“Please don’t tell anyone you saw me here.”

“Please don’t tell anyone you saw me here.”

That is what people say when someone they know discovers they are homeless and in a shelter.

What is your first thought when someone says homeless person? Do you imagine someone who is living on the streets, often with addiction or mental health issues?

The truth is that homelessness can touch all kinds of people – it is defined as someone who does not have a home at this point in time. They could be working, or not. A recent job loss may have resulted in eviction. They could be a family trying to stay together, or a broken family with no place to go. If you met them on the street, the word homeless would not enter your mind, and that is exactly what they want you to see, or not see.

Homelessness does not define a person: it is a circumstance and, more often than not, an invisible one.

During this season of giving back, please help folks who find themselves in this devastating circumstance. Be one of the Brooklynites who reads this post and gives a bit of themselves to help someone stabilize their life, whether that means housing support, help with addiction issues, or gaining employment or language skills. Help a family move past the stress of insecure housing and back to a life of hope with plans for a brighter future.

If you don’t know CAMBA, I hope you will get to know us. We started in Brooklyn and have been an integral part of supporting Brooklyn neighborhoods for the past 40 years. Please give back to Brooklyners who need your help. We’re not flashy, we just get the work done, and with today’s homeless crisis, every dollar you give helps families get back on their feet.

Please click here to give a gift today.

This post was sponsored by CAMBA. If you would like to reach our readers, please contact us.