Get informed about homelessness

We are all familiar with the sight of people sleeping on the streets, begging at traffic lights, or pushing shopping trolleys that are filled with all of their possessions. Unfortunately this is such a common occurrence in your daily lives that most people might not stop to think how this person actually got to be homeless.

Being homeless means a lot more than not having a roof over your head. Our experience at the Haven has taught us that homelessness is also characterised by the following:

  • Being separated from your family, friends and other people who care about you;
  • Loosening the connections with the home, community, society e.g. your church, mosque, community;
  • Perception of not having access to basic human rights like water and medical treatment;
  • Losing your sense of dignity and self-respect.

 

How people become homeless

You can become homeless through a series of events, as explained in this example: The death of a child, parent or spouse may leave a person so grief stricken that it leads to more difficulties.Loss of employment due to non-attendance or poor performance,  followed by the loss of their car or home because they don’t have an income. This downward spiral continues until the person migrates to living on the streets, having lost all connection to their former lives.

Some other factors that lead people to become homeless include:

  • Suffering severe emotional trauma or grief,
  • Being unemployed, insolvent, or having no or low income,
  • Escaping physical abuse or life-threatening situations,
  • Losing everything as a result of a disaster like fire, flooding, etc.,
  • Suffering from mental illness, drug or alcohol abuse,
  • Being a refugee or asylum seeker,
  • Suffering from a physically-challenging disability,
  • Being an ex-soldier or prisoner who was removed from society for a long time,etc.

 

GIve responsibly

These are only some of the reasons why people become homeless. At The Haven our mission is to use all the resources at our disposal to reintegrate them into society – to get the homeless to a home. To continue our work requires your support through donation, volunteering, and creating awareness about what we do to help the people in your community. Help them by giving responsibly.

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