This commentary is by Rev. Devon Thomas, pastor of Ascension Lutheran Church in South Burlington.
During the pandemic, Vermont’s state government stepped up more than usual to help those without housing put a roof over their heads.
Vermont’s motel program has been pushing for more transitional housing for the purpose of getting our neighbors off the streets and on their feet. For those working to end homelessness in our state, lodging is the important first step to help folks find job stability and eventually a home of their own.
But none of that work can even begin until we help folks find a room.
As a faith leader, I believe that helping those who struggle with homelessness is a moral imperative. It is one of the clearest ways we can love our neighbors and put those who are last first. Also, as a person who grew up in the state, I have come to appreciate Vermont’s neighborly values and hospitality.
Still, Vermont has an age-old problem with poverty and homelessness. We had this problem before the pandemic, during the pandemic, and it is still a problem today. It would be a moral failing on our part to forget our neighbors who are struggling just because we are no longer struggling ourselves.
Our state’s motel program was funded on government aid, and the reason for ending the program is that there simply is no money left for it in the state’s budget. However, this does not mean that we should simply abandon a program that has helped to give stability to so many struggling Vermonters, many of whom are families with children.
The second the motel program was implemented, our state should have been working to help find more permanent funding for this program and expand upon transitional housing we desperately lack. The motel program was meant to be a bandage to help get us through tough times, but the unseen reality is that times have always been tough for those we refuse to see.
It baffles me that our Legislature will work to keep gas prices low for struggling families but will not work to put a roof over their heads. It saddens me that the stability of so many of our neighbors’ lives has been reduced to the bottom line of a budget.
When Vermonters care enough about the good of others, we work together to make positive change. I feel that the 800 people evicted from their lodging this past week should wake us up to the difficulty of not having a place to rest. How many of us, like Mary and Joseph, have traveled to another place, only to find there is no room at any inn, having to suffer the conditions of a stable or, worse, a park bench, or cold and damp ground?
Homelessness is a reality that can affect us all when we least expect it. It can come after a sudden loss of a job or an unforeseen financial crisis that renders us destitute. It serves everyone’s best interest for us to be a state that can efficiently and effectively lift people up from homelessness. It better equips Vermonters to stay in Vermont. It keeps our workforce stable, and it allows folks with vital life experiences to find a voice in our state. It’s also just the right thing to do.
And so, as the state puts the brakes on its motel program, I would encourage our Vermont neighbors to reach out to local housing advocates, such as the Champlain Housing Trust or the Lamoille Housing Partnership. These are the organizations that have been constantly working to expand housing in our state, and will find more work placed on their shoulders as this program comes to a close.
Housing and homelessness will always be problems to which our communities should pay close attention. If the state will not take up the problem, it falls to us in our local communities to do the right thing and provide a place to sleep for a neighbor in need.
