Current Release: September 11th, 2007 | Vol. XXIV Iss. 10

A true humanitarian

By Margaret Windley

mnw777@verizon.net

Talk about working full-time. Heidi Watkins can tell you all about it. She spent her nights from July 23 to Nov. 10 as shelter coordinator at Portsmouth’s summer homeless shelter at the former S. H. Clarke Academy.

She literally slept on the job in a folding cot in her office. From there she went to her regular daytime job as AIDS/HIV case manager at TACT (Tidewater AIDS Community Taskforce) in Norfolk.   Watkins, 28, is young enough that she still has the energy for the schedule but it helps that she also happens to be someone who cares about others.

“I have always been that type of person to do things for others ‘just because,’” said the Wesleyan senior.

Watkins’ work with the homeless began one day when she stopped by campus in January 2007 to sign up for the spring semester. She saw a sign on a door asking for students to help at the homeless shelter that would occur on campus during the break.

“It sounded like something that I’d enjoy,” said Watkins, a Norfolk resident. “After I left the first night of being at the shelter, it was like a light switch went off, and that was what I was meant to do with my life.” 

She is appreciated. Barrett Richardson Jr. is president of Portsmouth Volunteers for the Homeless’ board of directors, the organization under which Watkins had worked at Wesleyan’s homeless shelter. He praised Watkins for her work with the clients. He explained that because of her ability, she has moved from interning for them to the board of directors.  

PVH suggested her when the city of Portsmouth asked for ideas not only on how to run a summer shelter but also if they knew of anyone to run it.

“She’s a very hard worker,” said Richardson. “She did a very thorough job with clients, and she really went the extra mile. The organization is really pleased with her for all the work she has done.

It’s not an easy job.”

Her work has taught her patience for people for whom the world often shows little.

“When you see these people every day, some of them become your friends to a certain extent,” said Watkins. “And you genuinely start to care about them and what happens to them. Being homeless has automatic negative stigma for some people, but sometimes I have learned that bad things happen to good people, and they just try to make it through in this world.”

Her typical client at the shelter has been a middle-aged unemployed male although some women also show up. Because of the high cost of living, some of the people work but just don’t make enough to cover housing and living expenses. Some may have mental health issues. The shelter refers people to helping organizations such as Oasis Opportunity Center for IDs, jobs, a soup kitchen and a thrift store.

She noted that the numbers at the shelter have been growing.  One night during the week of Nov. 1, there were 88 people, and 83 another night. However, she estimates that the average runs around 65 to the low 70s.  

“The numbers we’re having are about the same and sometimes higher than those of the winter shelter,” she said. “When the weather is cold, and towards the end of the month, when their money runs out, then our numbers go up.”

Watkins has two guards with her from 7 to 10 p.m., then one guard from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. because she is there overnight.

Her “just because” helpful streak has come out on the job. She has been known to buy items out of her own pocket for clients.  

“One night some of them did not have jackets, so I bought them sweat shirts from Wal-Mart,” said Watkins. “Tonight (Nov. 3) I ended up buying $100 worth of Halloween candy for them. I try to do things for them that I know they would enjoy.”

She also tries to make sure that the security officers treat the clients with respect.

“Some of them could not do that, so I refused to let that officer come back,” she said. “Some of them joked how they could not be mean to Heidi’s kids, but that’s how it was.”

The shelter work has given her the chance to assess a person’s needs and direct them toward better life choices. With only one four-hour course in Spanish to go, she majors in social science with a concentration in sociology. She would like to go for a master’s degree in criminal justice and find work as a probation officer.

Watkins finds joy within the stressful job.

“When you see someone take advantage of all the help around them to secure a place to live and gain employment,” she said, “it just makes all the headaches worth it.”