What is the best thing to offer homeless people we see on the streets? I am afraid the money I give goes to alcohol.

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9 Answers

Ancient Hippy Profile
Ancient Hippy answered

Donate to a homeless shelter, hand them a couple of McDonalds burgers, give them clothes, etc.

dragonfly forty-six Profile

Food, bottled water. If they have a pet, dog or cat food. Where I live you find a lot of lonely homeless people who have pets. They can usually find a place for dinner, but those places don't usually have food for their animals.

Firstname Refreshme lastname Profile

A warm meal and dry socks. Clean dry socks are difficult for a homeless person to have. Having dry socks is very important to them. You'll see the gratitude in their eyes when you offer them a pair or two.

Didge Doo Profile
Didge Doo answered

I once gave a handout to a guy in a city park and he got all conversational. He said, "Do you know the devil?" So I said, "Yeah, he's a good mate of mine." And he said, "Well, I've seen him..."

And so he had. It was while he was having a fit of delerium tremens and, of all places, he saw him at the Salvation Army's homeless shelter. Is nowhere safe from Old Scratch?

But I can't answer your question. I occasionally gave money but I didn't make a habit of carrying around food vouchers or taking homeless people out to lunch. It's more convenient to give what you have in your pocket, even though you know it'll go on booze. It's their choice, really.

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Tris Fray Potter
Tris Fray Potter commented
Even though Vegemite is an Australian food, I know a lot of people who don't like Vegemite at all. A lot of Americans also don't know that, while it is 100% safe to do so, Vegemite tastes so horrible that it is almost impossible to eat Vegemite out of the jar without (at the least) feeling sick. You would need to give them some bread or crackers if you wanted to also give them Vegemite. I am an Australian -American who lives in Australia and I hate Vegemite on anything. So really, Australian stereotypes are usually wrong, such as the fact that most people I know at school don't say 'mate', although there are a few who do, but it is mainly the older Australians.
Didge Doo
Didge Doo commented
Hah! EVERYBODY I know says "Mate". You must be going to a funny old school.

Of course, it's only in the last 30 years that we've had any guys in Oz. Until then we were all blokes. Blokes called each other mate and they called the sheilas "Love" -- a practice frowned upon by our feminists. :)
Tris Fray Potter
Tris Fray Potter commented
I also don't know anyone who calls girls and women 'sheila'. I didn't know that there weren't any 'guys' here until recently, but I guess it does make sense because some of the older Australians I know talk in 'blokes,' ect.
PJ Stein Profile
PJ Stein answered

If you don't want to give money buy $5 or $10 gift certificates for a local fast food place. It is easy to carry and they get food.

Arthur Wright Profile
Arthur Wright , Florida Paralegal with a BS degree in Social-Psychology, answered

Never give money. There was a NEWs station in Tampa that did an article on homeless begging for money and they talked to one man on a freeway off ramp in Tampa, and he said he made over 70,000 USD doing this and when he left he left in a brand new yellow Corvette. So offer food or clothes or pet food for pet *great idea Dragonfly) , anything but money

Walt O'Reagun Profile
Walt O'Reagun answered

Depends on the situation.
In all honesty ... In Oregon and Washington, anyway ... A lot of the "homeless" hanging out in parking lots and highway on/off ramps are NOT homeless.  They just prefer to scam people by pretending to be homeless, rather than working.  Many of them live in upper-middle-class neighborhoods.

Bikergirl Anonymous Profile

Things are not always as they seem .. It is well known that a lot of 'homeless' people make a good living at begging for money. Many college kids do it to pay their tuitions .. And actually even graduate. It's a total scam.. However, sure ..  there are the ones who are 'true' street people who are there because they litterally have no place else to live .. And THEY have no choice.  Sometimes it's hard to tell one from the other. 

So food offerings or donations to local charities that offer food and clothing is a great way to get much needed neccessities to those who need it.

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