[UPDATE] Ted Williams: Man With Golden Voice

Remember Ted Williams, the guy with the amazing voice that ended up homeless until he was discovered via viral video outlets? Well, he’s doing better than a lot of us and he’s quick to attribute all of his success and sobriety to God.

I, myself, am glad this turned out to be positive. Several rumors of him falling back into his old ways began surfacing as soon as he started getting cleaned up and recruited. Currently, the voice of Ted Williams can be heard in Kraft food commercials and he’s joined NECN as the official voice of the New England cable channel, working out of his at-home studio in Dublin, Ohio.

Jump to See Video

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DJWillieShakes

Music Legend Homeless and Living Out of a Van

Funk music legend Sly Stone once lived in a Beverly Hills mansion where the likes of Stevie Wonder and Jimi Hendrix would stop by. Now, he finds himself homeless living in a white camper van in the Crenshaw neighborhood in L.A., according to a New York Post story. His van is parked on a residential road and a retired couple who lives near by checks in on him and make sure he eats once a day.

Sly, 68, saw his money disappear due to a combination of substance abuse, a life of excess and financial mismanagement.  The notoriously reclusive Sly was the leader sing for Sly and the Family Stone, a  multiracial, multi-gender band that fused funk, soul and psychedelic rock and became one of a very influential musical act.

Slyde on to the next page…

Posted by:

Justin Burkhardt

Homeless Families Hit the Streets

Aren’t you glad summer’s finally here? The recent reemergence of the sun makes me crave days at the beach and nights spent camping. But the recession means that for many (hell, most of us) a vacation simply isn’t that feasible this year.

We should consider ourselves lucky if that’s the worst recession can do. It’s hit a lot of people a lot harder. Every year, the number of families who are homeless skyrocket at the beginning of summer. This year has been particularly bad. People from 10 000 families will become homeless in New York alone this summer, an increase of more than 28% from last year. At last count, that number had already hit 9420—9420 moms, dads, brothers, sisters, and children on the street in one city. That’s A LOT of people—so many, that if you wanted to meet them all, one a day, it would take you more than 27 years.

But numbers are just statistics. They don’t tell the whole story. People do. Like 11 year old Arielle Figueras, who completed fifth grade one day and was in a shelter with her family the next. Or the Dixon family, who were evicted in April, have been separated in various homes since then, and are now reunited on the streets. Families who had found short-term solutions—like staying with relatives or asking the landlord to temporarily take pity on them—are booted out now that the weather is warmer and the kids are out of school and underfoot.
… Continue Reading

Posted by:

Yolanda Clatworthy

Mail To: 54 Camping Tent, Hwy Underpass, Miami

In the middle of downtown Miami, a tent city exists not far from the mansions and beaches that Miami is famous for. Yet despite their proximity, neither community ever mixes—it’s forbidden by law. Why? Because the tent city is “home” to approximately 70 sex offenders, who are forced to live there due to a local law that mandates sex offenders who abused children must remain at least 2500 feet away from locations where there are high concentrations of children.

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Yolanda Clatworthy

Bringing Our Veterans All the Way Back Home

We haven’t spent much time covering veteran affairs on 99problems.org but, like many Americans, I certainly support the men and women who put their lives on the line for our country.  The controversy over the War in Iraq, tied deeply to the Bush Administration, has all but died down in recent months.  Afghanistan looms on the horizon, but lately it seems you’re more likely to hear about Elections in Pakistan and Nuclear Warheads in North Korea than news from the front lines of America’s war in the Middle East.

As long as our country maintains a standing army, we owe our troops the dignity and honor they deserve.  That’s why it is so nice to read Shannon Moriarty‘s article on Change.org  discussing President Obama’s promise to find homes for the 160,000 homeless veterans in America.

According to the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, “[a]bout one-third of the adult homeless population have served their country in the Armed Services.”  One third!  That is a travesty, and it is clear that these veterans — many of them who date back to the Vietnam War — have been forgotten by our country, left to fend for themselves and shoulder the burden of their experiences alone.

President Obama’s decision to tackle this issue in 5 years is laudible.

Posted by:

Sam Patton