It's A Cold One

As I sit comfortably in Starbucks, on this very chilly morning, my thoughts turn to the homeless and how they deal with this cold. The cold is but one more obstacle that many Chicago children, particularly those who are homeless, have to deal with year in and year out.

There are a staggering 1.35 million homeless youth in the United States, many of those (43%) who are age 6, or under, are living with homeless parents.

Here in Illinois, 25,000 youth are homeless and at least 11,000 of them live in the city of Chicago. Can you imagine what it is like to be in their shoes? How on earth, if they make it to school (which many do!), do they function in the classroom?

This is one of the many reasons Schools Count Corp. recently delivered hundreds of coats to the kids. It is a worthwhile endeavor we will continue next year.

When I hear people harp about the quality of school or the lack thereof I am reminded of such obstacles as homelessness and the cold. I am also reminded of the fact that many of these environmental and societal issues are outside of the control of the children.

I am puzzled by those who complain about low inner city test scores or some of the other struggles that children face who confront the effects of poverty. The cold and homeless are but symptoms of such poverty and the kids don't have the 'boot straps' to tackle such problems.

As long as the schools work hard to assist the children and as long as the students work to the best of their abilities then we'll do our part to help them get an education. Cold, poverty, homelessness and more should not stop us from helping these people.

Thanks,
Dick