#1 Place to Live, Even if You Are Homeless

Last Friday, Chip had his first teacher workday. So in celebration of this event, we planned a whole day of fun. The first stop was the Women's and Children's Shelter at the Salvation Army in downtown Raleigh.

So with the car packed with donations from the Hayes Barton Baptist Church KidzStuff Consignment sale, away we went. Of course, explaining to a five year old why some people had to live there was hard, but I think I got the main point across. However, I was not prepared for what my friend who works there would tell me.

My daughter Holly's friend's mom (stay with me here) works for the Salvation Army at the shelter. So I called ahead of time so they would be ready for us when we got there. As we unloaded the car, and loaded things into the warehouse, we discussed how many families were in the shelter now, and how plans for Christmas were going. Then she told me something that I had never even thought of. There are actually people who are homeless in other areas of the country, who are packing up what little possessions they have, and are relocating their families to Raleigh.

That's right, it seems that Raleigh is not only the #1 place to live for those relocating with jobs, etc, but for those down on their luck as well. The main reason, if you are going to live on the streets or in shelters, you might as well do it in a place that has the best chance of recovery. Those that are moving here feel that they can get on their feet better and faster in Raleigh, than in say Detroit, Miami, etc.

So I did a little research to see if this was unique to Raleigh. I didn't find much, there doesn't seem to be much written about this subject. But there was an article on KKTV's site out of Colorado. It seems that Colorado Springs has had quite a few homeless people move to their area. (see the article here: http://www.kktv.com/news/headlines/81070832.html). They also said that their influx of homeless is coming from Denver and Mexico.

So what does all this mean, and does it really matter? It just goes to show you that Raleigh is a great place to live, whether you are bless with riches or are just getting by, with or without, the necessities in life.

And on a personal note, the Salvation Army is looking for volunteers for this upcoming holiday season. The Wake County Chapter is estimating that they will help over 8000 children with Christmas this year. So click on over to their site: www.keepthebellringing.org and volunteer. Whether you are in Raleigh or somewhere else in the world. You'll be glad you did!