3/1/2019 Status Update

Hello everyone and how are you? I am doing fantastic and my thoughts and prayers go out to those living on the streets. Last night I finished researching all the information that I needed for the new program of Hope Station USA call Pathway to Self-Sufficiency. it will be a program to help them transition from living on the streets to becoming a working tax paying member of society.

We put a lot of thought into this program and do believe it to be a huge benefit to the community and society as well as to the homeless individuals who join the program. It gives them that hand up that they need to get back on their feet again.

I will place part of the grant proposal and the estimated costs here in this post so that everyone could see what the program entails and what the costs would be to get her up and running. We would use homeless individuals and volunteers to help build the little community and it would provide a few jobs per location that are constructed.

We are excited about it and the benefits outweigh anything else that comes close to helping them. I can't have my heartstrings pulled every time I see someone out there panhandling to survive when most are able to work and that is another benefit of the program and that is to get them working again.

So here is the information about the program and maybe everyone could chip in and help us out.

Pathway to Self-Sufficiency is a program created by Hope Station USA, Inc. that would provide a stable and safe place for a homeless individual to live and with the programs help, they will learn the steps to becoming a working and tax-paying member of society again.

The program consists of steps that will need to be taken in order to graduate the program and become self-sufficient. Each individual will be assessed, and the program will be tailored to the individual's needs and goals. Individuals that graduate from the program will also be considered milestones and accomplishments for Hope Station USA, Inc.

The program for each individual will be six months long, and upon their time of graduation, they will be assisted in moving into their new apartment or home. We will provide transportation to and from their place of employment and back to their assigned housing unit at Pathways to Self-Sufficiency. Each individual will be required to sign a contract stating that they will abide by the rules of the program and that they will assist in keeping everyone within the walls of the program safe and from harm.

There will be ten steps to the program with the first one being the assessment and then being assigned a housing unit. There will be twenty housing units within each Pathway to Self-Sufficiency location created. The goal of this program is to assist as many homeless individuals as we can and get them back into society.

The next step will be to sit down with them and set some goals both short term and long term. We want them to understand that they do have choices on how they live and how they want to be perceived by society. We will also assist them in building a resume if they have work experience prior to becoming homeless.

Through our computer lab, they will have access to job seeking resources and the occasional free time with the internet but under supervision and website blocking for inappropriate material. Also, there will be our version of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous which will be led by myself or a guest speaker with ten or more years under their belt. I have been clean and sober for ten years now and I cherish every minute of it.

There will be community nights where everyone will get together and hang out and get to know each other and barbeque weekends. Hope Station USA will provide them with meals and hygiene products as well as any clothing that they might need for job seeking. The purpose of these meetings will be to let everyone know that they are not alone and to give them hope.

Another step will be to teach them life lessons as we call them. Each individual will be taught the basics of living a normal life, such as cooking, laundry, cleaning, grocery shopping, and sewing. We want to equip them to be able to take care of themselves once out on their own.

Once they have acquired employment, then we will take them to open a bank account and teach them to budget and save money. They will have to be taught how to pay bills and live a normal life. After thirty days of working, we will require them to pay one- hundred and fifty dollars a month as a rental payment for their housing unit. This will be used as an income to keep the program going.

The next step will be to assist them in securing a source of transportation. Whether they want a vehicle or a bicycle, it will be to help them get around. Soon after they have acquired their own source of transportation, it will be time to begin saving for their very own apartment.

At their six-month period, we will assist them in moving to their own apartment and we will have a graduation party for them before they are checked out of their housing unit.

Each housing unit will be equipped with a twin bed, a micro-fridge, a small microwave, a refurbished television, a dresser, and a desk with chair and a small lamp. There will be curfews in place for their own safety and someone will be on guard overnight to maintain the safety of the community.

With this program, it will create four to five jobs per location that will be laborers, overnight people, and a housekeeper to keep the bathroom and showers clean on top of doing the laundry that is needed. This person will also check people in and out during the day in the administration building.

