IT'S A LONG WALK FROM THE STREET - A journey with a guy called "Joe" - Part 19

The following Saturday I got a call from Joe’s brother informing me that Joe had been admitted to the hospital. When I got there to see him it scared me. He looked like he was facing death. The doctors found that his liver, kidneys and pancreas had stopped functioning and his heart was starting to malfunction. They determined that the virus was the culprit and was attacking his organs – as is characteristic of this particular viral condition.

We all started praying for him. His condition went from terrible to worse. He was taken to the ICU as they fought to save his life. Finally he started getting better. But we noticed him losing weight. He couldn’t eat much. It would cause abdominal pain. The doctors noticed a mass on his pancreas but weren’t able to diagnose the cause or nature because the fluid in Joe’s abdomen prevented them from getting a scope to his pancreas to effectively see what they were dealing with. Joe was in the hospital for a couple of weeks.

Then on day the family got a call from Joe stating that they had just transferred him from the hospital to the Norfolk Health Care Center. No warning. No communication with the family. No explanation. They just put him in a medical transport and sent him to the health care center with an order for a 10-week stay.

On the first Sunday that Joe was in the health care center, my wife and I were serving communion to some of the “sick and shut-in” from our home church along with some of the our other ministers. We included Joe on our list and went to serve him. His brother was there visiting with him. As we prepared to serve Joe communion, his stepmother walked in. This was the first time I’d ever had all of them in the same room. We served communion to Joe and his stepmother. Then I asked his brother if he would like to join us for the closing prayer. This was a God moment. We prayed for God to use this moment to reconnect this family that has been disjointed for decades. We sensed the Holy Spirit moving in the room and touching hearts.

Joe is getting better. He misses being in church. Please keep him in your prayers. He told me that I could share his picture with you all. He’s like my little older brother. I love him.

IT'S A LONG WALK FROM THE STREET - A journey with a guy called "Joe" - part 18

Finally that Sunday came when Joe walked up to me after church with a big smile on his face. He said, “Mike, I got good news. We finally got it.” He pulled out an envelope and showed me a document stating that he was qualified for Disability Assistance and Medicaid. He was so happy! So was I.

Working with Joe has shown me how insignificant our society can make homeless persons feel. We can treat them like numbers, like statistics, like a disease to society, like they aren’t a part of the same race. We can treat them like they aren’t significant. But these are people with amazing stories and a wealth of knowledge. Joe, for instance, has a great memory for dates. He’s like a walking calendar. His stories are rich with detail and history. No, he’s not insignificant.

God worked a beautiful work in Joe’s life. He has been coming to church faithfully every Sunday and has received Jesus as Savior. God saved him. He doesn’t even look like the same person.

It was always so cool to see him walk with that slow hobble into the sanctuary with his bible in his hand for the 9:30AM service. We would make our way to each other after service for our quick greeting. He’d tell me his story from that week. We’d talk about the squabbling between him and his stepmother. I’d help him see that her protective ways were efforts to express her love for him.

Then one Sunday I noticed that I hadn’t seen Joe all day.

IT'S A LONG WALK FROM THE STREET - A journey with a guy called "Joe" - part 17

We kept fighting. As the weeks passed I noticed that Joe was coming to church every Sunday. As we talked, I found that he gave up alcohol completely – just went cold turkey. God set him free. A few weeks later, Joe told me that he gave up cigarettes. A few weeks later, Joe told me that his brother was so impressed with how God was changing Joe’s life that he decided to follow Joe and give up alcohol as well. Joe’s relationship with his stepmother was getting better and better. She had opened the door for him to stay with her temporarily – but it was turning into a permanent arrangement. They were becoming family again.

One Sunday, Joe came to greet me and I noticed his eyes were very yellow. Later that week we met. Joe began to tell me about the health problems he was having. This was before he was approved for Medicaid. We started praying that he would get approved for Medicaid quickly so that he could go to a real hospital. You see, he had been going to Park Place Medical Center, but there was nothing being done about the pains he was having in his stomach, the discoloration of his bodily fluids nor the yellowing of his eyes. He was given prescriptions for pain pills and blood pressure medicine and sent home.

Can you imagine the variety of stories that social workers hear everyday? I’m sure they have to learn how to not take these matters to heart in order to not leave work depressed each day. But while taking Joe around to a variety of appointments, I’ve discovered that sometimes some social workers can seem cold and impenetrable. I don’t know how good that is.

Then we got a big break! Joe came in one Sunday and showed me his medical records from a hospital stay some years ago. He had records that showed the virus that had been diagnosed and the bone mass loss that caused the multiple bone fractures. He finally had enough to make a case for disability. We met with the doctor at the medical center but she did very little with this information. We pressed on with an advocate with the HART (Homelessness Action Response Team) Organization. He worked with Joe’s case and fought for him.

