Street Sense Media

Sounds From the Street: Writer Nick Flynn on Reconnecting with His Father

At age 24, Nick Flynn started working at the Pine Street Inn, the largest shelter in Boston. It was here that he reconnected with his estranged father, who was unsheltered at the time. Ten years later, Nick shared the story in his moving memoir, “Another Bullshit Night in Suck City”, which was later adapted to the big screen as Being Flynn, starring Robert De Niro and Paul Dano.

Nick explores the story behind the story while shedding light on the origins of homelessness and the subsequent explosion of shelters across the United States.

A full transcript of this interview is available here.

Sounds From the Street: Father Tom Weston on Addiction and Recovery

It doesn’t take much for someone to lose his or her way in life, but substance abuse certainly accelerates the process. Addiction is a painful problem that plagues people from all walks of life. No one is immune and that became abundantly clear in talking to Father Tom Weston, a Jesuit priest. The native Californian has been clean and sober for some 40 odd years. He’s spent those years working with people in recovery from Myanmar to Kitty Hawk, N.C. In this week’s podcast, he generously shares not only his personal story, but also important insights on how to live a better, more peaceful life. Father Weston is filled with wisdom. You’ll have to listen to learn what we’re talking about.

A full transcript of this interview is available here.

Sounds From the Street: Christie Jones on Her Children’s Book About Homelessness

Working as an educator and counselor in Stafford, VA, Christie Jones has come into contact with a lot of children experiencing homelessness. She decided to write Are We Home Yet?, her first book, to shine a light on the issue. Max, the main character, gives homeless children a chance to see themselves represented in a book while allowing non-homeless kids a chance to better understand what life may look like for someone who doesn’t have a traditional home or childhood. Jones hopes the book will help bring the epidemic of child homelessness out of the shadows by giving voice to those who inhabit a world that is too often stigmatized, or worse, ignored.

For more info on Are We Home Yet? or to purchase it yourself, click here.

A full transcript of this interview is available here.

Sounds From the Street: Executive Director Brian Carome on the State of Homelessness

As Street Sense enters a new year, our executive director sits down to discuss the organization’s past, present and future. Brian, who has been fighting homelessness in the nation’s capital since the 80s, discusses what still needs to be done to solve the problem and how an exciting new Street Sense jobs training initiative might help.

A full transcript of this interview is available here.

Sounds From the Street: DHS Director Laura Zeilinger on Affordable Housing

In a slight departure from our typical guests, we sit down with a policy maker. This is something we hope to do more and more. Laura Zeilinger has dedicated her professional career to working on behalf of low-income families who need access to better (and more) affordable housing. The former Executive Director of the US Interagency Council on the Homeless, Laura was chosen by Mayor Muriel Bowser in 2014 to oversee the Department of Human Services.

A full transcript of this interview is available here. 

Sounds From the Street: Entrepreneur Ken Martin Wears Many Hats

A father, a jazz-lover, an artist, and an entrepreneur, Ken Martin is a true renaissance man. But after two heart attacks and a prolonged health struggle cost him his job and his home, he found himself sleeping at Reagan National Airport. In an ironic twist of fate, a man that worked in social services for over 20 years is now experiencing housing instability himself.

Yet Ken remains positive. A self-described “survivor,” he is working tirelessly to get a hat business off the ground and reclaim his life.

A full transcript of this interview is available here.