Walking the trail at Thousand Acres, the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office HOPE (Homeless Outreach and Programs Engagement) Team’s Sergeant Brian Gerkman and Deputy Billy Epperson point to empty spots where people camped who are now living in apartments, thanks to their continued efforts. Two deputies, one sergeant, a captain and a peer support person make up the HOPE Team.
This calendar year the HOPE Team has placed three people in treatment or transitional housing, two in long term shelter and arranged for 16 people to get into housing programs who withdrew.
“Hey, anybody home? HOPE Team here,” they call out in a friendly tone as they approach tents. The team visits this area frequently and knows residents by name. About 35 people stay here year-round and the population reaches close to 65 in the summer. Some camp here for decades and some eventually find their way to housing.
A man is sitting in his car near the trail. Since vehicles are not allowed here, Gerkman approaches him.
“I have to ask you to leave,” Gerkman says apologetically. “I know you’re not bothering anyone and everyone does it, but you’re not allowed to drive here.” The man chats with him for a minute, explaining that everything he owns is in the car, and drives away.
The Team builds positive relationships with people experiencing homelessness and connects individuals to programs like Portland Street Medicine, Central City Concern, Easter Seals and Bybee Lakes Hope Center. HOPE relies on organizations that help people navigate their way to housing and solutions for problems that often force them into homelessness. This could be addiction, mental health issues or the loss of a job.
In another forested area, Gerkman, Epperson and Chris Lex, the peer support person, stand a few feet away from a tent, casually talking to the man inside for about 15 minutes. He tells them he hasn’t been feeling well. They give him hygiene supplies and plan to bring neosporin for his leg infection.
“You guys are coming back, right?”
“We’ll be back next week.”
He prefers to stay alone, less triggered by mental health issues, but the team builds rapport, working toward getting him the help he needs.
The HOPE Team divides their time between responding to neighborhood complaints and checking in with folks. Balancing relationships with protection and law enforcement is an ongoing challenge.
“We consider ourselves their law enforcement,” Epperson says. “So just like your neighborhood gets patrolled, so should theirs. We go through their camps, help them with livability issues, neighborhood issues. If someone is having severe mental health issues and causing trouble we try to mitigate that. They come to us with police reports. Unfortunately a lot of crime against people surviving homelessness goes unreported. In the last few years we’ve gained trust in encampments.”
The team understands that some people are triggered by their uniforms and don’t trust law enforcement.
“It can be tough to build relationships when we have to be law enforcement,” Gerkman says. “It’s a delicate balance. We know the ones that don’t want anything to do with us and we respect that. We spend time on people who we can connect with. After a few months people understand we’re not trying to give them a hard time, so most people trust us.”
Like other front line workers, the team has connected folks with detox programs and treatment for addiction. However, success depends on individual willingness and accessing the minimal resources available.
Gerkman remembers one man who was struggling with addiction. They signed him up for a detox program, found foster care for his dog and had transportation ready. At the last minute he changed his mind and decided not to go.
“Sometimes it feels like you take a drop of water out of the bucket of water and somebody pours a cup into it,” Gerkman says.
This post was written by Ellen Clarke and originally appeared on our Medium.