SPOKANE, Wash. — The non-profit group Jewels Helping Hands brought different groups together to help the people currently living at the homeless encampment near Freya Street and I-90.
Multiple organizations were present at the encampment, distributing food and water, giving haircuts and giving people a chance to shower.
Volunteers said they have received a positive response from the people who currently live there. Some of the groups present included Union Gospel Mission and Revive Counseling Spokane.
“There’s a lot of preconceived notions out there that the homeless are addicts and are dirty, stink,y that kind of thing," said Scott McCall, a volunteer for Union Gospel Mission. "But really they’re just people. They’re no different than I am.”
The two groups offered services from mental health care to addiction treatment. The groups said they wanted to send a message to the people currently living in the camp that they are not alone.
“Sometimes people have a negative connotation towards people who are homeless and it’s not so great every day, but these people make it like it’s family,” said Rachel Bennett, who currently lives at the camp.
For one volunteer, today's service is not the first time they've offered to give a helping hand.
“I come down, I would say a couple of times a month," said Daniel Marte, a volunteer for Revive Counseling Spokane. "Walk through see if anybody wants services, see if there’s anybody we’ve previously hooked up with once to reengage with services. So we just really want to let people know that there’s someone here that cares.”
The event was not only to give people the support they need but to help those experiencing homelessness understand that community members want to help.
“I hope that the community and the service providers see that there is a need and the need is not the narrative that we hear, that they don’t want help, they truly want help,” said Julie Garcia, the executive director of Jewels Helping Hands. "People just don’t know where to get that help.”
The people currently living at the camp were grateful for the support they received.
“I got a lot more support than I thought I did before," said Emerald Rykowski, who currently lives at the encampment. "I’m actually looking forward to going and participating in a lot of these groups.”
According to Garcia, there are 600 people currently living at the homeless encampment near I-90. If Spokane receives funding to help clear out the encampment, Spokane Mayor Nadine Woodward said it could happen as soon as August.
Jewels Helping Hands will stay at the encampment through Thursday and Friday. Garcia said their main goal is to help people get out of the cycle of homelessness.
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