Offering financial opportunity to homeless and economically disadvantaged individuals. STREETZine is a program of The Stewpot and a member of International Network of Street Papers
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By Wendy Rojo
Street papers are an integral part of our society. They offer a voice to those who may be overlooked or not heard. Those of us who have the pleasure of working within the street paper network are grateful for every single person who has ever supported our papers. But most importantly I am thankful for each and every person who has ever written for the STREETZine.
Each month, we ask the writers to do prompted writing, and each month, they do exactly that. They write. Vulnerability is hard. It takes a lot of strength to allow us to be vulnerable with others. Each and every single writer who has ever written for the STREETZine showed that each month by being vulnerable. They allowed themselves to open up and share their
stories. You will see later on in this edition as they share more about who they are.
They offer a voice to those who may be overlooked or not heard.
Writing is not an inherently hard thing to do, but writing each month about yourself and opening up to an audience is difficult. It is incredible to see all the writers develop their own voices throughout their journey in the Writers’ Workshop. To see them be honest and speak with authority about their own experiences is humbling. I am grateful that we have been able to create a safe place for them to express themselves truthfully and forthrightly.
The growth that I have witnessed the last four years is inspiring. We’ve seen people go back to school, get fulltime jobs, get homes, and blossom into talented writers. Writing was never on my possible jobs list but writing for the STREETZine and editing people’s work made my own appreciation for writing grow. I am a better writer and person because of the STREETZine and the Writers’ Workshop.
Last year the writers created a book, “Thy Neighbor,” that consisted of three chapters about what it meant to them to be neighbors and part of a community. Reading their chapters made me reflect on what I thought about the meaning of neighbor. I came with up with a simple definition: a neighbor means being there when others need a hand. It means showing up when your neighbor needs help because you never know what someone is going through.
To see them be honest and speak with authority about their own experiences is humbling.
The writers were asked the question: What I want you to know about me. I want people to know that these writers have changed my life. They inspire me daily to be my truest self, and they’ve helped me become a better writer. I will be forever grateful to every person who has supported the Writers’ Workshop.
Wendy Rojo is managing editor of STREETZine.
STREETZine is an enrichment program of
The STREETZine is a monthly newspaper published by The Stewpot, a ministry of the First Presbyterian Church of Dallas. The Stewpot provides services and resources for people experiencing homelessness or who are at risk of being homeless. The organization also offers opportunities for a new life.
As part of this ministry, the STREETZine seeks to raise awareness about the issues surrounding homelessness and poverty. The monthly publication also offers financial opportunity for Stewpot clients who sell the paper to Dallas residents. Vendors are able to move towards economic self-sufficiency by using the money they receive from selling copies to purchase bus passes, food, and necessary living expenses. Clients also receive stipends for contributing articles to STREETZine
The content in STREETZine does not necessarily reflect the views or endorsement of its publisher, editors, contributors, sponsors, or advertisers. To learn more about this publication, contact Betty Heckman, Director of Enrichment, 1610 S Malcolm X Blvd Dallas, TX 75226 or BettyH@thestewpot.org. To read more about STREETZine, a member of the International Network of Street Papers, go to www. thestewpot.org/streetzine.
Managing Editor: Wendy Rojo
Editorial Advisory Board: The Rev. Amos Disasa
Brenda Snitzer
Suzanne Erickson
Russell Coleman
Poppy Sundeen
Sarah Disasa
William McKenzie
Betty Heckman
Dee Leone
By Reverend Amos Jerman Disasa
Editor’s Note: This essay is excerpted from a sermon that Rev. Disasa delivered at the First Presbyterian Church of Dallas on December 28, 2025.
Matthew 2: 13-23
13 Now after they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.”
14 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt,
15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.”
16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men.
17 Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:
18 “A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.”
19 When Herod died, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said,
20 “Get up, take the child and his mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.”
21 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother, and went to the land of Israel.
22 But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. And after being warned in a dream, he went away to the district of Galilee.
23 There he made his home in a town
called Nazareth, so that what had been spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, “He will be called a Nazorean.”
Matthew is writing to a Jewish audience. Some of them have already converted, or more accurately put, they have already extended their Jewish religious traditions and beliefs to accommodate Jesus as the long-awaited messiah.
There are other Jews in the audience that aren’t yet convinced. They know how the story ends, with Jesus’ defeat on the cross vindicated by his resurrection.
