Despite the cold, nasty weather that loomed over the city this Saturday, our street outreach team hit the pavement in search of homeless kids. We didn’t meet anyone new, but we saw several of our regular kids spending their rainy Saturday in the library or at Underground Atlanta.
Egor sat in the corner computer station at the library, his skeleton leather jacket makes him easy to spot. We went and chatted for a bit, I wanted to know if he called Job Corps. He did call, but he ended the conversation quickly since the receptionist was prying too deeply with questions like what was his address, who his parents were, what his education history was like. Basic questions that the rest of us can answer mindlessly strike panic in the heart of a homeless teen, with no address, no knowledge of his parents, an embarrassing educational history that includes many, many schools and no degree. It was the address that troubled Egor the most, admitting you have none is much harder than explaining you dropped out of school or don’t keep in contact with your parents. Everyone has an address, right?
I gave him StandUp for Kids street address, and said he can always use it when he needs an address, whether it’s a job application or a place to receive mail. He smiled widely and put the address in his wallet, but spent a few minutes memorizing it first.
