
Meet Lawrence. He has four certifications for training in skilled labor. He can run several kinds of forklifts, lay brick and tile, do framing, pipe-fitting, and welding, operate a high-speed production sewing machine, supervise quality control, and use a clicking machine (a 25,000 pound pressure press). He’s applied to over 260 jobs in Ohio in just seventy-some days. No one would hire him. Why? He’s an ex-offender, and he’s on probation for child support (hard to pay when you’re in prison).
He was skeptical about selling the paper because he thought his social skills were inadequate due to being incarcerated for almost 13 years. He decided to give Toledo Streets a try anyway; after all, he had nothing to lose. Since March 8, when he signed up, he’s sold over 450 papers and is catching up on child support. He has more confidence because he realized he had been selling himself short – he does have social skills, and he can succeed at far more than what he is certified to do. All because he wanted to work. And he did – selling the paper. Now he’s selling himself taller.
Lawrence’s story is one of the cornerstones of Issue 17, now out on the streets. If you’d like to buy a copy directly from Lawrence himself, you can find him outside the Toledo Municipal Courthouse on Erie Street in the late morning/early afternoon most weekdays. Tell him you saw him on the Internet.
PANHANDLERS: COUPONS, NOT CASH
Ok, so the weather is warming up and we’re all out walking around, enjoying being outside and supporting local business. It also means the chances are higher you’ll run into someone who’s panhandling. What to do?
We’ve created Toledo Streets Coupons you can print out to hand someone. They encourage the person to contact us here at Toledo Streets and find out about becoming a vendor. We don’t have anything against panhandlers, we just want to help folks move in a more positive direction. Selling a community-based street paper puts someone who formerly capitalized on pity into their own business of capitalizing on a proven program!
Every little bit helps. Because… THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS SMALL CHANGE.
Amanda







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