Shelter

Subject: My calls with Kim today.

Sandy handed me my morning latte with a note to call the Gateway Shelter. Kim answered. She told me she was uncomfortable and getting a COVID test today because there was a potential outbreak at the shelter and she wanted to see her grandchildren.

“That’s scary,” I replied.

“Only three residents [out of 50] wear masks.”

I sipped my latte and asked her whether the staff wore masks. She said yes, they do, but at every other job she had during COVID, the workplace was much safer—lots of cleaning and sanitizing, masks and headgear. These precautions aren’t taken at Gateway. Kim has elderly relatives and other family members with compromised immune systems. Her daughter was scared.

I propped my feet up and asked her if there were other issues. Kim’s sister is also a social worker. They had a conference call with another friend to discuss the issues at the shelter.

Kim mentioned general cleanliness. “One morning I wasn’t even on the clock when I was ordered to clean up some blood. It frustrates me that people are not cleaning things. They expect me to do it.”

“The staff sits the food out all night instead of serving each resident. The food from the caterer was bad—plain boiled noodles with frozen mixed vegetables on top. Heated it up, put a little salt on it, and called it a meal. It was sad. No one ate it. Everyone threw it out. Everyone was hungry and angry.”

“I came to work one day and there was lettuce and other garbage on the floor. The men’s microwave was disgusting and a potential safety hazard. Rats, mice, and roaches took full advantage. I took a video of the mess. I couldn’t believe how gross it was. I went to the office and was told by Lamonte and Kali that the day shift had left it, and they weren’t going to clean it up. The staff is petty. They leave messes for the other group in order to get back at them.”

I asked her to send me the video, but it’s on her iPhone and she needed Wi-Fi to send it. My mind began to stray to the tasks waiting for me in the day ahead but then I heard, “There are a lot of toxic relationships at Gateway. When I was hired on, I was told immediately by staff that Kali and Lamonte were in a relationship and Kali’s not going to like you. They have matching cars. They like to be scheduled together. And once you get on Lamonte’s bad side, he won’t speak to you again either. Lamonte and Kali don’t do anything, just sit in the office.”

“Who else knows?”

“Everyone. Everyone knows this.”

“Lamonte was friendly at first, but Kali told me not to communicate with Lamonte too much. I was scared to ask Kali any questions. The only question Kali ever asked me was whether my hair [is] blue. I was offended because my hair is black, not blue. Kali hasn’t spoken to me since. She just stares me down and doesn’t say anything.”

“There’s three kinds of staff at Gateway—bad apples, burn-outs and a few of us who are passionate. There’s a group that just sits in the office all night. Excuse me, they offer no support. I’m a team player and I’ll do anything to clean up and help out. There’s no job I’m above.”

“One day when I came in and was working, I was told that I was going too hard. I kept getting warned by staff that I’m making them look lazy. I didn’t like that. On one occasion I was doing something for a guest on the second floor and was told, “You don’t need to go upstairs.” I was upset at this person territorializing me.”

“Dee Dee told me to slow down, you’re doing a lot. When I got here I did the same as you, and I was told to pipe it down. Teresa also told me don’t work so hard. The people who leave at 1:00—we don’t know if they’re coming back. They’re drug addicts.”

My heart rate rose when she said, “This is not a dry shelter. I wasn’t told how to monitor for drug use on the property. Arlene never told me to check these corners. A guest passed out and I was worried that he was going to die. I don’t have the training for this. I don’t have Narcan training. All these overdoses and I wasn’t warned. They should have just sat me down.”

She continued. “Residents are high as a kite. Needles. Last week a staff member cracked her finger on a dirty needle and wasn’t sent to the hospital.”

I replied, “The antidote for HIV from a dirty needle has to be given within hours. Why didn’t we tell her to go to the hospital?”

“I don’t know. I wasn’t told how busy it is at night. I don’t know how many times the bell rings or how to give out hats and blankets. Every single night we are full. I was told to tell these women to go to the mall until seven. Not right. I dialed United Way and got some women a space at St. Vincent. No one else was helping these women. We gave permission for people to sleep on the stairs outside, and only gave them blankets. It was 35 degrees out. What if they froze to death? I was nervous the whole night.”

I asked Kim about the note. She then described the Mariah incidents. When Kim noticed there was a dirty needle on the microwave, Mariah asked her to put it in the hazard box. She was upset Mariah hadn’t disposed of it immediately and instead waited for her to do so. She found out later that the needle had been there for a prolonged period. Another time Kim was told someone had thrown up in the bathroom, Mariah refused to help clean it up because she would gag. Kim and another staff did so, no questions asked and without complaint.

“I wrote Mariah up because she was too high. I wanted everyone to see. Arlene was worried that Mariah was in a notebook and not about her behavior. Arlene said, ‘You’re putting my staff on blast?’ I was on speaker and raised my voice, “They all get paid to sit in the office.” I was told by Arlene that now that you’re in trouble, you want to complain. I apologized but I felt like Arlene was treating me like an angry black woman.”

Kim said she should have known better because the staff warned her not to go to Arlene with problems because Arlene parties with staff: “Y’all go for drinks.” Kim was disappointed in Arlene. She was not professional. Disrespectful. She heard Arlene was on drugs.

There was a change in Kim’s voice when she called again to submit her hours—Monday 4-12 and Wednesday 12-8. She was sick and tired of everything. The gossip is toxic. Just overwhelming and toxic. No one told her beforehand to be aware of this, aware of that. She was shocked at the drug use. “It’s most of the guests. They threw me in the fire without training.”

Lately, she was annoyed she was being told to ‘run around’ because she was willing to use her car. It was another way people were taking advantage.

“Now I have to get another job, and I have rent to pay. I just can’t work here anymore. I was labeled a show-off. I was just trying to help people. I am an advocate, but I was told, “Just give them their food, we’re glorified babysitters.” The residents told me that no one talks to them like me. I got comfort from that, but I’m upset they won’t have anyone to help them again.”

Never a dull moment.

Sent from my iPhone