nn, a Catholic charity. They want to build a shelter for unhoused pregnant women in West St. Louis County.  Some potential residential neighbors protested based on security concerns. 

A lawsuit was settled when the charity agreed to additional restrictions on the project such as fencing and lighting. Eventually, some pregnant homeless women and their children will have a home, medical care and counseling to help them transition to independent living.

My first thought was that the charity was trying to help people, not imprison them. I’m having trouble imagining pregnant women climbing fences to commit mayhem on their neighbors.

Americans are currently in an uproar over abortion, and how to stop it or regulate it while respecting the privacy rights of women in a democracy. Any study of abortion demand identifies one root cause being desperate women lacking support they and their other children need.

In that light, this proposed shelter seems like a win-win.

Peter and Paul Community Services in St. Louis City has been trying to buy a property to convert to a homeless shelter. They have the approval of city government and a $5 million-plus war chest of governmental assistance funds.  

After multiple tries they finally have a path forward, despite some neighborhood concerns about security, crime and potential property value decline. 

An ongoing American contemporary issue is the rise of homelessness and what to do about it.  Conservative legislatures in several states are working on laws to criminalize homeless encampments on public property. 

Meanwhile, a charity has proposed to help hundreds of people get off the streets and into a safe environment where they can get food, healthcare and counseling to help them transition to independent living.  Seems like another win-win.

A couple of years ago, we had the same battle going on in Waterloo over a vacant senior living property on Mueller Lane. Potential buyers of the property wanted to use it as an inpatient recovery residence for women struggling with alcohol and drug abuse.  The buyers wanted to do this in memory of their daughter who died from an accidental overdose.

Through months of battles, Waterloo’s government struggled to find a way to approve the project, bending to the security and property value concerns of some neighbors. At the same time, they were resisting the project these same people said they supported helping women battling addiction… just not in their neighborhood.

When I worked in business management consulting we had a saying: “The lack of information always drives worst-case assumptions.”

Most of us are fortunate enough to have zero experience with homelessness or substance abuse. What we don’t understand drives some fears and paranoia.  We end up judging others struggling with life and it displaces our better nature of compassion.

I am not the kettle calling the pot black. I live across the street from a Monroe County transitional housing apartment. It houses people who are struggling to live independently for a variety of reasons, be they economic, abandonment, mental or substance abuse.

Yes, the police are there about once a month. It gives me a chance to visit with the policemen I know.  I’ve never felt threatened, and people send me letters wanting to buy my house if I ever decide to sell.

A few years ago, I fell off a ladder and ended up on the ground with a severe concussion. No one was home and I couldn’t get up without passing out.  I was able to reach my cell phone and call 911 while lying on the ground. While I was on the phone, a lady from the apartment came over to ask me if I was all right and how she could help. She stayed with me until EMTs arrived.

Whatever assumptions I may have had about the people across the street, my personal experience told a much different story.

You don’t have to make assumptions that might drive your worst fears.  All you have to do is get some skin in the game and find out first-hand what is going on in a charity that wants to move into your neighborhood. Volunteer, or just visit for a day.

Based on my personal experience, I think what you’ll find is your fears dissipate and are replaced by compassion. It’s a joyous experience and reinforces replaced the idea that our primary purpose in life is to support others. 

Isn’t that what neighbors are for?