I was homeless, on and off for 30 years. I never finished high school and never had a GED. I had a job that paid $5.15 an hour but I could not live on that. I became homeless. I slept outside, usually under a bridge. I would ask for spare change or eat out of garbage cans. Sometimes I went to soup kitchens.

   Someone I knew downtown recommended Friendship Place. I liked upper northwest—it was safer than downtown. When I first came into Friendship Place I was surprised. It looked like a house. It had a living room setting. The people were so friendly. My caseworker, Wendy Guyton, gave me inspiration to help me help myself. She believed in me. I saw the psychiatrist—Dr. Keisling—he is a godsend. I saw the regular doctor, Dr. Kosoff, and she gave me medicine to stop my seizures. Wendy asked me every week if I was taking my medicines.

   When I was ready to go into a transitional shelter I went on the waiting list at St. Luke’s Shelter. I had to wait six months for a bed—that was very hard— but Wendy helped me. She got me on Social Security Disability Insurance so that I could get a monthly check. Then I got my apartment on Idaho Avenue. I have a phone and am in the phonebook. I know it sounds silly—but having a phone and a mailbox makes me part of the community. I am no longer a homeless statistic—I am part of your community, or should I say our community. I am also on the Board of St. Luke’s Shelter— from homeless, to resident of St. Luke’s Shelter, to Board member—I am very proud.

Ruth Schickel is now my case manager—I see her every Friday and she gives me an allowance from my monthly check. That’s good—I might spend it all at once if I didn’t get the weekly allowance.

I am still working on my GED—taking tests is very stressful for me. I want to be a peer counselor. I think I could give back by helping others who have a disability. You see, some years ago, I worked at Johns Hopkins Bayview Hospital. There, I was a life skills counselor. I worked with mentally ill patients who were ready to move from the hospital to group homes. I would teach them how to take the bus. I would teach them how to find their way around their neighborhoods. I also took them for recreation—to the movies, to the Inner Harbor, to the Science Museum. I think I could be a peer counselor again.
    I am glad I could speak today about all the wonderful things Friendship Place has done for me.

—George Siletti delivered this speech at Friendship Place’s Friends & Neighbors Fundraising Breakfast on May 18, 2005     

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