Costs Associated with Program-                $135,000

Property Purchase-         $26,000- 30,000              

Utilities-               $6,000- 10,000 Estimated per year

Salaries -              $80,000/ year    4 Employees      $20,000/year/each

Passenger Van- $15,000

Build Cost for Community-          $107,666.56

Fence-  $9,182.95

Administrative Building w/ Computer Lab-            $6,667.54

Dining Hall Plus Kitchen-               $5,282.87

Laundry Room- $2,344.89

Shower/ Bathroom Building-       $4,636.16

Amenities/ Appliances- $20,292.35

Tiny House-        $2,212.99 each @ 20 = $44,259.80

Miscellaneous hardware/ Tools-                $10,000

Septic-  $5,000

Total Cost of Program-  $242,666.56

2/10/2019 Status Update

Hello everyone! It is two twenty-three in the afternoon and thirty- five degrees outside. It is a light rain but you can feel the moisture in the air. I have been up since about ten o'clock and have gotten my coffee and house cleaning done for the day. Now it is time to get some of my writing stuff done.

I took the afternoon off yesterday to take a nap and could not recoup from it until around dinner time because my husband and I were talking about something that woke the beast within me. I did a walk for the homeless back in two-thousand and ten and I think it is needed again to raise awareness and to show my passion for helping them regain their self- sufficiency.

We are currently registered in the state of Florida and Georgia and by the end of the year, we are hoping for Tennessee to be included. We were talking about doing a shorter walk which would be a state walk at a time. I began looking at a map last night to show me routes and mileage for Georgia. My husband would go along as my support team.

I also began looking up solicitor permits last night for door to door donations which we could collect money, blankets, food, and clothing. I get amped up every time we talk or discuss things relating to helping the homeless. I want to do whatever we could to help them.

A percentage of all my book sales go to the organization to give her a residual income to help out. Right now all supplies needed are coming out of my own personal money to help. It is something that is very important to me. Hope Station USA has been incorporated for ten years now and it has been slow due to health and medical issues, but I feel a comeback is coming shortly.

So we would do one state walk during this year which we made a deal that I needed to lose a little bit of weight and get my health back into gear before allowing me to do the walk. I agreed that I need to get I shape for it and have set a goal date to have my weight down and my diabetes under control again and that date is August thirty- first.

I have already started back on the treadmill again to build up my endurance and with that, I also have to have my weight down to two-thirty or less and my sugar has to be under control before that date to do the walk in September. I will make these goals and will make this walk to bring about awareness for the homeless situation going on in our country.

I have a book that is scheduled to be written and published in November on homelessness and while I am on my walk, I want to get some of these individuals stories and pictures to put into this book to allow society to get to know these people and see that they are just human beings and what be homeless has done for and to them.

I am also working on the financial and plan for the new program of Hope Station USA that will help them immensely. I am working on the paperwork to set it up for grant proposals to send out. I have thought about this program in my sleep and have seen it work in my mind. This program could take off and then become a national thing to help end our homeless issues. I will be posting this same post on Hope Station USA's website for those who miss it here.

Other than everything going on there, I am still working on my next book and I have one in editing still, but hopefully, it will be published by the end of this month. I have changed my writing schedule around so that it gives me two weeks per book to write them and then work on the editing stage.

I am very excited right now to get things moving and I wanted to share all my thoughts with you and hopefully, I will get some feedback. Please do something nice for a homeless person today and show them you care. It is all I am asking unless you want to purchase one of my books and that can be your way of contributing to our cause.

I want to wish everyone a blessed day and my thoughts and prayers are going out to everyone sleeping outside in the cold. "Happy Birthday" to everyone born on this date. Take care.

