PHOTO CREDIT: Jean-Gabriel Fernandez
Carol Strange, 67 years old.
The shadow cast by the I-794 overhead is their only refuge from the torrid summer heat, but for the people living in Milwaukee’s tent city, summer is still better than the biting cold that accompanies Wisconsin winters. There, amenities are hard to come by: Some only have a child-sized tent, some no tents at all and there is only one port-a-potty for dozens of residents.
Among the residents, Carol Strange, 67 years old, counts her blessings. If there is one thing she doesn’t lack, it is love; she lives with her boyfriend, Rico, and their cat, Soldier Girl. Although her voice is somewhat croaky, weathered by the years, her vocabulary is large and her personality is expansive.
“I am a disabled nurse, displaced due to circumstances that were beyond my control,” she explains. Born and raised in Milwaukee, educated in a parochial school, she’s worked her way up into the medical profession. “My nursing has taken me to every hospital in the city except the VA. I have done a lot of psych nursing and ER nursing, but I was dying to get into labor and delivery.” She adds, “God has blessed me with some very good jobs. I was Ms. Uihlein's personal nurse aide; when I arrived there, I couldn't believe that I was working in a mansion!"
“I miss my nursing,” she states on a sadder tone. Due to two knees surgeries—and another expected revision—starting four years ago, she has become unable to work or walk normally. Even to answer questions, she has to sit down.
After years living in Chicago, Carol’s situation took a turn for the worse unexpectedly. “The man I chose was no good, so I broke my neck working to make sure my children were okay, which caused my body all these problems,” she retells. “Last year, I was in a fire in my home in Chicago, and that started the homeless process. I tried to find new housing, I tried to start a new life—that didn't work. I couldn't afford the rent, the bills, new clothes, new everything... I was in a very bad situation. Family is not what I thought. I went to my grandson's house, but he treated me like garbage. I told him, ‘Anthony, you will not speak to me in a derogatory manner.’ So, I had him drop me off to the tent city with my cat.”
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PHOTO CREDIT: Jean-Gabriel Fernandez
Now, Carol has to live off meager retirement benefits as her knees won’t let her go back to work. “If I could go back to nursing, I could rectify my situation within a month. But I can’t.”
For now, she has to rely on the generosity of people in Milwaukee, for which she is very grateful, but she insists that “it's difficult when you are accustomed to taking care of your own self.” Some people from the community do care, as some regularly bring water, food, and there was even a barbecue on the Fourth of July. “It's just the conditions out here. The port-a-potty is only changed on Tuesday, it's deplorable to go in there—it makes you want to puke. It is not an easy living situation, sometimes I feel like I am going cuckoo,” she says.
For the people in Milwaukee who habitually drive by the tent city, Carol has a message: “Being out here is no joke. People here need help, we don't need to be judged. People are here for various reasons: evictions, some drug abuse, alcohol abuse... We need people out there to see if they can help, not to drive by and just ignore us. The main things people here need are water, juice, food and toiletries. I could use a blood pressure cuff to help these people. I already have an ambu bag. I have seen so much out here, we need caring people. Please come.”
“I never dreamt that in my life I would be in a situation like this. People out there, don't be too complacent. You might be high on the hog right now, but this could happen to anybody.”
Read more of our coverage on the homeless debate across the city and state here.
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