Remarkably, that version was told and retold, even though the savior it depicts failed to satisfy the most basic criteria for a Jewish messiah, which was restoration of the royal house of David. But instead of the lion of Judah that hunted Israel’s enemies and protected its homeland from occupation, they got the lamb of God sacrificed on a cross by Israel’s enemies and occupiers.
Any argument for Jesus as the messiah would have to resolve this glaring contradiction. The prophetic tradition is full up with visions of a future king reestablishing the military and geo-political prominence and independence of Israel. Anyone who claimed Jesus was the fulfillment of that tradition had some explaining to do.
The 40 years since Jesus’ birth and Matthew writing about it were marked by a failed insurrection against the Roman occupiers, a defeat that resulted in the destruction of the second temple and the death and displacement of tens of thousands of Jewish residents.
With this historical context in mind, it’s apparent why Matthew insists that the circumstances of Jesus’ birth each came about to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet. Five times in the first two chapters, a prophecy is cited. Four of those times, the citation is preceded by a uniquely Matthean rhetorical formula, “This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet.”
The mother was a virgin to fulfill what had been spoken by Isaiah. He was born in Bethlehem to fulfill what had been spoken by Micah. They were sent to Egypt to
Continued on page 5
By Brenda Snitzer
Just as our STREETZine writers were asked to explain one thing about themselves in this edition, I was asked to write something about myself. This is not as easy a task as you may think. Do I share what things are important to me, what I was like growing up, or about the journey of my work and family life? And would anyone really care or find it interesting?
First, I am a child of God. I’ve known that since I was very young despite my family not going to church when I was a child. I felt God calling me to know Him and to serve.
I had a great childhood with two supportive parents and was the middle of two sisters. We enjoyed a large, closeknit extended family. My oldest sister is three years older, and we have been close most of our lives, including now. My younger sister unfortunately passed away about 10 years ago from health challenges. She was a diabetic since she was eight years old. I still miss her.
I am a Texan. Born in Waco, I spent my
first 10 years in Houston except for stints of less than a year for my dad’s job in San Antonio and Maryland. The rest of my life has been spent in North Dallas, including going to Plano schools.
I grew up like a Texan: We had horses and spent my first 16 years taking them to horseshows. I also played sports, especially softball and volleyball. I love games and sports of all types.
My grandparents lived in Waco where my parents grew up so I went to Baylor football games from my early years through high school. Also, I spent summers from sixth grade through college at Baylor camp. I lived for camp! The outdoors, the friendly competition of games, all the activities — it was the best life. So, of course, I went to Baylor for college.
I am blessed with a wonderful husband, two adult sons, a daughter-in-law, and two young grandsons. We still have a large, close-knit extended family. My childhood definitely shaped my values of caring, serving, and commitment to family.
All that I experienced at camp helped my faith grow — and because of camp I started going to church year-round. That influenced the rest of my calling to serve.
My career primarily has involved working in social services, churches, and educational institutions. Most of those have been places that help folks. I particularly have felt called to serve those in poverty in the inner city.
A long time ago I developed a personal mission statement: To help people discover the joy in helping others.
I received degrees in education and counseling and thought I would do mostly direct service after doing it for many years. But I have found God gifted me in other ways. For the past 20 years, I’ve been leading and promoting programs or organizations that help people.
All throughout, I have been fulfilling my mission and calling to help others and discovering the joy in doing so. I am grateful to all that find the joy of service. If you aren’t already serving others through The Stewpot, I invite you to give it a try. You will be glad you do.
God’s blessing is upon those serving and those being served. Most of the time it is reciprocated, and all are blessed. Thanks be to God!
Brenda Snitzer is the executive director of The Stewpot.
By Poppy Sundeen
A few weeks ago, I got an email from The Stewpot thanking me for being a volunteer. I sent a reply to the effect that I should be the one thanking them, instead of the other way around. I meant that.
For the past six years, The Stewpot has played an important role in my life. They showed up at just the right time — a few months after my husband of 34 years died suddenly of a heart attack which happened to coincide with my retirement from a long and engaging career. “Now what?” I wondered. It wasn’t long before I got an answer.
phone call I didn’t expect
On North Texas Giving Day in September 2019, I made a small donation to The Stewpot. I’d been doing that for a few years, inspired by a chance encounter with a STREETZine vendor. I was so impressed when I learned how the publication helps connect the community at large with the street community while providing a few extra dollars to vendors. It struck me as a very worthy cause.
