HomeCommentaryPOLL: Do you give money to panhandlers
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POLL: Do you give money to panhandlers

By: Tracy Simmons

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WIK_100513_beggarThere’s no denying that Spokane has a homeless population. What do you do when you encounter someone asking for money?

Why are why not? Be sure to take our poll below.

Tracy Simmons
Tracy Simmons
Tracy Simmons is an award-winning journalist specializing in religion reporting and digital entrepreneurship. In her approximate 20 years on the religion beat, Simmons has tucked a notepad in her pocket and found some of her favorite stories aboard cargo ships in New Jersey, on a police chase in Albuquerque, in dusty Texas church bell towers, on the streets of New York and in tent cities in Haiti. Simmons has worked as a multimedia journalist for newspapers across New Mexico, Texas, Connecticut and Washington. She is the executive director of FāVS.News, a digital journalism start-up covering religion news and commentary in Spokane, Washington. She also writes for The Spokesman-Review and national publications. She is a Scholarly Associate Professor of Journalism at Washington State University.
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Paul Susac
Paul Susac
12 years ago

I have worked with a LOT of drug addicts over the years. I’ve known many of them to be pan-handlers. If confronted I usually refer them to an agency to help them with their basic needs (UGM is a default choice), and even confront them on their addiction and refer to drug treatment if I see that this is clearly an issue.

I have loosened up on this policy with the current economic climate. Clearly a lot of people are just down on their luck because, you know…. Financial markets wrecked the economy. It’s a real judgment call.

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Jame Curtiss
Jame Curtiss
12 years ago

I have on occasion but it is rare. It takes a clear, strong prodding of the Holy Spirit for me to give. I don’t encounter many, other than those standing on street corners, and I know many of those choose the lifestyle. I had a friend whose daughter found herself needing gas money once so asked someone in a mall parking lot for help…then thought, “what an interesting thought,” proceeding to collect over $100 in a couple of hours. I prefer to give through volunteering through UGM and through my church.

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