By Grant Pick
“People have these preconceptions about the homeless–that they’re largely bums–but we’ve found that they want to work and stand on their own two feet,” says Arloa Sutter, Breakthrough’s executive director. “It’s good for the community to see that.”
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The street cleaners’ day begins with an 8:30 AM devotional session at Breakthrough. The half-hour Bible study isn’t mandatory, says supervisor Eddie Sturgis, “but we encourage individuals to seek the Lord.” Then comes a class in plumbing, carpentry, floor care, and other maintenance tasks beyond street cleaning. They’re also schooled in conduct. “These men are in the public eye, and we encourage them to be courteous and respectful,” says counselor Bob Cornelius.
Parker, who’s 49, is emerging from a blue-collar slide partly of his own making. For 13 years he was a lithograph operator for a company that printed bottle caps. “But then the plant closed,” he says. “My brother-in-law and I opened a shop that sold bows [and arrows] in Joliet. When he died, I worked for an outfit that made ducts for McDonald’s restaurants, and then they laid off everybody. I got a job working for a liquor store in Melrose Park, but they fired me for drinking.”
Breakthrough’s efforts have even suited the persnickety Ken Pelletier, owner of the Mellow Yellow restaurant, who believes that street cleanliness is next to godliness. “For 22 years I’ve been out there picking up garbage two or three times a day,” he says, “and it’s a never-ending battle–the debris that people put down is forever. But these guys from Breakthrough are out there every day, and it’s a big improvement.”
