Do the lessons of the world yell at you like they yell at me? I worked at Perkins restaurant washing dishes when I was 14. The manager said I was doing too much. I played the trombone. I played the cello and I was in choir. He said I needed to quit something. I was […]

We discussed trap houses this morning. It was recorded on August 16, 2020. Here is the audio version: Here is the video Version:

As someone who ran a trap house for a time, let me tell you... it's a thankless job. People you've never met appear out of nowhere. They move in. They bring their belongings (of which they often have a lot). They build doors out of found objects. They mount hinged locks on doors in your […]

One of the nearly endless frustrations I have with this work is how there is not even a basic curiosity of how these homeless camps work. I've never understood why anthropologists aren't swarming homeless camps to try to get a better understanding of how early civilization was formed. Every single homeless camp I've got to […]

The most futile feeling in the world is sitting in courtrooms and political chambers listening to politicians and appointed officials talk about how I have a "big heart" but zoning laws are more important than people dying on the street.

This is Kenny Boldt. He has instilled within me a very powerful motto: "Do the right thing." Very often I hear his words when I am tired or lazy. "Do the right thing." A couple weeks ago a grandma, mom and 8 year old girl were on the street. This kind of tragedy is so […]

Sadly, the Ohio Supreme Court refused to hear our case that our law firm, Institute for Justice, diligently attempted to be heard. Throughout this ENTIRE process we have been fought every step of the way by the mayor, city council, zoning and courts ALL on technicalities. We simply want SOMEONE to answer the question: Does an […]

80% of the time I'm able to emotionally distance myself (for my own psychological wellbeing) from the brutal suffering caused by homelessness. But sometimes it really hits me. Like this message I got last night. I've been friends with her dad for years. He's lived on the street all the time I've known him. The […]

I want to put this out there sooner than later. There is a possibility I have already been exposed to coronavirus. So, in the event I get sick I want to make sure my ideas are out there. Obviously, these are just my personal opinions and if I'm out of the game then others will […]

I want to make very clear that I am not a doctor. I am simply a person who is as educated as many people are with what is happening in our world with Coronavirus. That said, I haven't seen any realistic documentation and recommendations on how best to work with homeless people during this time […]

Here's the audio version: [buzzsprout episode='2811331' player='true'] And here is the video:

(Use the hashtag #pitcount and take pictures of the new friends you meet during this count. People getting to spend a little time with homeless people is probably the best and most important part of this otherwise absurd exercise. I'd LOVE to see your pictures.) HUD requires that the Homeless Point-in-Time (PIT) count be held […]

If ever there was a more appropriate use of the word "bullshit" in describing something I've never seen it. The HUD mandated homeless Point-in-Time (PIT) count is complete and total bullshit. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires communities to complete the count in order to receive federal funding for homeless programs. Some […]

There is a very clear thread that runs through the work of the 3 of us. If you aren't familiar, Dorothy Day founded the Catholic Workers Movement. She, among other things, created "houses of hospitality" and then a series of farms for people to live together on communes. These were created for the homeless and […]

I was driving a man across town to a friend's house. He had stayed at our tent village for a time. But I didn't recall him very clearly. He is deep in the throws of a hard core Fentanyl addiction. Fentanyl is 50 times more addictive than heroin and 100 times more addictive than morphine. […]

A supporter of ours, Eva Buhite, called the Akron Mayor's office at 330-375-2256. They told her that they will not open any homeless warming centers until the temperature gets to ZERO degrees. (They also told her that we are NOT allowed to say the mayor needs to open warming centers. So check your freedom of […]

If you are "shocked" by swear words or just actual life in general, this post is not for you. This post is for people that shoot drugs. Look... I don't give a shit that you shoot drugs. I'd probably shoot my shit too. It looks like a really powerful way to go. But a lot […]

Do you know that phrase, "like a bat out of hell?" I don't think you can truly appreciate a phrase like that until you have actually gone "like a bat out of hell." We were screaming east on I-20 trying to make the 120 mile trip from Dallas to Kilgore Texas in as close to […]

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

The problem with me is that I take things seriously. I don't read the history of a man like Akronite John Brown and just say, "Aw that's nice." No. "John Brown advocated the use of armed insurrection to overthrow the institution of slavery in the United States." Let me say it another way: John Brown […]

Dear Governor DeWine, I am writing because I don't know where else to turn. Perhaps you have heard about the mulit-year fight we have been having with the city of Akron over the right to shelter our homeless citizens. Here are a couple articles that do a good job of covering the issue at hand: […]

I'm at a point where I don't know what else to do. I am certainly not quitting. But it feels like every single thing I do is inadequate and not enough. So I'm just going to beg and plead with you to PLEASE help these people. Tomorrow night it is going to be 15 degrees […]

I am a wuss. I'm in Austin Texas for a symposium at the Community First Village. A sold out group of people from as far away as Australia converged here to discuss the truly revolutionary concepts of this master planned village for the chronically homeless. The only way to get a home here as a […]

Murderers. Rapists. Pedophiles. Thieves. They all slept inside last night. They play board games. They watch tv. They eat every day. I know it's prison and people hate being there. But at least, as a society, we take care of these people. But homeless people. At 8am today in Akron Ohio it is 35 degrees. […]

[wufoo username="sagerock" formhash="qjg3psz1f9orim" autoresize="true" height="618" header="show" ssl="true"] This is the first winter we don't have our tent village OR our day center. If you aren't regularly working with homeless people living on the street, let me tell you what is happening. Mayor Horrigan just closed a major camp last week which has made many people […]

I had a brief encounter with a young girl yesterday. She was probably 6 years old. She was everything you'd expect from a 6 year old. She started a conversation with me. She was smiley. She was curious. She read the words on my t-shirt: "Keep your coins. I want change." It's a screen printed […]

I have a friend, Holly White, who has a PhD in spiritual matters. (I'm sorry I can't recall your exact area of study, Holly. I just don't have the energy right now to ask anybody.) She and my wife, Rocky, were talking about how I seem to be experiencing symptoms of grief. Holly is well […]

The new Joker movie came out this weekend. It pushes the outer edge of superhero movies into a new darker world that has never been seen or experienced before. Instead of seeing Gotham through Batman's eyes, we now get to see Gotham through Joker's eyes. And it all begins to make sense. (I'm going to […]

Let me set the stage: The mayor of Austin Texas Steve Adler and Austin city council voted, fair and square, to allow homeless people to camp on city land in Austin. Homeless people aren't allowed to camp in parks or in front of city hall. But everywhere else is fair game. Well, the governor of […]

There is a very important statement made by a high up leader in homeless services here in Akron Ohio. It's stated in this article in the Akron Beacon Journal made by Keith Stahl Director of Operations and Residential Services at Community Support Services. He states: There is a philosophical debate at the heart of this, […]