Self homeless, helping out at the walk-in centre and from here ...
From porch to tent. And then now, after decades of living on the streets, a roof over your head. Iwan, Benyounes and Youssef can hardly believe it. "It just takes getting used to," says Iwan. We spoke to three long-term homeless men in January, just before they were to be given a room in February. All three had already made great strides on their own. Among other things, by helping other homeless people in our walk-in centres as a cooperating visitor and janitor.
Originally Iwan (58) comes from Indonesia, where he once fled from his religious family because he was not allowed to be himself and his father forced him to join the army. Through various wanderings, he left for Europe at age twenty-six to work as a sailor. Later he found work in the Amsterdam hospitality industry. Sometimes he slept on colleagues' couches and for a period he was even allowed to sleep in the kitchen of an Indonesian restaurant where he worked. When this restaurant was sold in 2004, he found himself on the street. From then on, Iwan lived in tents for years, mostly in Amsterdam's parks. He learned to cope with cold, rain and a life without security. "You adapt," he says with a striking gentleness, as if life has been mild for him rather than harsh. He always tried to remain invisible: leaving no mess, not bothering anyone. Still, he didn't always feel safe. Once his tent was cut open. Iwan: "That was a moment when I thought: now things have to be different."
Visitor and helping force
Round 2009, Iwan got in touch with De Regenboog Groep. In the walk-in centres he was able to shower, sometimes sleep, and slowly a network developed again. Today he is a cooperating visitor at the Makom walk-in centre. And Iwan helps not only when the day care is open, but also in the evening when the walk-in centre transforms into a night shelter and he is the janitor. He welcomes people, stands behind the coffee bar, makes small talk and helps with cleaning. "I try to make people feel welcome here," he says. "Just making contact, that's important."
Responsibility
In just a few weeks, Iwan will have his own room and kitchen at the Hilmanhofje, a location specifically for elderly undocumented homeless and economically homeless people. The news has yet to land. Even among the other men. "First see," says Benyounes (61), or Ben, who lost his faith in humanity after a life on the streets. He has been on the road for decades with no fixed place to live. Sometimes Ben sleeps with acquaintances, other times on the street or in a shelter. Like Iwan, he is a cooperating visitor at Makom's daytime drop-in. The janitor position at the night shelter he fulfills at two walk-in centres: Makom and De Kloof. So when Ben has these night shifts, he stays overnight at the respective location. For him, the walk-in centre is a place of need and responsibility.
Never a stable home
Ben came to the Netherlands from Morocco as a twelve-year-old boy. His father worked here as a guest worker. What followed was a troubled childhood, with lots of moving, arguments at home and eventually living on his own. "I never really had a stable home," he says. Sleeping he did everywhere and nowhere. "It used to be easier. You had squats; places where you could stay. That doesn't exist anymore. Always you are searching for a place that is safe. Without a home, you don't sleep much; that breaks you down as you get older." Yet Ben is not bitter. He is proud of himself and tells how he quit alcohol and drugs years ago. "I've been clean for twenty-five years. I did that myself. I thought: I can't stay here in this pit, I have to climb up." Having his own home allows him to take much better care of himself. "When you don't have a home, everything is difficult. Especially as you get so a day older and your body can't take it as well."
Tent as home
Sixty-two years old, Youssef can talk about that. He came to Amsterdam in the early 1980s and ended up on the streets almost immediately. What started in porches soon became the park. "In the beginning you sleep where you can. Then you start thinking: how can I do this better?" In Beatrix Park, he pitched his first tent. "When I had a tent, I no longer felt homeless. I had a roof. Privacy. The tent was my room." For more than twenty years, he slept outside. Rain, cold, heat, everything came along. Yet he refuses to call himself pathetic. "No please," he says firmly. "It wasn't pathetic; it gave me energy. I learned to be independent there. Without family, without help, without anyone." He smiles for a moment. "By being alone, you go back to yourself. And that's where I found myself." Now he finds that his body is catching up with him. A few years ago, he was diagnosed with diabetes. "They took blood and then the doctor said: your sugar is high, so is your cholesterol." At first, Youssef didn't quite understand. "I only heard 'sugar.' So then I stopped that right away. No more sugar in coffee. Almost nothing sweet anymore."
Cooperate keep you human
Living on the streets with diabetes is complicated. Every three months, Youssef has his blood checked. Sometimes it is stable, sometimes not. "But yes," he says softly, "on the street, it's tricky." Despite his aging body, Youssef still works. For he too is a faithful cooperative visitor and janitor at our walk-in centres Makom and De Kloof. "Cooperating is good," he says. "That's what keeps you human." Now something new is shining: a room of his own in the Hilmanhofje. As a long-term homeless elderly person without papers, Youssef is exactly for whom this place is so necessary. "A kitchen of my own," he says with audible wonder. "All my life I've never had that." He dreams aloud, "I'm going to buy a blender. Then I can make juices for my sugar."
No peace of mind when homeless
Youssef is cautiously looking ahead. So are Iwan and Benyounes. The men of the walk-in centre are just at the threshold of a new life. It's exciting, too. "A home changes your mindset," says Iwan. "I'm not used to thinking so much ahead. Maybe I just need to get used to it. It will be better. Having my own home will make it easier for me to focus. Thinking about what I want in life, you don't have peace of mind for that when you're homeless."
The Hilmanhofje
This courtyard on Nieuwe Looiersstraat is owned by the Protestant Diaconate. De Regenboog Groep rents this location to house six long-term homeless undocumented elderly people and nine economically homeless people. So in total there is room for fifteen people. From De Regenboog, the project is led by Frederiek de Vlaming: "Older undocumented homeless people from Ghana and North African countries in particular are approaching retirement age. After a hard life, many have become vulnerable and need more care, preferably with a roof over their heads after years on the streets. We see the Hilmanhofje as the first step in our search for housing for this group. Our goal is to establish a much larger location in Amsterdam-Zuidoost, because the group will grow. Right now we have three hundred and fifty older undocumented people in our sights. But in reality we are talking about many more people who will need help in the foreseeable future."
Night Shelter in Self-Care
Night Shelter in Self-Management for the economically homeless takes place at seven De Regenboog Groep locations, including the Makom and De Kloof walk-in centres mentioned in this article. As the name suggests, the overnighters, and especially the housekeepers, take care of the management themselves. They have the responsibility that it all runs smoothly.
Now also at De Derde Schinkel
Like several walk-in centres, our work project location "De Derde Schinkel" has not been left unused at night for a while now. Here the homeless Stefan (51) is the overnight janitor. He checks that the lights are off, the doors are locked ... that everything is safe. During the day, he just has a job. As do most of the sleepers at the Self-Managed Night Shelter. After their night on the stretcher and putting away their personal belongings, they go to work freshly showered. A very different picture than many people wrongly have of homelessness, in other words.
Evotedly, janitor Stefan repeatedly proclaims his plea. There is too little space in the city. And meanwhile, at night, offices everywhere stand empty. Lit, secured, unused. "Why not put them to use? At the Self-managed Night Shelter, we have already proven that we can handle this responsibility. Give us the confidence and don't let all those empty offices go unused at night."
Like sleeping at the Self-Managed Night Shelter. At night, stretchers and bags of personal belongings are taken out at the sleeping location, to be put away again in the morning. These photos were taken at Makom walk-in centre where Iwan, Benyounes and Youssef are janitors of the night shelter.
Text: Nicolline van der Spek and Jola Gosen | Photos: Mila van Egmond (portraits) and Rick Web (Self-managed Night Shelter)