2/1/2019 Status Update

Hello everyone and again my prayers go out to those sleeping out in the cold and may they be safe from harm. Today was a good day and I still cannot forget about last week when my husband and I went down to Atlanta to pass out bag lunches to those sleeping on the sidewalks. We are going to have to get a video next time it was just dark by the time we got down there and found all of them.

I saw a man today while out getting some groceries sitting on the curb and he had a sign that stated, "I'm hungry" and it yanked at my heartstrings once again. I still had some bag lunches in the car with no sandwiches in them, so I bought a hamburger to go in the bag with the chips and drink and gave it to him. He was so appreciative that I gave him something to eat. I also gave him a hygiene kit and a box of donuts that I had just bought in the store. I figure he needed it more than myself since I am diabetic.

I felt good to know that I helped someone today even if it was just giving him something to eat. He was happy as he sat there eating it and I was happy knowing that I still had those items in the car. I cannot express how much compassion I have for the homeless and their story. Eventually, I will get with some of them and get their story just so that I can tell it to everyone. Most of society see the homeless as being in their situation because of drugs and alcohol, but if you ever got the chance to talk to one of them and got to know the person, you would see something entirely different.

I still need to get on the phone and make arrangements to set up tables for donations, but I need to get our finances in check first so that we will have the gas to make the trip. A lot of what we are handing out comes from our own finances when we have it to spare. We have not been operating lately because of me being ill and having all the doctor appointments, but I am good now and ready to get things moving.

Not only does my daily schedule work for my book writing and authorship, but it incorporates things for Hope Station like grant writing and program planning. Tomorrow after working the flea market for Hope Station, I have some foundations and grant research to do. I finally broke down and drew up the physical plan for the new program and now I just need to get the paperwork and financials of it down and ready to present to foundations.

Well, this was just a quick update because I need to get candles finished and ready for tomorrow's sale. I hope everyone has a wonderful day and remember to help someone out less fortunate than yourself. Pay it forward.

Feeding the Homeless 1/26/2019

Good morning everyone. It is ten twenty-one in the morning and thirty-four degrees outside here in Dalton, Georgia. It is beautiful outside with the sun shining, but pretty cold. I just woke up from having a bad night last night with sleep. We were supposed to go to the flea market this morning, but after my night, I just couldn't go.

Yesterday was an awesome day because we made up bag lunches and hygiene kits to hand out to the homeless. We were going to hand them out locally but could not find but two individuals and I know that Dalton has lots of homeless people we just couldn't find them and we drove around checking all the spots for about an hour.

Thanks to the Mayor and law enforcement, they have forced the homeless out of the city limits and into the county which makes them widespread. After driving around for about an hour and checking where the tent cities should have been, we decided to go to Atlanta. It is only an hour away and I know that they are all over down there.

We jumped on the interstate and headed South. We got caught in traffic due to road work where they closed off a three-lane interstate to one lane and we were stuck at a slow move for about an hour and a half before it finally cleared up and we were back on our way.

With the Super Bowl a week away, Atlanta does things and events the whole week beforehand leading up to it the main event. This year my Patriots are in the Super Bowl and it is being played right here in Atlanta but I don't have the money to go which is a bummer. It was very active driving through downtown.

We reached our destination at about six o'clock and it was just beginning to get dark and we found a few homeless people but it was dinner time so most of them were at local soup kitchens. We stopped at one because I had to use the bathroom and when I walked inside, this place was packed with homeless individuals and I really got to see just a percentage of the homeless population and it was devastating to me mentally.

There were able-bodied men, who after talking with a few of them stated that there were no jobs that would hire them. It is a shame that a city as big as Atlanta had no jobs for these men. Then, we made our way to our final destination which was the bridge down by the hospital. They lined both sides under the bridge of people laying on the concrete and trying to keep warm.

They were excited to see us coming to hand them a bag lunch and hygiene products. I could not believe how appreciative and polite they were. One of them asked me why we wanted to help them when no one else cares. I almost wanted to cry because these people have been shoved aside like trash to wither and die in the cold.

