Re: “Program could boost housing for offenders” (TNT, 4-17).

Offenders being released have served their time in prison, whether it may be two years or 10. For whatever reason they were imprisoned, they received their punishment.

Offenders will always be released from prison sooner or later. So what if their family doesn’t take them in? What if they have nowhere else to stay? Wouldn’t this result in increased rates of homelessness?

Tacoma’s 18-month pilot project to house offenders is a wonderful opportunity for offenders to show they are like anyone else, they just made mistakes in their past. This …

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The state Senate operating and capital budgets proposed in the past two weeks would cut housing, health care and child care for vulnerable citizens in these ways:

• Eliminating the Aged, Blind and Disabled program.

• Cutting state homelessness programs by 52 percent.

• Increasing the number of people experiencing homelessness during the 2013-2015 biennium by 20,400 more people.

• Drastically cutting a variety of safety net programs like Temporary Assistance to Needy Families and Working Connections Child Care.

• Significantly cutting the Housing Trust Fund

While an education-focused budget for K-12 and higher education will help solve many of …

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Re: “Feeling of safety isn’t there anymore” (letter, 4-4).

What the writer experienced is becoming a normal occurrence in Puyallup. My neighborhood has also been impacted in this manner.

A primary source of this issue is a church-led volunteer group that sponsors a program called Freezing Nights (FN). This program allows homeless folks to spend the night in local churches between November and the end of March.

On the surface this sounds like a good program concept. Unfortunately the FN program has few if any requirements for entry.

FN clients can be stoned or drunk and gain access for …

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In our current economic state, we are all feeling the financial pressure. Prices of everyday goods are on the rise and many of us are facing looming layoffs.

What will your plans be if finances become so tight you can no longer afford your home? Many have had to face the realities of this question. For many reasons, there are currently more than 2,000 people experiencing homelessness in Pierce County, including husbands, wives, children, the elderly, and the working poor.

The vast majority of us (some may say the 99 percent) are just one small step away from being in the …

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I volunteer at Helping Hand House in Puyallup. One of the benefits is becoming more aware of homeless families. I learned two alarming statistics: The average age of a homeless person is 6, and there are about 500 homeless teenagers in Puyallup. That is nearly an entire grade in each of Puyallup’s three high schools. These young adults are our future leaders, and they’re not maturing at home.

What are we doing about this problem? Apparently nothing.

Why? What have these young adults done that is so bad that their parents will not let them live at home? Parents should …

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We have a growing problem with homelessness among our disabled veterans in this country. We often wonder how even these people, who served our country while it was in need can be thrown aside. We can see one example of this in the credit requirements for low-income housing in Tacoma.

Places such as the Hotel Olympus get tax credits for providing low-income housing, yet often reject disabled veterans merely because of their credit history. Years of fighting the government to get much-needed care and benefits can leave such vets with less-than-stellar credit, so even if they have the money to …

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Re: “Puyallup weighs homeless shelter” (TNT, 2-4).

I think that using the former North Puyallup Fire District 11 station as a shelter for the homeless in Puyallup is a very feasible plan.

If there is concern about who should run it may I suggest giving those who live there the tools to run it themselves. With assistance they would design a plan for cleaning, cooking, transporting children to school, watching each other’s children while some went to jobs and others looked for work.

The valley soil is perfect for growing food of their own and possibly selling at the Puyallup …

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Re: “Homeless kids up in state” (TNT, 2-2).

The article left some information out of the picture. My two grandsons have been in foster care for 14 months and are considered “homeless” by federal law because they don’t have a permanent foster care home. Not to mention they have been moved from home to home four times and are no longer together despite the fact one is a special needs child.

They have been transported from as far as Puyallup to a University Place school as required by law to keep their education stable at their school of origin, …

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