This week at the homeless shelter, we had a discussion of the various services offered to the shelter residents by the Adams County Housing Authority, where I am currently working through my work-study program. I was very apprehensive going into the lesson that night, partially because I wanted to give the most thorough and helpful information possible without being boring, and I wasn’t sure how to present the information. Also, I knew that in general, many people who are homeless have difficulties navigating the services available to them, and several people at the shelter had already mentioned their unpleasant experiences with the Housing Authority. When I started talking, there didn’t seem to be much interest in the topic, but as more people showed up who were interested in the services and wanted to ask questions, I found that I was able to share useful information. My perspective—as someone who understands the programs the Housing Authority offers but isn’t actually responsible for making the programs—put me in a good position to offer information. I was able to honestly tell them that the HCV program has a waiting list that it takes years to get through, and that we don’t really know how long it will take to get on housing choice voucher. I could also mention openings in the Turning Point Program, which is designed to help specifically homeless people. Since I know eligibility requirements for the different programs, I was able to tell several interested people which programs they were eligible for, and give people advice about how to apply for different programs. Hopefully, some of this information will be helpful to the people that were there tonight, and in the future if people have questions, they will know to ask me. I felt like tonight was a success, and I only wished that I had been able to offer people more certainties about getting aid. However, although I could only talk about options and possibilities, I think that what we did tonight was definitely positive. It makes me wonder how helpful it would be to have concerned and committed students who could work one on one with people at the shelter. I know that it basically sounds like having untrained people working as caseworkers, but from some conversations we have had about benefits and programs, I think some of the residents may have needs that would normally be solved by a caseworker that aren’t being addressed right away. Having students willing to find answers to the residents’ questions and helping then navigate the social service agencies could be beneficial. My main reasoning for this is that most Gettysburg students could probably navigate social aid systems fairly well; filling out an application, finding local service agencies, and getting information online or over the phone are all things that college students could probably do successfully. With a few tips, like the agency database on York County’s United Way website, and contact information for the housing authority and other local services, a concerned student could work one-on-one with a shelter resident and help them find and access services that they qualify for. Even having someone that has the time and energy to search for information about services could help the residents, many of whom work hard during the day and are too tired at the end of the day to look for services. I’m not sure exactly how successful such an endeavor would be, but I think the class tonight has raised some possibilities.