Life seems normal if you
are working, have a home, and are able to pay your bills; but what if you become homeless. Where will you sleep? What will you eat? How will you get your medication? How will your children go to school?
The faces of the homeless have changed over the last few years. The person on the park bench has been joined by the unemployed and their families, by the mentally ill, who are frightened by the pace of activity surrounding them, by women with children desperate to escape violent domestic situations, and by young people cast out from their families.
It is estimated that 3.5 million people, 1.35 million of which are children, will experience homelessness in a given year. Children under the age of 18 account for 39 percent of this population. Forty-three percent of the homeless are women of which 22 percent claim to have been abused within the past year. Families with children comprise 33 percent of the homeless population, and United States Veterans constitute 40 percent of homelessness.
Franklin Primary Health Center has long recognized the importance of working to end homelessness and in 1992 adopted the Health Care for the Homeless program. The H.E. Savage Memorial Center was opened to meet the healthcare needs of homeless individuals and families in the Mobile area. The center has been a vital source of healthcare for thousands of homeless persons and people at risk of becoming homeless at no charge.
We Would Appreciate Your Donations!
If you would like to donate to our homeless program, please make checks payable to Franklin Primary Health Center, Inc. c/o Health Care for the Homeless, 1201 Springhill Ave Mobile, AL 36604.