IT'S A LONG WALK FROM THE STREET - A journey with a guy called "Joe" part 16


I felt frustration. After all this work to try and get Joe some assistance, this man was being told that he didn’t qualify for the assistance that our state offers. This man who had been living on the streets, whose mother introduced him to alcohol as a youth, whose life had been nearly destroyed, who had just begun hoping again, who was just now getting back on his feet, was now being told that he wasn’t qualified for this particular kind of assistance.

But, I knew that it wouldn’t be good for Joe to know what I was feeling. He needed hope. He needed to have a better perspective. So, I began to tell him that this was good news. I told him how he didn’t have to wait any longer for someone else to provide for him. He could now go out there and find some work and provide for himself. He could be self-supporting. I started reminding him of how smart he was, and that he didn’t have to get a job slinging 50-pound boxes. Instead, he could find a job where his brilliant mind would be the key asset.

We arrived back at the church and hung out for a while before Joe left. When he walked out of the door, the smile dropped from my face. I was glad that Julie from Second Chances happened to be conducting a class at the church that day and couldn’t wait to talk to her about the day’s developments.

Julie was ready to call in the cavalry. She told me that we couldn’t just let it rest with this doctor’s opinion. She pointed out the inequity in the social services system… how so many people who are much more physically able than Joe have been qualified for disability assistance. She even told me a part of her personal story. She told me that I should call Congressman Bobby Scott… or call Senator Yvonne Miller – another human rights advocate. She made it clear to me that it was time to fight for this man’s assistance.

But I had a complex combination of emotions going through my head.

IT'S A LONG WALK FROM THE STREET - A journey with a guy called "Joe" part 15

I haven’t given you an update on my friend Joe in quite some time. Let me get you up to date kinda quickly here. But first, I have to take you back to January.

That day that we went to Park Place Medical Center and found the facility closed due to the holiday left us with some free time. So, I took advantage of this opportunity to sit and talk with Joe and his stepmother. Joe was complaining a lot about her and she had called me a few times complaining about him. So I thought there needed to be some intervention. Sometimes when family units are reconnecting there will be bumps in the road. Sometimes there will be a need for mediation. So I sat with Joe and his stepmother. I listened to her as she complained about what Joe did and didn’t do. I listened to Joe as he complained about what she would and wouldn’t do. I prayed for wisdom and tried as best I could to mediate. By the time I left I felt that God was working in that house that that the relationship was going to grow.

Joe finally got in for his first appointment at the medical center. The doctor didn’t do too much. I wasn’t with Joe for the appointment. Several weeks later, Joe was scheduled for a follow-up doctor appointment. We arrived at the Park Place Medical Center and signed Joe in for the appointment. A few minutes later we were called to the desk and informed that Joe’s doctor didn’t come into the office that day and that the appointment would have to be rescheduled. So, we rescheduled for the following week on that Thursday. A week passed and we arrived at Park Place for our rescheduled appointment. As we were about to get out of the car, I realized that I left a document that we needed Joe’s doctor to complete. So, I dropped Joe off and left to grab the document – which was only 8 minutes away. Four minutes into my eight-minute trip I got a call from the clerk at Park Place informing me that Joe didn’t have an appointment. She explained that while they found the vacant appointment slot during our previous visit, and told us when the rescheduled appointment would be, AND gave us an appointment card… still they neglected to put Joe’s name in the slot. So, again, the appointment had to be rescheduled.

The following Tuesday, Joe called me and said that he called Park Place to make sure they had his appointment scheduled and there would be no problem when we arrived for his Wednesday appointment. When we arrived on the following day, they did have Joe’s appointment on the schedule. We arrived at 10:41 for Joe’s 10:45 appointment. About 11:00, Joe was called into the back for the nurse to take his weight, temp, pulse and BP. We were sent back to the lobby. About 12:45 we were called to the back for Joe to see the doctor. About 15 minutes later, the doctor arrived in the exam room where Joe and I had been waiting.

The physician examined Joe again, looked over the results from the blood work done at Joe’s previous visit, asked for the documents we needed her to complete… then lowered the boom on us. She informed us that, based on her findings, she could not qualify Joe as being disabled. She would complete the Department of Human Services paperwork but would state that he is able to work with limited lifting – only 15 pounds. She would continue his prescription for the chronic pain he lives with. She would write him a prescription to get a walker to help him walk, but he’s not disabled. She did also complete the form for him to temporarily have disability privileges with the public transit system. Finally, she informed Joe that he has a chronic viral condition. He thought that when he was diagnosed many years ago, it was a virus that would go away once he went through treatment. She informed us that this condition was one that doesn’t go away.

As we left that facility, I saw a look on Joe’s face that I hadn’t seen in three months. I saw hopelessness.