Stories, Poems and Artwork of the Homeless

We are committed to increasing public awareness of the lives of the homeless, those stricken with poverty and in general, the less-fortunate. We do so by telling their stories on this website.

Their stories are told through a variety of mediums:  first-hand accounts,   second-hand accounts,   creative fiction and literature,   poetry   and   artwork.

The Stories section includes true stories that have resulted from direct interviews with the homeless of Philadelphia. The In their words section includes stories told by homeless people from all around the globe, but primarily from those in the United States. The Literature section contains creative fiction and literature by the homeless. In the Poetry section you will find homeless poems from individuals across the globe. Finally, the Artwork section contains some exceptional artwork produced by homeless and formerly homeless people.

The Resources section contains various services for the homeless of Philadelphia such as outreach programs, homeless shelters, locations of soup kitchens, where to find free meals and more. We also publish two service and resource guides for the homeless: The Philadelphia Street Sheet and the Philadelphia Street Menu.

In each case, you will be surprised that the homeless are just like you and me. (Remember - appearances are always deceiving.) In fact, through our interactions with the homeless, we have found that their creative gifts, intelligence and compassion often far exceed that of the more fortunate. Each story is intended to demonstrate this. And just like us, they sometimes need a little extra help from others to make it through.

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