A September ago this week Dr. Robert Marbut sent us out, clipboards at the ready to count our homeless, to ask men women black white Latino young old crippled drunk skinny fat clear-eyed quiet loud humble defiant smart and the barely coherent, “may I count you?”  Will you tell me, a stranger, a woman who sleeps safe each night in a soft bed out of the rain the cold the heat, confess to me, tell your story, share your most intimate shame.  Did you sleep on the street, or in that camp beyond the ditch, or behind that dumpster, or under my house, or at the Sally alongside 100 farting snoring whimpering others?  I know because you trusted me. You slipped and fell and just couldn’t get up. You got sick, the economy tanked, you drink, broke your arm, followed someone you love down the rabbit hole, and your dreams—when you do sleep—are all steamy jungle desert sand sticky red fear and look here, see my dog tags?

A long disappointing hard year later I see you again there outside the laundromat, hear you crying hungry into the pay phone, “no, please don’t hang up” and then enabler me kicks in and spits out $10. You trusted me and I owe you something and this temporary relief is everything and all I have. This money, this intangible, this great deceiver, compared to the promise broken, means hardly more than nothing. Only a bed and sleep in a safe place and water and soap and clean clothes and good food is tangible, is true, has meaning, and for now there is no such place for one such as you dirty desperate hungry crying outside the laundromat. 

I/we lied the worst of lies—the hope lie—when I told you, crouched down beside you in that encampment strewn with sodden couches that if I counted you we would know how many beds to plan for, and that I did not know I lied doesn’t make it any less so. But you knew, and you let me count you anyway. And that hope lie is behind us, and between us now as I watch you scurry —please buy bread and cheese to go with that wine—into the Save-a-Lot.

Minutes away I’m home, my clean clothes in a drawer, on hangers in the closet.  I feed the three brother cats, bathe, eat dinner, go watch Jeopardy with my neighbor, then popcorn and Project Runway and later a few pages of P.D. James before turning out the light. A September ago we were so sure, so pure in purpose—innocent liars to ourselves and to those we counted. And now here we are again moving into fall, then winter with our street teams (god bless ‘em), Homeward Bound bus tickets and feed-the-meter-not-them scheme trying to bluff our way out of this colossal mess and ignoring the truth: it’s not them who needs fixing; it’s us.  

SRQ Daily Columnist Diana Hamilton, after living 35 years in Sarasota, labels herself a pragmatic optimist with radical humorist tendencies and a new found resistance to ice cream

“We’re entering a new stage of how we help families requiring homeless services. It’s not just with our hearts; it’s with our heads. And I think it’s miraculous.”

That’s what Phil Gorelick, vice president for programs at Jewish Family and Children's Service of the Suncoast, said to dozens of his colleagues who work on homeless services at a meeting Thursday at Gulf Coast Community Foundation. Genuine, impactful words from a respected veteran of social services and case management in our community.

The topic on the table was collaborative progress toward building a system of integrated services for homeless families and children in Sarasota County. The next milestone on that long, hard road will be the opening of a North County Emergency Family Haven just over a week from now. Operated by Harvest House Transitional Centers, the Family Haven will act like an “emergency room” for families in crisis who suddenly find themselves homeless. The facility will provide them with emergency shelter while its professional case managers assess their needs and connect them to the right services, across dozens of agencies, to stabilize and improve their situation.

The North County Family Haven was one of 12 recommendations in consultant Robert Marbut’s “action plan” for transforming homeless services in Sarasota County. He called it an “emergency intake portal,” and he urged creation of a similar facility in the southern part of the county. That one will be up and running—in North Port, by Catholic Charities—around January.

For anyone who assumed Marbut’s plan wasn’t progressing, please know that five of his 12 recommendations, in as far as they deal with children and families, will be fully implemented within the next few months:

·        North County Emergency Family Haven (Marbut recommendation #2)

·        South County Emergency Family Haven (#3)

·        Master case management system for children/families (#5)

·        Uniform use of the Homeless Management Information System for “proactive case management” (#6)

·        Targeted program to address seasonal shortages within our region’s food bank (#7) 

Two more important things to know: The Family Haven that we will soon celebrate could not work without the master case managers and the shared database they will use. And a team of seven key agencies that are collaborating to manage family cases, administer the database, and run the portals has done a heroic amount of work to get our community to this point. They include master case management agencies Catholic Charities, JFCS, Harvest House and The Salvation Army (how’s that for diversity?); specialized case managers from Sarasota Family YMCA’s Schoolhouse Link program; and referral and database specialists United Way 2-1-1 of Manasota and Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness, respectively.

These partners should be commended for their commitment to caring for homeless families and helping them find safe, sustainable homes. A Gulf Coast donor and Board member who has worked with the group from the start put it this way at the end of Thursday’s meeting: “It’ll be like a dream coming true. To bring that together, in a team effort, with organizations that have a lot to handle is just amazing. Thank you, thank you, thank you!” 

SRQ Daily Columnist Teri A Hansen is president and CEO of Gulf Coast Community Foundation.

Attorneys as a class are not risk takers. That’s why they become lawyers. When a CEO asks an attorney whether he should take a specific action, the attorney is likely to tell him, “If you do that, this may happen.” A customary response from the CEO would be, “I’m not paying you to tell me there’s a chance I might be struck tomorrow by a falling airplane. I’m paying you to tell me what to do.”