My husband and I found ourselves in some serious conversations with some of them and it was heartbreaking to see another human being feel like they were worthless and thrown out like trash. One of them asked us to take her home because she didn't want to be out there anymore. Let's just say that our experience was eye-opening to these individuals.

Some were huddled against the wall without a blanket and just covered by a jacket and I felt so bad that we didn't bring any blankets, but I know better now. We need to campaign for blankets and socks. If that is all we can do right now just to help keep them warm during these cold months. So, if anyone wants to make a donation of a package of socks or a blanket, they will be greatly appreciated. These people really need it and we want to spread the warmth as we try to help.

If you decide to make a monetary donation, just click the PayPal button on this site and the money will go towards purchasing food and blankets. We all need to come together to help out our fellow human being. We just hope that everyone has a heart and wants to help.

Well, it is time to get to work finishing off some books of mine because a percentage of all earned royalties goes towards Hope Station USA to assist us in helping the homeless. I want to wish everyone born on this date a "Happy Birthday" and may you have many more to come. To everyone else, have an awesome and blessed Saturday. Take care.

Status Update 1/16/2019

Good morning to all. It is early in the morning here in Dalton, Georgia and the sun is not up yet. I have a busy day writing today and getting books finished. As you know, Hope Station USA gets a good percentage of all book royalties so that she can have a residual income. So everyone needs to get their copies of my books knowing that you are helping the homeless and needy by buying books.

My health is coming back to normal and I am still motivated to get back out there helping those in need. I have filed with the state of Georgia for their registration of Hope Station and awaiting the permit to place inside the big book. I am excited.

Between now and next week, I will be going through my list and setting up tables to collect donations and sell candles & books. It is a new year and with great motivation, we will be servicing the homeless soon with bag lunches and clothing.

It is all that we can afford right now, but it still helps. I need to get a camera to take pictures to add to the site and I look forward to meeting new people and talking to them. I need to find out what is needed by them so that we can be prepared. I will be bagging up hygiene kits next week and that is probably when we will go out because we have warm clothing to pass out.

Well, that is the update for today and I will keep them coming. I hope everyone has a blessed day and my prayers go out to those affected by homelessness and for their safety and warmth. Take care.

Happy New Year's!!

Happy New Year everyone!! How is everyone doing tonight? I am excited about the new year being here because it will bring about new things for Hope Station USA. I am in the works of putting the plans together for the new program that we are developing and still fixing the ads and campaigns to run to bring in funding for the project.

Things move a little slow, but they are coming together. Good things come to those who are patient and wait for their season to come in. I will be setting appointments for donation tables throughout Florida this month to begin drawing in the funding. We have hygiene kits that we will be passing out and hopefully, soon our stockpile fo food will be back up and able to pass out food to those who are hungry.

We have had a couple bad years due to my medical conditions and just recently had surgery to have a pacemaker for my bladder put in, but my faith is bigger than a mustard seed to see Hope Station thrive this year. I have books that have been published and more that will be soon that will create a residual income for Hope Station until more areas of funding begin to come in.

My research for grants has been slow but I expect some good news to come in once we get the plans for the new program set in concrete. I will be picking up some more supplies like socks to hand out and gathering things together to make February our start date for this year with services again.

We are also going to incorporate Tennessee into our plans this year as well. There are many all across America who are hungry, cold, and unemployed who need assistance and not a handout. We are going to be that hand up to assist those in helping themselves in gaining their self-sufficiency. We are not going to turn anyone down who is hungry, but we are going to put in the initiative to help people get back to work and on their feet.

Thinking of Those Sleeping in the Cold

It is supposed to be a Merry Christmas, but I can't help but think about those still sleeping out in the cold and most of them alone without family. I know a lot of them are out there by choice but a lot have no other choices to choose from. It saddens me on this day in particular because we are so busy sending money, clothing, and blankets overseas that we forget about the ones we have suffering here in our own backyards.

