NEW GLASGOW – Mothers always worry about their children. Even though her son is 46, Donelda Clements has more reasons to worry than most.
Clements’ son, Brett Rhodes, has been living on the streets for more than a month, sleeping on a concrete block outside the Life Centre church on Marsh Street. Rhodes has schizophrenia, and his mother says he’s off his medications.
“All I do is pray,” she said, her voice wavering.
“I know he’s not taking his pills, because he wouldn’t be on the street if he was.”
She first found out Rhodes was on the street in August, and has spent the last month making calls – to Mental Health, to the police, to her doctor. But everyone’s hands seem to be tied, she said, and Mental Health can’t give her any answers because Rhodes is an adult.
“I’m worried, my pressure is way up, but there’s nothing I can do,” she said.
Clements, who is in her 80s, lives in seniors housing and can’t give her son a home.
“I know, if I do, what’ll happen to me, and at my age, I can’t go out looking for an apartment, now,” she said.
Her daughter, who lives in Antigonish, has offered to let Rhodes live with her, but he doesn’t want to go to Antigonish. Instead, every time she comes to visit her mother, she makes sure to give her brother some money.
Residents from across the county seem to be opening their pockets and giving Rhodes food, says Pastor Keith Hazzard with the Life Centre.
“We know him quite well – he comes in to our breakfast program regularly, goes to the Good Shepherd’s Lunchroom, and everybody and their dog drops off food, blankets, coffee,” Hazzard said. “Individuals just pull over and hand him a bag. I don’t know how healthy what he’s eating is – there’s a lot of McDonald’s bags and coffee cups – but quantity-wise, he’s probably eating better than I am.”
Hazzard has been told that Rhodes was kicked out of America House several weeks ago because he was making a lot of noise as he has episodes.
“He talks to himself quite loudly, screeches, yells,” Hazzard said. “They finally put their foot down, he was basically running up and down the halls screaming. Since then, he’s taken up residence on the edge of our property.”
The Life Centre has been trying to get him help – they’ve made calls to Adult Protection, Mental Health, the police, everyone Hazzard can think of – but there just aren’t any local groups capable of providing emergency shelter for homeless men.
“We see a lot of people with mental health issues – they seem to be the people who fall through the cracks,” Hazzard said. “Brett is the classic example, he’s fallen through the cracks. We’re just hoping there’s a catch-all at the bottom.”
On Wednesday morning, Rhodes was clad in two pairs of jean shorts and at least five shirts as he smoked a cigarette down to the filter and clutched a baggie with homemade cookies in his hand. He was surrounded with flannel blankets and bags of belongings as he sat on a concrete block that serves as his bed.
His conversation rambled at times, but when asked what he would do when winter arrived, he said, “I’m a woodsman.”
Hazzard worries what will happen when the weather gets colder.
“The church is somewhat appalled, and the whole town is in an uproar,” he said, adding that Rhodes has become the face of homelessness in Pictou County. Hazzard says that while Rhodes isn’t alone – there are two or three others he knows of who are homeless in the county – none of the others are visibly camped out on a main street.
“The others aren’t right on our doorstep, where you can’t miss him.”
The Life Centre, as well as the United Way, have been receiving phone calls about Rhodes. New Glasgow Police also say they’re aware of the situation and are keeping an eye on Rhodes.
“It’s heartening to see the response, that people care enough to make a phone call. This is something that bothers people. But right now he’s between a rock and a hard place, all the collective institutions we’ve contacted are looking at each other and not sure what we can do,” Hazzard said.
Jessica Smith, executive director of the United Way, says her office is very aware of the situation and has been meeting with the Life Centre to see if there are resources available for Rhodes. Right now, though, they’re coming up empty.
“We’re greatly concerned,” she said. “He’s fine right now, it’s still warm out, but what happens when winter comes and it gets colder? We’re concerned.”
But, she adds, he also highlights a big problem in the county.
“Everyone’s talking so much about youth homelessness that I think it’s forgotten that there are others as well,” she said. “Even just being in the community a short time, I’ve seen a lot of transient people who just need somewhere to sleep and shower before they go on their way. Here at the United Way office, we’ve had a couple of homeless people coming in, looking for help. We offer them our phone, a cup of coffee, but there’s not much else we can provide them.”
The situation has sparked a discussion about the need for an emergency shelter in the area, and Hazzard says the Life Centre is looking at the possibilities. But it’s a big task – it would require facilities for someone to sleep and shower, security, food, volunteers to run it.
“We’re looking at the options to provide service to people like Brett,” he said. “But we don’t have the funding, the staff, the building itself – we’re just in the exploration stage. We’re doing what we can to expedite things before winter.”
But that won’t help Rhodes, right now at least, and at the moment, no one seems able to provide any answers for Clements’ son.
“He needs care,” she said. “I’ve talked to police, talked to his doctor. But because he hasn’t done anything, they can’t do anything.”
It breaks her heart to think of her son on the streets. He once excelled in many sports, including baseball, soccer, basketball and hockey and was once employed at Scott Paper and a military reservist before his mental illness took over his life.
“It just breaks my heart,” she said. “All I can say is, ‘Lord, he’s in your hands.’ I can’t make him move from there and I don’t know what the situation is at America House. What can I do? He’s out there, in the rain, shine, with all that rain we’ve had. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
Way to blame the victim. He's mentally ill. But he should just take some responsibility I guess and straighten himself out. Lots of compassion there, Citizen. And women have shelters to go to - men have jail.