Better to Give Than Receive. The origins of this Chickasha Non-Profit stem from that wisdom

CHICKASHA, OKLAHOMA – Crazy idea, or just crazy.

“I was a lost person,” admits Heidi Harrison.

She can still remember when the line between the two was not altogether clear.

Diagnosed with her own mental health issues, on and off medication, her life resembled the ramshackle buildings she searches now.

“You know, people are dying because they’re on the streets,” she states.

It was a counselor who, nearly 5 years ago, suggested she start doing something for people, and that turned out to be the best medicine she ever took.

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“That made me feel really good,” she recalls. “So I did it again, and again. The only thing that made me feel good was if I helped somebody else who was lost.”

She still drives through the streets of town at less than 5 miles per hour, no more.

“The homeless are hidden,” she tells us from behind the wheel of her used, Dodge pickup.

Harrison started by handing out hamburgers.

Now, the menu of items on offer is much, much larger.

In June of ’21, as the subject of a KFOR Pay It Forward segment, her house served as both drop off and pick up point for the city’s homeless population.

Nearly 4 years later, she operates a small thrift store from a donated building.

“You pay $2 for a pair of pants,” she shows us. “But if you’re homeless you get to shop for free.”

Whatever the need, she’s still trying to fill it.

“I really feel that we will follow what God wants, and He will provide,” she continues.

Heidi knows there are still people who think she’s not well.

Harrison says, “They cut me down and say there’s no homeless.”

Her direct approach and occasional frustration have ruffled feathers here.

But impatience is forgiven most of the time when the mission is this important.

“A couple of years later now,” she says, “Chickasha people are so great with others that we’ve gotten this far.”

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She insists the needs are still many, even in a city of this size.

Her daily count of homeless within a few miles of the city limits is usually around 50 to 60, often hiding in back alleys or abandoned homes.

She takes no salary for her efforts. Living expenses come, mainly, from disability.

The big picture she leaves to the rest of us, and to the man upstairs who sees more than we could ever hope to.

For more information on Heidi Helping the Homeless go to here website here.

https://www.heidihelpingthehomeless.org/

or her Facebook page here

https://www.facebook.com/groups/734261286717118

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