Where am I going with this?  At the Sept. 9 Sarasota City Commission meeting, the City Attorney declared to be “somewhat ludicrous” the plaintiff’s position in the Chapman lawsuit, to wit, that a Sunshine Law violation is made out when two commissioners attend a public meeting where discussion is had on a matter reasonably likely to thereafter appear on a Commission meeting agenda — even though the commissioners remain silent. But the City Attorney stopped at advising that the commissioners could attend the function without exposing themselves to personal liability.  Instead, he said their conduct would create a risk of another lawsuit by the parasitic Michael Barfield, i.e., a stickup without a gun.  No clear-cut, positive recommendation was forthcoming.  Why this submission to even the threat of a lawsuit by an established plunderer?

What followed from this failure to take a stand was a wholly unnecessary discussion and implementation of a system for taking minutes at functions the commissioners might decide to attend.

At the same meeting, we witnessed what is best described as an embarrassing nursery school sandbox squabble regarding a clear non-issue. The commissioners having simply neglected to dot an "i" or cross a "t," the vacancy selection process requires candidates to present their applications in person. The City Attorney, this time, actually made a recommendation — that candidates be permitted to submit applications by post or email. A motion was made to accomplish this bit of housekeeping. Has there ever been such an uncontroversial, slam-dunk issue before the Commission? I suggest not. Although the proposed corrective measure in no way had an impact on the merits of the selection process or the qualifications of the candidates, the three commissioners killed the motion. Commissioner [Suzanne] Atwell asked whether the change would “disenfranchise anybody who cannot escape to cooler weather” (when you figure out the meaning, share it with me) and declared that, going forward, email submissions should be permitted, but, inexplicably, not now. Commissioner [Paul] Caragiulo, apparently having slumbered during the discussion, asked to have the motion read to him again. Commissioner [Shannon] Snyder declared that to accomplish this bit of housekeeping would “change the process and portray the commissioners as ‘flip-floppers’.” This threesome then defeated the motion and, thus, embarrassed themselves and the city. I urge that during the remainder of their terms, Commissioners Caragiulo and Snyder serve with grace and refrain from obstructing city government. They should not leave service with a legacy as spoilers.  As for Commissioner Atwell, I suggest she shake loose from her present alliances and complete her term constructively. 

Frank Brenner, Sarasota

Goodwill Manasota is excited to help community members enjoy a unique, fun and affordable Halloween this year. To encourage the spirit of the season, all of Goodwill’s retail centers will participate in the annual Halloween Kick-Off  today,  September 20, during regular store hours. Team members will be in costume, the stores decorated, Halloween costume idea books on display, and everyone in hauntingly good spirits. Shoppers can make their budgets go further and find everything they need – from one-of-a-kind costumes to a wide variety of unique accessories – to set their costumes apart from the crowd. Halloween shopping makes October the best shopping season of the year at Goodwill. “In addition to saving money, customers can take pride in knowing their Goodwill purchases provide employment, career and community training programs to thousands of people in our local community each year,” said Bob Rosinsky, president & CEO of Goodwill Manasota. “The success we enjoy during the Halloween shopping season aids us in our mission of helping people reach their full potential through education and the power of work.”  

Goodwill Manasota

Blalock Walters, P.A. has opened the firm’s third location and now provides its services into Pinellas County. Blalock Walters was founded in the early 1920’s, opening its first office in downtown Bradenton, where the firm is still headquartered.  In 2005, Blalock Walters opened its Sarasota location at One Sarasota Tower.  The newly opened office in St. Petersburg was established to serve clients in the greater Tampa Bay area. The St. Petersburg office assists clients in all eleven service areas, with a focus on Health Care, Labor & Employment, and Business & Corporate services.  Attorney Matt Westerman, board certified in Labor & Employment Law, is leading the office and can be contacted at 727.343.3209 or mwesterman@blalockwalters.com. 

Blalock Walters, P.A.

Ringling College of Art + Design has launched a new engagement experience website called "Why Ringling." Geared for students considering college, "Why Ringling" offers interaction with current and past students, peer reviews and an online art community. The site covers student galleries, alumni success stories, industry and national awards, descriptions of discipline studies, and a list of companies that travel to Sarasota to recruit Ringling College graduating seniors.  Supported by a powerful content management system, "Why Ringling" was designed to respond to the manner in which Millennials surf the web. The site also includes an associated art community offering an international audience of art-enthusiasts the opportunity to come together to discuss art, college, and careers with their peers. Further, the community is translated into multiple languages so that students internationally can connect without language barriers. The "Why Ringling" site targets the entire 360 degree life cycle of an artist - from high school freshman to successful alumni - further positioning Ringling College of Art and Design as a leader in the promotion of art and art careers worldwide.  

Why Ringling

 Venice Theatre's next Cabaret is a return of the wildly popular cult classic Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show. This campy, crazy, rock and roll tribute to the classic horror movies of the 1950s opens in time for the Halloween season on Friday, October 10 and runs through Saturday, November 1, with performances Tuesdays through Saturdays at 8pm There will be special midnight performances each Saturday. The show, which ran in London for three years and twice on Broadway, is best known for the 1975 movie version which still thrills its legions of devoted fans across the globe, who dress up to participate in weekly midnight rituals. The participation includes props, singing and dancing along and shouting out lines at the screen or stage. Bags with the appropriate props to be part of the madness will be available in the lobby prior to the show. It is quite a sight to see flocks of people dressed as Frank 'N' Furter, Riff Raff, Magenta and other characters made famous by the success of the movie and stage versions of “Rocky.” Tickets are $28 for adults, $15 for students (not recommended for patrons under 16) and are on sale now at the theatre’s box office.  

Venice Theatre