Many homeless call Storage Lockers or a tunnel under the highway, “Home.” Why?… because they have no other place to go. Here is a true story and a parallel.
This story could have started with a comedian describing, in their ‘subtle, humorous way,’ ‘the outrageous cost of living’ and joking about how they and their family were now renting a storage unit to live.
The funny part was (excuse the pun), the skit showed families living side by side in storage units as their full-time residences. They even had someone acting as a lookout, watching for security so everyone could sneak back into their units without getting caught.
Although it had a humorous spin on the backs of a very serious situation people face today, I couldn’t help but think, ‘looking at it from a different angle,’ “it almost made sense.”
Most storage units are about the size of a small bedroom. The office area usually has a shared washroom. With a little engineering and some cosmetic adjustments, could it actually work?
Could storage lockers be an answer to homelessness dilemma or at least a temporary shelter?
>> A Real-Life Story <<
Facebook Post … January 1 > *My name is Curtis. I’m 66.
My name’s Curtis. I’m 66. I’m the night security guard at XXXX Storage on XXXXX Drive. Rows of metal units, combination locks, fluorescent lights that buzz. Midnight to 8 a.m., six nights a week. I just walk the grounds, check locks, and make sure nobody’s breaking in.
Most units sit untouched for years.
But unit 247 was different. Someone came every single night. Around 2 a.m. Young woman, maybe 25. She’d unlock it, go inside for exactly twenty minutes, then leave. For three months straight. Finally, curiosity got me. One night, I knocked. “Ma’am, everything okay? “She jumped. Scared. Then saw my uniform, relaxed a little. “I’m just… staying here.” “Staying?” She showed me inside. The storage unit was set up like a bedroom. Air mattress. Lamp. Mini fridge. Clean but cramped.
“I work two jobs. Can’t afford first month, last month, and deposit for an apartment. This costs $85 a month. It’s all I can manage right now.” My heart sank. “You’ve been sleeping here? For three months?” She nodded, embarrassed. “I shower at the gym. I’m saving. Just need a few more months.” That’s against policy. I should’ve reported her. Instead, I said, “You got heat in here?”
“Space heater.” “Fire hazard. Let me bring you a better one tomorrow. Safer.”
She started crying. I started paying attention after that. Unit 189, teenager doing homework by flashlight because his home had no electricity. Unit 312, elderly man living there after his house flooded. People were using storage units as homes because they had nowhere else. I talked to my manager. “We got people living here. We can’t kick them out. Where would they go?”
“Policy says”
“Policy doesn’t pay rent deposits. These people are trying.” He thought about it. Finally, “You’re in charge at night. I don’t ask, you don’t tell.” I started keeping supplies in my office. Blankets. Food. Phone chargers. When I’d see someone living in their unit, I’d knock. “Need anything?” That young woman in 247? Saved enough. Moved into an apartment last month. Came back to thank me. Handed me $200. “For whoever’s in my old spot now.”
There’s a college kid there now. Saving for tuition. Other storage facilities heard about it. Started looking the other way. Helping quietly. Creating “transition programs” for people living in units.
I’m 66. I patrol empty hallways in the middle of the night.
But I learned this, home isn’t always legal or permanent. Sometimes it’s 10×10 feet of metal and hope. So look the other way sometimes. Bend the rules. Give people space to survive while they’re climbing out. Because everyone’s between something. And sometimes a storage unit is the only thing storing their dignity.”
Let this story reach more hearts…. *** Signed Curtis, night security and Mary Nelson ***
*** That’s a ‘powerful story with food for thought.’ ***
If we could truly put ourselves in someone else’s shoes, even for a short moment, wouldn’t it make us more understanding? I think it would.
Now, this part of the story might sound like I’m swaying; however, the theme would be the same.
WHICH BRINGS ME TO ANOTHER IDEA AND A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE, “THE TUNNEL IDEA “
While out on my daily walk, I pass under a road tunnel on the way to the local park. It was cold, snow falling steadily, and I remember thinking, “Canadian winters can be brutal.” I’d better dress warmly today.
As I proceeded under the road tunnel leading to the city walking trail, for some unknown reason, a light went off in the gray matter, and a strange idea came over me.
If I were homeless, truly homeless, and with these winter weather conditions, this would work just fine, as I’m looking at the tunnel surroundings through different eyes. It already had lighting. It offered protection from wind and snow. Looking from a different perspective, it didn’t look like a dark tunnel; it looked like a useable shelter.
- This wouldn’t be the Hilton Hotel or Trump Towers, but it would be dry. It would be warmer. And sometimes that’s enough to get them through another winter.
I grew up without much. I understand how quickly life can change. There’s an old saying going around now: “Most of us are only three paychecks away from being homeless.”
That rings painfully true after you read the statistics further on.
With a few modifications, temporary walls, safe heating, basic ventilation, a space like this could shelter dozens of people during the winter months. Not forever, its not designed for such a thing; however, just long enough to survive the season.
I’ve seen photos of a U.S. military base in Utah that was built through the mountain with an entrance way quite similar to the one I’m walking through.
And after visiting a Submarine Museum during the summer, the sleeping quarters for the sailors on board are inhumane by most people’s standards. One on top of the other, three beds high and sharing their bed with a person who’s on the opposite shift.
- So please donate if you can. Support your local food bank or shelter. And most importantly, try to see people through a lens of compassion.
Thinking of military bunkers or submarines and tight quarters, shared spaces, but functional. They make do with the room they have. This idea isn’t a permanent solution. It’s an emergency one.
Four workers and a few days of improvising. Temporary heating. Basic sanitation. A safe, dry place to sleep.
However, many people will reject this idea outright, especially those who have never had to worry about sleeping outside. But if you’ve ever spent a night cold, scared, and unsure where morning would come from, your perspective changes.
So, whether it is the story of the Storage Locker for temporary accommodations or the “tunnel idea; >>> For a short moment in time, ‘if you could put yourself in someone else shoes,’ would that make you a better understanding person? *** Yeah, that’s a BIG maybe. ***
Homeless Shelter
A Final Thought**
Did you know? Poverty remains one of the biggest drivers of homelessness. Rising rents, stagnant wages, and soaring living costs are pushing more people onto the streets.
Studies show that nearly “half of all homeless adults are over 50 years old and the homeless senior count is rising at a horrible rate.” This is one of the fastest-growing homeless demographics in North America.
As one researcher put it:
“The idea that older people are becoming homeless is difficult to process, but it’s happening.” This is not a fringe issue anymore, It’s everywhere.
*** Put yourself in their shoes. “This could happen to you.”***
>>> If you want to read more ‘National Coalition for the Homeless.” CLICK HERE. <<<
So please donate if you can. Support your local food bank or shelter. And most importantly, try to see people through a lens of compassion.
