Servicing the community this week we ran into Missy 1 and Missy 2 in a shopping mall at an intersection. They were waving cars down asking for money and we immediately pulled over to answer their request. I had my daughter out with me servicing which allows her to understand the importance of helping people. We approach Missy 1 and Missy 2 and I announce who we are and what we do in our organization. I asked the ladies if they were homeless and told them honestly that they didn’t look homeless. They answered me with an earnest YES and explained to me that the homeless community gets profiled if they look a certain way. They said that if they are at a specific location for more than 10 mins they could be arrested if the police showed up a saw them loitering. I asked the ladies why they were homeless and Missy 1 said she had been with an abusive heroine addict and got away and have been on and off the streets for about 8 or 9 years. Missy 2 didn’t explain why she was homeless but told us how she makes a living on the streets to stay clean and as comfortable as possible. Missy 2 explained that there is a big community of homeless in the area and they have tent communities for shelter. Missy 2 said for instanced yesterday she pan handled $150 and put them up at a local hotel for the next 3 days.The ladies said they are fine on the streets but the only challenge they have is law enforcement not allowing them to pan handle freely. I asked the ladies how they met since Missy 1 kept referring to Missy 2 as MOM but weren’t really related, and they said they became close due to their situation. We were glad we were able to provide lunch and dinner for the day in hopes that our small donations makes a difference. They were very thankful and explained where they go for clean clothing and stuff. They enjoy getting clothes from dumpsters outside of thrift stores as they called it “dumpster diving.” TMFI provides an apple,banana,Gatorade,something warm and $5 for each person we service. It’s a small resource in hopes to brighten someone’s day. We enjoyed servicing Leesburg area this week and absolutely enjoyed meeting Missy 1 and Missy 2 for allowing us to hear their story.
