The city of Norman sought new funding from the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office to continue A Better Way, a project intended as an alternative to panhandling. The request was ultimately denied. The project is now being shut down at the end of August, further strangling Norman’s homeless support services as the crisis deepens. A Better Way was operated by Mental Health Association Oklahoma through a partnership with Norman, and was one of the few homeless support services offered in the city. The program offered people experiencing homelessness the opportunity to work cleaning up public spaces, and in return they would be paid, provided a meal and connected with service providers. “It allows people to have instant income and they’re able to become a little more self-sufficient,” Carrie Blumert, Mental Health Association Oklahoma’s CEO, said. “Of course, our long-term goal is always to help them find housing and stability.” The Attorney General’s Office could not be reached for comment on why the grant was denied. A Better Way A Better Way in Norman was spawned from a Tulsa project of the same name, implemented in 2018. The mission was simple: Help people experiencing homelessness get back on their feet by providing work, food and money. Then, connect them with services along the way. “Our program is not meant to be permanent employment,” Blumert said. “It’s meant to be a temporary opportunity where they can earn money that day and get connected with services and get connected with housing.” The initial contract between Norman and Mental Health Association Oklahoma was for one year and carried a $383,633 price tag, with $333,633 appropriated from Opioid Settlement Funds. According to internal data from Mental Health Association Oklahoma, in the project’s year-long venture, there were 232 participants. The organization was able to use the program to connect 54 participants with mental health or substance abuse services. They also helped 25 participants obtain gainful employment, got 17 participants connected with housing and obtained vital documents for 28 participants. One of those participants was Shelli Markcum. “It Literally Saved My Life” Markcum is from the Panhandle. Her first time doing drugs was at 24-years-old, when she smoked marijuana. After a series of events led her out of state, she said she was sold for drugs, raped and attempted suicide. “I hit rock bottom,” Markcum said. “It was a huge eye opener.” She said when she returned to Oklahoma, she was couch surfing with family in Henryetta, but due to the poor mental health services in the rural area, she was consistently relapsing into drug use. Markcum said when she arrived in Norman, she was almost suicidal. Then she saw the bus for A Better Way picking people up from the homeless shelter to go work. “I saw the bus drive by, and I said, ‘What’s that?’” Markcum said. Once she learned about the program, she signed up and said she bothered the driver every day to get on the bus. Markcum said by getting on the bus to work, she was able to do something productive and didn’t go looking for other, mostly illegal, ways to survive. She said some people using the program were not there to get off the streets and instead were drug dealers seeking to use the money to further illicit activities. “It’s just the reality of being out there on the streets,” Markcum said. “Which, I hope that it (A Better Way) encouraged the drug dealers to actually try to find jobs.” Markcum said she has a physical handicap and a mental handicap, and was scared that she couldn’t even work, but the program gave her the encouragement she needed to seek the necessary help to get on her feet. She’s now in a sober living home, working part-time, and seeking a full-time job. “Finding that place, it literally saved my life,” Markcum said. Spotlight on Norman Norman’s homelessness crisis has been in the spotlight for several months. In May, Gov. Kevin Stitt’s Operation SAFE was enacted in Norman, displacing 30 to 50 people from a field where they resided. The displacements occurred months after the state agreed to pay Oklahoma City up to $800,000 for housing and support services following the enactment of Operation SAFE there. That was not offered to Norman. In June, only a few weeks after Operation SAFE had displaced many people experiencing homelessness, a complaint led to the State Fire Marshals shutting down the Norman Night Shelter for four days. In mid-August, state troopers returned to sweep an encampment once again under Operation SAFE. When people returned, 17 were arrested. “Part of it (A Better Way) is to deter people from panhandling and give folks a job to do that they can feel proud of and get paid at the end of the day and get connected with services,” Blumert said. “That is one pathway out of homelessness. Unfortunately, the approach of Operation SAFE is not a pathway out of homelessness.” Norman officials refused interview requests, but Tiffany Martinez Vrska, the chief communications officer for Norman, said in an email that A Better Way’s conclusion does not reflect a reduction in the city’s commitment to addressing homelessness. Jake Ramsey covers evictions, housing and homelessness. Contact him at (405) 370-3798 or [email protected]. The post “It Literally Saved My Life”: Norman’s A Better Way Program Will Be Shut Down appeared first on Oklahoma Watch. ...read more read less