart of the city. The people answered their top needs as a campground, a place to shower storage and more. The community answer is housing first. What about the hygiene issue?

According to Michael Kieth's information, Tucson gives more money dollar for dollar than any other city its size. Bravo to Tucson for standing up ,especially with having one of the top 6  poverty rates in Tucson.

The average roofless person in Tucson wears the same pair of clothes for 4-7 days. Some like my friend James can go 30 before getting a new pair. After wearing them they will dispose of them at a non profit that provides showers or at a shelter, others will find a bird bath somewhere and discard them.. Park and rec workers like many others find them in parks, alleys , sidewalks and else where. Why though would they be disposed?

No laundry mat is available to the majority of the homeless. If you are disabled you can do it through HOPE, INC. If you are a vet you can do it at the VA, a limited amount can do it at the Poblobero House, woman can do it at Sister Jose. People actually able to get into a shelter program can do it there. The majority that are left camping, on a friends couch or rotating through shelters have none. When you have 85% of donated clothes going to waste, it becomes priority to create a laundry mat, that keeps them being used. If we wish to tell the homeless to get a job, we may need to help those with no resources to look professional . Not Financially saving 85% of donated clothes is not good for accountability, saves resources and provides a foundation for Maslows Hierarchy of needs.