Understanding Challenges Faced By Homeless Individuals In Evansville

Marvin Ray Beck died from hypothermia last week in Downtown Evansville, Indiana. Mr. Beck was 67 years old, and part of Evansville's homeless population. His death has sparked many heated conversations on social media. Far too many people do not realize the network of services that are offered to help people like Mr. Beck, and unfortunately, some of the homeless refuse help.

We can all agree that knowing a man died alone, covered in snow on one of the coldest nights of the year is awful. So, it has been easy for those behind a keyboard to place blame and point fingers. But the truth is, his death has been very difficult for the staff at Aurora, the Evansville Police Department, and other outreach organizations that did offer him help at some point.

Not an Isolated Incident

After chatting with Zachary Heronemus the Executive Director at Aurora Evansville, I was shocked to hear that nine homeless individuals died last year. There were nine that died in 2022 and eleven in 2021. Somehow those names and stories slipped through the cracks, and we didn't hear about them in the media.

Resources Available:

Aurora Evansville
Evansville Rescue Mission
Albion Fellows Bacon Center
United Caring Services
Ozanam Family Shelter
The House of Bread and Peace
YWCA
Salvation Army

We were able to sit down with  Zachary Heronemus the Executive Director at Aurora Evansville and have a real talk about the issues that Evansville has with Homelessness. He shared a lot of great information about the caring teams that are out helping those right where they need help the most. There are so many ways that you can make a difference too. Spoiler alert, complaining at your keyboard is not one of them.