Everyone says that they are homeless because of drugs or alcohol, but that is mostly a coping mechanism to being out there in the streets. I was out there for two decades and no one wanted to give me a hand up because all they saw was a prostitute with a drug problem. One man took a chance on me and I have now been clean and street free for a decade now.

I have begun working on a campaign to help those wanting a better life off of the streets. It will take some time putting it together but I have begun the planning process before seeking the funding for it. I need to have all the ducks in a row before seeking funders and volunteers for the project. I am looking positively at it and that it will work to help many.

Should anyone care to help us out with funding now can make a donation on the site itself. We are in need of food and warm blankets for the homeless if you want to drop them by the Georgia address. Well, it is time to get things going and I am running a little late. You can also help out by going to brandidpayne.com and buying one of my books which a percentage of the royalties goes to Hope Station USA.

Well, have a Merry Christmas and please remember those still living out in the cold. Take care.

Running My Ads Today

Even though I cannot do too much due to wearing a temporary pacemaker for my bladder which limits my movements today, I am going to be running ads for donations and getting my table lists built as well as putting our next program plan together to assist those affected by homelessness to regain their self-sufficiency.

I am getting excited about the new things we are doing plus, getting more books published to help out with residual income for Hope Station. Things are looking more positive. I have a full day of research and making plans but everything will move forward.

I just wanted to give everyone an update on the progress of Hope Station and we are hopeful that donations begin coming in. We are in need of food, blankets, and money to help with gas for the vehicle to be able to deliver items and things needed to the homeless.

This will be a short post, but updating on our progress. Have a wonderful day and be blessed. Keep those sleeping out in the streets and cold in your prayers. Take care.

Sitting Down and Getting Things Worked Out for the New Year.

I have compiled my list of things that need to get done and ready for the new year and everything looks good. We are planning to make a run to Florida hopefully next month for some fundraising to help build our funding to begin services back up in January. We need to figure out what our route is going to be to service three states. I am hoping to get two trips into each state a month to assist the homeless, but much preparation is needed plus donations.

I have ads that I need to run plus some other things, but I know it will all fall into place once everything is lined up. My husband who is the vice president will be making these trips with me since it will be a lot of driving. I am going to work on getting the needed food and funding until then.

For now, it is all about getting our game plan down and ready for the new year. I look forward to a better year and more people being helped. I will continue to assist them in any way I can until we make a difference in our homeless population.

If you care to make a donation to help in our efforts, please use the donation button on the website, buy a book on my author website, or you can send a check directly to me made out to Hope Station USA and send it to the address on the home page. I look forward to working with our communities in fighting the battle against hunger and poverty. God bless and take care.

2018 Is Our Year!!

     Last year was a hard year even into the first part of this year due to health issues for me, but things will get better this year. I have faith that we will be blessed with enough funding to help us continue our efforts in assisting the homeless regain their self-sufficiently and to feed those in need. We are in the works of getting our game plan in order.
     I have become an author of three books with one being the first in a series that tells my story. This series I am writing is to hopefully help those who are facing the same issues. I am a survivor who wishes to give my experience and knowledge to those out there facing the nightmare that I lived for thirty-two years. It is not a nice place to be mentally, physically, or even emotionally. It can destroy someone and make them feel hopeless.
     It bothers me when those who are financially secure talk down about those who are in need because they are already beaten down and society makes them feel worse. Most need and desire a hand up and not a handout. I wish people would recognize when someone truly needs help and not just a bum and a beggar.
     Well, with my books sales I will be giving a percentage of my royalties and revenue to Hope Station USA to be able to help more. Join me in fighting for and supporting those who need us by clicking that button on this site if you wish to make a donation. You will receive a receipt for tax purposes and I will continue to post here informing everyone what their contribution is doing to fight homelessness and hunger. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.