Working with CATCH gives me a look into the lives of many experiencing homelessness

We wouldn’t have found Randy if we didn’t have GPS coordinates. His conversion van is nestled in the belly of a crescent butte, the driver’s side window is busted out and replaced with cardboard. “Hey Randy, are you home?” we call.

There are crushed beer cans and broken bottles orbiting a fire pit so large that full trees are balancing in the center like they’re kindling. There is sun-bleached garbage scattered between the struggling sagebrush. This isn’t Randy’s mess. This is a party spot for local kids. Randy is here for the same reason teenagers come here to party; it’s discrete.

“Who is it?” Randy’s voice is gravely and raspy. He sounds thirsty.

“Outreach!”

I am the Outreach Program Manager for CATCH, and our team is responding to a referral from the Bureau of Land Management.

The van rocks a little and Randy grunts with exertion. He uprooted and moved back to Idaho to take care of his mom when it became clear she was short on time. Her time ended up being longer than expected but still too short. Far too short for Randy.

After she passed, Randy pushed through his grief working odd jobs but couldn’t make the rent. That’s how he ended up here, in the desert. Randy kicks the door of the van open and shimmies out onto the gravel. He shuffles his bare feet around to find a place to stand absent of glass shards. He leans forward out of the van and rolls his body into a question mark, his hands on his knees, heaving for breath.

Water? I ask, extending a bottle out. Randy is a hulk of a man. He was a contractor. He owned his own business. He worked hard, and it showed. Randy finally looks up.

“Bless you,” he whispers, sweat rolling off his nose. He strains to reach up for the bottle.

“Bless you,” he says, grimacing, appearing as though he would be crying if he weren’t so dehydrated.

Randy’s is just one of 50 known camps in the foothills and high desert range surrounding Boise. People stay out in these hostile environments for a variety of reasons, but typically in the same vein — Randy, specifically, is consumed with grief.

Bottled water, reusable water bottles, sports drinks, sunscreen, gas and/or grocery gift cards, and propane provide life-sustaining resources for these people. In Randy’s case, even a little comfort to shepherd him out of the desert. CATCH’s Our Path Home Outreach Team gratefully accepts donations of these items at 511 S Americana Blvd in Boise during business hours. Bless you.

Casey McGee is the Homeless Outreach Program Manager for CATCH. The Outreach program’s role is to meet people where they are at, physically and figuratively, to address the unique barriers and support the unique needs to overcome the crisis which is homelessness.