Whitehead speaks on homelessness in Johnson City

Recently, Volunteer ETSU hosted a lecture with guest speaker Jennifer Whitehead, who is the director of the Johnson City Downtown Day Center.

The Johnson City Downtown Day Center is a clinic that the homeless, uninsured and under-insured people can go to on West Fairview Avenue.

Whitehead went over how the Day Center helps the homeless population of Johnson City.

“We designed a program where an individual can come in and they can get their social, medical and their behavioral health needs taken care of all under one roof,” said Whitehead. “That way we can hopefully decrease the number of people that are falling through the cracks.”

Whitehead went on to explain the struggles faced by the homeless community.

“The majority of us, you know, have to look at it as we get up with homes to get up in, we take our show, we eat breakfast, we get ready, we get to work,” said Whitehead. “That’s in about an hour’s time frame. For people who are homeless, just getting your basic needs met – that’s an all day thing, because you can only go to this place to shower at this time. You can only go and eat at this place at this time so your whole world is just consumed with just getting these simple things done.”

The Day Center offers services such as washing clothes, showering, a clothes closet and being an address for the homeless people to put on job applications to help them avoid being overlooked in the hiring process at prospective jobs. There is also a clinic on the other side of the Day Center building.

Whitehead said ETSU students can do multiple things to help with homelessness in Johnson City, such as breaking down the stereotypes surrounding homelessness to friends and family, volunteering at local shelters such as the Salvation Army or the Day Center and also donating goods and supplies to local shelters.

Whitehead also mentioned some supplies that they could use at shelters.

“We rarely get shoes, backpacks, wallets, deodorant and razors,” Whitehead said. “Those are all high dollar items for them. They are very popular, and we just don’t get them a lot.”

To volunteer with Volunteer ETSU, contact Emma Choquette at choquette@etsu.edu. To get more information on volunteering or donating supplies to the Day Center, contact Jennifer Whitehead, call (423)439-7371 or email her at whitjl01@etsu.edu.