How do you end up homeless?

WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — Homelessness in Northeastern Pennsylvania has been in focus in recent days with the clearing out of a homeless encampment in Wilkes-Barre.

City officials say it had to be shut down because it posed a safety and health risk to the public and the people who lived in the camp.

Homelessness in Northeastern Pennsylvania has been in focus in recent days with the clearing out of a homeless encampment in Wilkes-Barre.

The mayor of Wilkes-Barre ordered the camp to be shut down citing public safety and health concerns.

28/22 News I-team Reporter Andy Mehalshick is working the story and is looking into the root causes of homelessness.

There are a multitude of reasons that could cause someone to become homeless, and to live in homeless camps like the one that was cleared out of here yesterday.

28/22 News spoke with several people who work in the trenches to help folks who are homeless. They tell us each homeless person has their own story to tell.

“Well, I lost my job and couldn’t pay rent,” said Autumn.

And we heard similar stories from the people who lived in a homeless camp at Kirby Park in Wilkes-Barre.

City workers cleared the camp out, but how did these folks end up here?

“Well, what happened was I was a major alcoholic,” stated Wilkes-Barre resident Wayne Goode.

And that was a major factor that caused Goode to be homeless. He was able to get help with his addiction and is turning his life around. He returned to work, and now has a place to call home.

“It was not fun. It was very hard. My heart goes out to these people. There are ways out. It’s up to them to take them. It’s hard, not easy,” commented Goode.

Officials at Keystone Mission in Wilkes-Barre know that all too well. They offer a wide variety of resources for the homeless as well as a night shelter.

“It can be anybody. It could be someone who’s been working their entire life and they had an accident and caused them to lose their home. There’s more to it than what meets the eye. Everybody has a story,” explained Kathy Regan, Operations Program Director at Keystone Mission.

Kathy Regan oversees programs at Keystone Mission. She says the reasons for homelessness are as varied as the person, including addiction and mental health challenges. Regan says there is no one size fits all solution.

“It’s working together. We involve other agencies in here to help us. We can’t do it alone. It takes a lot of people to be able to provide the services that are needed to help them out of homelessness,” said Regan.

And Regan emphasizes a person has to want that help. It can’t be forced on anyone. There is no magic wand here. It takes hard work, but says in the end that hard work could save that person’s life.

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