Dealing With Homelessness on the Eastern Shore, Part 1: An Interview with Rachel Carter
Homelessness is a serious problem in the United States.
HumanServicesEdu.org cites a report by Green Doors which states that the populations most at risk of homelessness have traditionally been veterans, people with disabilities, and single parent families, but lately our country’s working poor, people who were recently incarcerated, and young adults recently emancipated from foster care are struggling with homelessness,.
Although we may think of homelessness as largely an urban problem, the fact is that the homeless are everywhere, including here on the Eastern Shore. Urban areas are usually able to provide more resources to help the homeless. Often, in small towns, it is left to concerned private citizens to reach out to the homeless people they see on the streets every day. Such has been the case in Chestertown in Kent County. What follows is an email interview with Rachel Carter, one of those concerned private citizens.
Shivers:
How did Chestertown/Kent County deal with the homeless before your group formed? I know that there was an organization called the Samaritan Group that rotated shelters in churches during January and February. Anything else?
Carter:
The Samaritan Group has been offering the Overnight Shelter for many years. The Samaritan Group, Chester Valley Ministers Association, and The Good Neighbor Fund led the charge as far as sheltering our community members. They have always provided the Overnight Shelter, rotating between three churches, for January, February, and March.
Shivers:
For many months the small group of which you were a member helped find housing for the homeless in a local motel. Who are the members of your group and when did you come together?
Carter:
The Kent County Coalition for the Homeless started in early 2022. We reached out to Chesapeake Charities, and with help from their director and generous donors, we were able to establish it as a fund. In the beginning, Shrewsbury Parish and loving community members paid for the motel rooms. Quickly we learned that there were programs in neighboring counties that were able to help us financially. The director and staff at Martin's House and Barn were instrumental in helping us with funding, and helping us navigate other resources. Of course, Chesapeake Charities guided us, and held our hands.
Social Services taught us how to streamline our efforts, and two of our members created a flow chart. This coordination gave us a much simpler path to helping folks we met with temporary housing needs.
Shivers:
How many persons has the Kent County Coalition for the Homeless been able to help so far and how successful have you been?
Carter:
We have three families in rental homes. So far, they are all doing well. We have one single woman in an apartment, and continue to help others as the need arises. We have walked some bumpy roads, and learned a lot. Some are back living in the motel (on their own), or are back to living outside. There is a freedom for some folks to live unconstrained — for others, the reasons are financial.
Shivers:
Is there any progress toward a permanent, year-round homeless shelter in the county?
Carter:
Maybe. I wish I could answer with an emphatic “Yes;” however we have a way to go. Kent County has an amazing group of people with big hearts and a lot of passion. We have all become close, and our goal is to make the dream of a 12-month shelter a reality. Let's say we are making baby steps, and we haven't lost faith.
Shivers:
Do you know anything about how other Eastern Shore communities are dealing with homelessness and whether it is a big problem on the shore?
Carter:
All of the Mid-Shore counties work together. Many already have established shelters. They vary by way of capacity, male/female, family, short/longer term stays. All of the established shelters were made from what our Kent County groups have: the willingness to help, and the heartfelt desire to assist our fellow community members as they navigate programs in order to get themselves back on their feet.
Shivers:
Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Carter:
I feel that it is important to understand that those of us involved are working with friends experiencing homelessness. We understand that people go through rough times. Our outreach is an embrace. Personally, I don't feel anyone is voiceless or helpless. I want, simply, to assist in the process of giving people a platform so their voices may be heard, and access to programs and organizations that will strengthen them as they navigate their way onward and upward.
On the second Thursday of every month at 7 pm we have a meeting at the Chestertown Town Hall. We call it The Homelessness Conference. It is a roundtable of those of us from various groups in the County. We share updates and ideas, and ask one another for insight. Anyone interested in joining may send me an email, and I will add them to the announcements list (rachleforshore@gmail.com).
Rachel Carter is an Eastern Shore native, raised in Centreville, and has spent most of her adult life in the Chestertown area. She attended Madeira School, College of Charlestown, and Washington College. She has two sons — Steven 23, and Zachary 22 — who have supported her in a variety of volunteer efforts and forged their own paths in volunteer work.
A native of Wicomico County, George Shivers holds a doctorate from the University of Maryland and taught in the Foreign Language Dept. of Washington College for 38 years before retiring in 2007. He is also very interested in the history and culture of the Eastern Shore, African American history in particular.
Common Sense for the Eastern Shore
