My solution to dealing with roadside panhandlers.....

Every day on my way to and from work I go through a very busy intersection near a major interstate highway. There are frequently people who appear to be homeless standing there with signs, begging.

It's getting colder now and I genuinely feel sorry for these poor souls. I also feel guilty and hollow as hell just sitting there in my car. I'm not going to whip out money every time I see them standing on the roadside, but I just feel terrible driving on by every time.

So today I stopped at the McDonalds down the street and bought $30 worth of gift certificates. Then I headed over to a dollar store and spent another $20 on mittens, hats and scarves.

I've got the certificates in my glove box and the other stuff in a bag in the back seat. I plan to give them out whenever I see someone in need.

Anyone else have any other creative ideas on how they have helped panhandlers without giving out cash?

I don't run into many .

but for someone to stand out in the weather and ask for money is enough for me. I just know that it is a hard thing to do, but if you ask, you usually receive. i don't have any qualms about handing over a buck and a hand full of change, but i only see them once in a while.
we have folks who walk into our church on Sunday mornings and we don't ask questions. Your idea is super, the bottom line for them,if indeed they are desperate, is they need help, not just cash.

meal. They almost invariably say no thanks.

I do like the gift certificate idea, though.


My minister's wife says she has to buy him several winter coats on closeout at the end of the season because he tends to literally give people the coat off is back. (She also has to limit how much money he has in his pocket or else they don't have enough left to pay the bills!)

they rarely even ask me, but I have found that few turn down a nice cliff's bar or two. Portable, and nutricious...

I may just try that myself.

I have enough to spare the change I have on me.

I don't see why cash is such a bad thing to give someone who's so low in their life, they have to ask for money.

They're already humiliated enough. Your idea of the hats and mittens for them is nice too.

But the cash, eh why not? That's someone's dad, or son, or brother or uncle out there. Could be mine, or yours... They're just people.

I wouldn't want to hand out $5 bills all the time. I feel like $1.00 or a handful of change is not helping them that much, and they would need to rely on getting enough from other motorists to get a meal.

I thought a $5 fast food gift certificate would at least get them a combo meal and preserve what other money they were able to collect.

The hats and mittens and scarves will be interesting. We'll see how those go over. I just hate seeing people going cold in the winter months.

I think I'll do the same.

business cards with the address of a local homeless shelter.

Do NOT give them money. Many of these people are alcoholics or drug addicts and will spend the money on their habit. If you don't believe me, drive by the nearest liquor store and see who the customers are.

I like the idea of McDonald's gift certs and mittens.

Homeless people need socks

And some good thermal underwear

n/t

I live in a small town, but will pass this idea along to friends who live in bigger cities.
Thank you.

Can you imagine what a better world this would be if more people acted like this?

...who sees a panhandler on the side of the road with a sign that says, "will work for food."

"Lazy bums," thinks the man, "I'll offer to put him to work and see if he really means what he says!"

So he offers the panhandler a meal to do some work around his house, and to his surprise, the panhandler accepts. "Maybe he's just testing me," he thinks. I'll give him a task and see how well he does it."

So he says with a sneer to the panhandler, "here's some paint and a brush. Go around back and paint my porch."

The panhandler goes around back, and the guy putters around in the garage for a while. About half an hour later, the panhandler comes back around with the brush and paint can.

"Finished already? I don't think so; nobody can paint a porch that fast," the man says.

"Well, it wasn't very big job," says the panhandler, "and anyway, it isn't a Porsche, it's a BMW."

--I gave a buck or change plus a voter registration form and a note about using a church or a shelter for an address.

If they are outside a restraunt I buy them a cup of coffee if it is cold and maybe a burger or something.