Okay, I don't like to tell people that I have been homeless twice. But it's a fact and when one is homeless in Knoxville the only place to stay at night that's not on the streets is KARM. It was bad enough the first time when you stood a better than normal chance of getting a real bed and not having to sleep on the floor but the last time I was homeless was horriffic. You see, KARM is all about looking good. And that it does, with their commercials and thrift stores. But here is the truth. I have been to the hospital with a woman to have a cockroach dug out of here ear. It was about to lay it's eggs and if it had she would have been rendered deaf. She got the cockroach from the beds at KARM. I have been served, on more than one occasion, slimy green hot dogs. I have been served stale donuts and told that's all there was for breakfast. I have been told by KARM staff that the only thing that I, a homeless woman, needed, was a man. I have been told that unless I attened their church, I could not stay in their halfway house. I have been banned for 7 days in February for going to the aid of a sick woman. I have tried to get the attention of a staffperson while a woman was dying in the bunk next to me. The staffperson was on the phone. I have slept under filthy blankets(trying to stay warm in their basement women's shelter) that left me sick for months. I have been lied to about how often those blankets were cleaned. I have heard horror stories about men being stripped of all their bedding because one man dared to urinate in a plastic tub because the bathrooms were being renovated and there were only four toilets for 200+ men. KARM stripped all the bedding because no one would snitch on this guy because if they had, he would have been banned for 30 days. KARM serves a purpose but they do it badly at best. Staff don't care about the clients. And any money that goes to them never gets to those who really need it. Don't give to KARM. And if you're homeless, for God's sake and your own, get out as soon as you can.
Pros: It's a place to sleep that's not on the streets.
Cons: Where do I begin?
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