Retired business owner Ted Pouliot, 80, serves the homeless
By Neal St. Anthony, Star Tribune (Minneapolis) | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
Pouliot, the former owner of Pouliot Design of
Q: Ted, why do you do this work in retirement?
A: I started working with the poor more than 40 years ago when I started PPL with
Q: Describe your volunteer job at
A: I started volunteering a few years ago. I sit with people over coffee and they seem to open up to me with their problems. I get a great deal of satisfaction if I can come up with solutions.
Q: Sheila, what does Ted do?
A: Ted is what we call a "system navigator" at the Opportunity Center. Ted goes above and beyond the call of duty by coming three times a week because he sees the value and benefit in consistency when attempting to build relationships with people in crisis situations. Ted's strengths are listening to peoples' needs and spending hours on his "days off" researching services that may be available to guests throughout the community. However, what is unique about Ted is that he takes things a step further by identifying ... [and] attempting to break down and understand the inefficiencies within the systems that are preventing homeless individuals from gaining stability. I greatly appreciate and admire Ted's relentless energy and persistence in helping guests move forward, overcome barriers and achieve their goals -- work that is often extremely challenging and draining.
Q: Ted, you are known as a patient designer, but you've had your challenges in this housing work, right?
A: A few years ago, working with [since-retired]
I get these ideas, and I can't quit trying to follow up on them. I'm working with
Q: What is the greatest challenge for most single homeless people?
A: I work 95 percent with single homeless people. They are the forgotten population. There is a three-year wait for public housing. The hardest to house are ex-felons, and
Q: Is this also about economics for single homeless folks?
A: There are often complicating issues. Those on
Q: Why can't these folks just "pull themselves up by their bootstraps" and get a job, as some would argue?
A: Those folks need to spend some time in one of the nonprofit agencies and then decide how many of the people are "work ready." Nonprofits like RISE,
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