This project was very edifying for me, and only is the tip of the iceberg in terms of the footage we got and the ideas it opened up.  I hope to make this into an ongoing project and to dig deeper into this aspect of our city and how to constructively help homeless/street people.

The audio is hard to hear, I turned it up as high as possible, but a lot got lost because we did not have audio equipment to make it better, but we definitely did the best we could and got the message across.  There is a little language profanity, but I feel it is relevant to the subject we were filming and adds a raw depiction of life.

I’m very proud of my courage and creativity to use this project as a way to reach out, and give a voice to a community that has more opportunity to feel powerless than empowered.  What these people need more of is resources to take their life back, and more support to stay off drugs like meth and heroin, and to be given a chance as convicted felons to find a healthy place to live and change their lives for the better.  Not all homeless and street people are in extreme addictions or past legal issues, but to find a way to provide healing and resources including a place to store belongings or take a shower and go to the bathroom could dramatically change the homeless situation in Eugene.  I believe if given the support and care that is needed, most people want to get clean, rehabilitate their mental health, and participate in the world in a way they feel proud of.  But until then, what they are most grateful for is the help they do receive, and the community they have within each other to buffer the support they may have never gotten from family or society.

Thank you for the opportunity to reach out to my home town and listen to the ones who need it the most.  Stay tuned for an extended version!