979 miles. That's how far we have come to date. Doesn't sound like very far for 49 days of travel does it? Actually it is. That's an average of 19.97 miles per day. In Chico California, I have met several men who walk twice that in any given day.
Women can stay at the Sabbath house in Chico, for as long as they need to, no questions asked. They have few requirements. They must be clean and sober, drug free and willing to work on getting out of their situation. Goals are set for each woman and through care and one and one counseling, are able to change the direction their lives have been going in.
Chico does not however have a shelter for men. I find that typically opposite of what we have found to be the norm. But the men take it in their stride. They know that at the Jesus Center, during the day, they can get a hot meal or two, a hot shower and a respite from the cold.
What this means however is that they way. They walk a lot. They walk holes in their shoes, holes in their socks and often walk holes in their feet. Blisters are an every day occurrence for most homeless people. They can be caused by many things also indigenous to homelessness. Walking too much, improper socks and improper shoes.
There is nothing the Jesus Center can do about the walking too much. In order to build a men's shelter they need hundreds of thousands of dollar just to build. That figure does not include the upkeep and staff to support the shelter.
The Jesus Center does have a store for the homeless and low-income families. Anyone can go into this store and get all the clothing they need, including shoes. What about socks? Well that's a different matter. They keep running out due to the amount of miles put in on a daily basis by the homeless men of Chico.
When I asked the Jesus Center what they needed, they could have asked for the astronomical amount needed for the men's shelter, but they didn't. To them there was something much more important for their men.
Socks.
Please donate or send socks to:
1297 Park Avenue
Chico, Ca 95928
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