Jonathan

“I have never been able to pay tribute in the past to the three people that got Nik and I off the streets,” remarks Jonathan.

“Had it not been for you, Chantel, and Trish (Rob and Scott as well), we may have lasted another two years’ extra on the street. My give back is always in respect of what you guys did for us. I am very proud and honoured that I can call you all friends.

Thank you from the both of us.

“Homelessness has pretty much ruined my life.”

“Today, seven years after leaving the streets, my son and I still live in supported accommodation. After nearly three years living on the street in a car, we are now regaling the consequence of living rough. The poor conditions of sleeping in the car or on the street have taken their toll on my body medically. The extremely poor nutrition with takeaway almost every night showed as the weight piled on the both of us. This year was my fourth major operation, a quad by-pass open heart surgery. Every one of those four operations was considered life-threatening and for me life-changing. Surviving them was not just luck, it was due to the expertise of surgeons from Fiona Stanley Hospital.

“As an insulin dependent diabetic for over 26 years, I understood the consequences of not keeping my HbA1c to a respectable minimum. During homelessness, as my medication sat in the heat of the day being destroyed and becoming unusable, my sugar levels skyrocketed to over 30-plus per day. Your levels are usually between five and eight.

“When you live on the street in severe poverty, in the cold, the rain, the mental health anguish, how can you not state clearly that living such a life does not have effect on the body?”

“My son has hardly left his bedroom over the last six months. The mental health consequence of living rough has been touched on by the University of Western Australia. Would I have suffered the problems of cancer, heart surgery, severe nerve damage, hypoglycemic comas if I had not been a rough sleeper? I dare you to argue the negative, although my body has been put through the ringer, at 65 years of age it would have been nice to have some physical exertion available to carry me through my retirement.

“Suicide has been an option that I am reluctant to discuss at present. I would ask Minister John Carey to ask and speak to those who have lived the problems of street presence. We need changes led by the voice of lived experience. Are you in?”