Rocket Man

Folding Under Pressure

Michael Appel, associate director of nonprofit Avalon Housing, appeared before the Ann Arbor City Council Monday night with several supporters holding 4,738 origami cranes. He explained the colorful cranes represented the number of men, women and children who faced homelessness last year and turned to agencies in Washtenaw County for help. The Ann Arbor City Council was expected to vote to allocate $1.16 million from the city's general fund to several community nonprofit agencies, which would have been about a $116,000 decrease from last year's levels. But after several members of the public spoke during a hearing on the city budget, council members held off on making a decision until two weeks from now. Read the story here.

Panhandler's Paradise

Gwyddion Storm, 42, solicits money from passersby on Liberty Street on Tuesday afternoon. Originally from Columbus, Ohio, Storm says he's traveled the country over, from one ocean to the other and back, five times, mostly hitchhiking. He came to Ann Arbor last summer and now lives in a tent north of downtown in a location he calls "the hidden arb." Storm is open about why he's homeless and panhandling. It's not because he has substance abuse problems, he says, though he does enjoy a cold beer at the end of the day. Rather, he says, it's because he has mental health issues. He says he's found Ann Arbor to be a friendly place, and the community's safety net services have kept him here. He regularly eats meals at the Delonis Center, and he relies on the mental health services of PORT, an outreach team that serves homeless individuals in Washtenaw County. "That's one of the main reasons that I really decided to stay in Ann Arbor," Storm says. "Back in my hometown of Columbus, Ohio, they have nothing like that." Read the story here.






(Psst! Be sure to bump the video quality up to HD after you hit play!)

The Sadder Side Of San Francisco