John Tumino

Received a wonderful message from a friend tonight Hey!
Hey John, just wanted to let you know that I am still in rehab and I have made a few plans which includes long term then a halfway house then supportive living. I talked w Kevin on messenger and he should be talking to you tomorrow about a couple of things that I need. I hope you can help me out with these things, cuz I only grabbed a few things from my spot when I left. I’m not going back to that place because it’s a trigger for me. I left everything there except my sentimental things which I gave to a friend to hold on to and a couple sets of clothes. But since being here I have been reconnected with my 2 daughters that I have not seen nor heard from in a few years. They give me strength and support love and hope. Thank you so much for everything you have done for me. I love you brother. Take care.
This is what its all about Sous Chefs and you make these opportunities possible, thank you. We will support our friend through his journey.
John and Leigh Ann

During yesterdays outreach we were contacted by one of our friends living outdoors stating that they needed Doc to check out a growth under their arm pit. Doc Lehmann was out of town but through his relationships with other Doctors we had a great stand in today, meet Dr. Bonnie. Dr. B. was so compassionate and full of wisdom and so much insight. As she assessed the site with the intentions of draining the abscess she realized that this could not be drained and that it actually developed into a cist that needed to be taken care of by a surgeon. Our friend in need is a heroine user, Dr. B. explained what needed to be done and strongly encouraged our friend to no longer inject into the arm pit. This gave us the opportunity to discuss with our friend the real need to start to make some positive changes into a sober new direction.  They listened, graciously heard us and made the decision to continue in this way of life. We let them no that we needed to see them again on Monday to check out the area and that we are their for them when they are ready. The hardest thing as an outreach worker is seeing someone’s life unraveling before you and knowing you can not make someone change their behavior. All we can do is not judge give support and believe that when they are ready for change we get the call for help. We are always ready when someone surrenders and says I cant do it anymore. Thank you for your support, please consider becoming a monthly supporter and together we will build hope and change lives,

John and Leigh Ann 

We do whatever it takes to keep lines of communications open with our friends. Medical attention is a big tool in our outreach to show our friends dignity by also showing them we truly care. Many of our friends who are outdoors refuse to go to local Emergency Rooms for various reasons and Doc being able to do this type of care on the streets is valuable, its saving lives! Our friend was so appreciative to all of us for stopping and looking for him today. Addiction is real and its a beast to overcome. We are believing that this care with a no strings approach opens a door for better things for our dear friend. Its someone’s family member out there and if it were your family would you want us to assist? I believe the answer is yes and we will keep going out to the streets to find those who are in trouble. Thank you for all your support, we have the greatest Sous Chefs ever.

We met Shane back in 2015 while he was leaving outdoors. We were able to assist him into housing at that time but he just recently had a domestic issue occur which caused him to become homeless once again. We met him were he was at and encouraged him that we were able to assist him once again. Shane agreed to going into one of our major shelters in town while we started the process to housing. In the mean time Dr. Lehmann from House Calls For The Homeless was giving him health care by getting him back onto some medications that he needed. While doing the evaluation Shane mentioned the issue he was having with his teeth. As you can see from the photo and video that Shane was in constant pain. Doctor Dave agreed and offered to assist Shane to a dentist with the House call fund paying for the bill. Value and Dignity is one of Our major keys on the streets of our city and listening to Shane here on this video says it all. Whatever it takes to show our friends they are not Invisible. Thank you Sous Chefs for your continued support in our Mission.

We met our friend during street outreach in early May living in a tent behind some buildings. We received a call from landlord asking if we could reach out to the person living there. Many times a referral will come through via a community resident, these referrals are vital because there are times that we are not aware of certain friends living outdoors. The community at large becomes our eyes extended on the streets of CNY, its a blessing. We engaged our friend with Doc Lehmann ,JD and Kat and the process to housing started. We let our friend know that his spot was made and the landlord was very concerned for him. Our friend decided to move to a new location and was not willing to go into the shelter system. We received another call 3 weeks later that someone seen a homeless man walking up the on ramp to 690 east going to a spot under the bridge. We investigated and found our friend again and informed him that the State and City officials were very concerned because this was a very dangerous location not just for him but also for motorist driving by who could become distracted. In 2012 we lost one of our friends in this location when he burned to death trying to stay warm on a late fall night. Our friend understood and engagement went a little deeper. Our friend acknowledged his drug addiction and Doc was able to write him a script for medications that he needed. Our friend still refused shelter and we are continuing our efforts every week believing that the no strings approach with the love we are showing will lead him to make a positive change. Now the bridge needed to be cleaned and the HIRE GROUND team stepped into action in partnership with the State D.O.T. Onondaga County and Syracuse D.P.W. The ramp was closed for safety and the location was cleaned in a 2 hour time frame. 9 Friends on the van experiencing homelessness assisting another friend in cleaning out his campsite. We are beautifying our city while partnering with Government agencies while bringing Dignity and Value to our friends. Together with your support we are makin a difference in the lives of our friends and our