When I made my donation, I noticed a box I could check to learn about volunteer opportunities, so I clicked it not knowing what, if anything, might come of it. What came of it was a phone call from Brenda Snitzer, The Stewpot’s executive director. I was amazed that she would take the time to make such a call herself!
She asked about my interest in The Stewpot, and I told her how impressed I was with the STREETZine. I didn’t know what I might do for that program, I explained, but thought maybe my background as a writer might help. And then without a moment’s hesitation, she invited me to a meeting.
Walking into The Stewpot, and into my future
The meeting turned out to be a planning session for the next STREETZine issue. Everyone greeted me warmly and — voilá — I was part of the team. Bill McKenzie, a longtime volunteer and STREETZine
editorial board member, invited me to their upcoming Soup’s On luncheon, The Stewpot’s annual fundraiser and art sale. There I met both people who serve The Stewpot and people who are served by The Stewpot. It reinforced my interest in getting involved.
The following week I interviewed a man named Moses and wrote my first STREETZine article. I wanted to do justice to Moses’s story of hardship and healing. And I have to admit that, despite having more than four decades as a professional writer under my belt, I was nervous. Would the editorial board regret inviting me into their fold? As it turned out, my fears were unfounded. They were happy, and I was ready for my next assignment.
Covid hits. We forge ahead.
A few weeks later, the world shut down. The Stewpot turned into my virtual refuge. No longer able to meet in person, I looked forward to zoom calls instead and interviewed people for articles over the phone. The involvement kept me engaged during a time of social isolation that might otherwise have hit me hard as someone still adjusting to widowhood.
And then, when Covid began to release its grip, Bill McKenzie came up with a new idea: The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop. He invited me to work with him on the project.
In January 2022, we held our first sparse-
ly attended session of The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop. From there, it evolved into a lively communal gathering where Stewpot neighbors shared their stories and their perspectives by writing articles for the STREETZine.
The Friday morning workshop sessions rapidly became my favorite part of the week. They still are.
Belated thanks
When I showed up at my first STREETZine meeting six years ago, I didn’t mention that I was a freshly minted widow. Or that I was at loose ends since retiring. I didn’t tell anyone that I needed The Stewpot more than The Stewpot needed me. But that was the truth of the matter.
Of course, whatever challenges I faced were nothing compared to the challenges The Stewpot addresses every day. I’ve never had to wonder where I’d sleep at night, or where my next meal would come from, or who would come to my aid. I know how lucky I am to have a home, a fridge full of food, and a loving family (including a wonderful new husband).
And I know how lucky I am to have The Stewpot community. Now you know too.
Poppy Sundeen, a Dallas writer, is a member of the STREETZine editorial board.
Continued from page 2
fulfill what had been spoken by Hosea. Herod ordered the death of any child under the age of two living in or around Bethlehem to fulfill the cries of Rachel weeping for her children. Joseph migrated to Nazareth to fulfill what had been spoken through unnamed prophets.
The pattern continues throughout Matthew’s gospel all the way to the end, in chapter 27, when Judas’ betrayal is affixed to the now familiar epigraph, “to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet.” In addition to the five we just identified in the birth story, there are seven more of these in Matthew, far more than any other gospel writer.
I doubt you came to church hoping for a comprehensive study of Matthew’s fulfillment formula in the birth story of Jesus. Nobody in here is holding Matthew or Jesus accountable for their fidelity to Hebrew bible prophecies about the messiah. It doesn’t much matter to us inhabitants of North America, and inheritors of a Protestant religious tradition that, I think unfortunately, claims more inspiration from 16th century European history than from the ancient prophetic tradition of Israel.
Of course, our ambivalence about the word of the Lord spoken through another nation’s prophets isn’t personal. We are too sophisticated to discount the applicability of Hosea and Jeremiah’s visions on account of them being explicitly concerned with the destiny of Israel. Now that we got our own thing going over here, it’s hard to see how Jesus being from Nazareth like the prophets predicted makes much of a difference.
Instead of Jesus as the solution to our historic problems, we get Jesus the joiner in our suffering.
Maybe it should. The prophets said he would be a Nazarene. Nazareth was home for nobodies. The prophets said Jesus would be born in Bethlehem. Bethlehem was marked for slaughter. The prophets said his mother would be an unwed teenager. Unwed teenage mothers were shamed by polite society. The prophets said Jesus would come out of Egypt. Egypt was the land of Israel’s enslavement. The prophets said Rachel would weep for her children. Rachel refused all comfort because the children
were dead.
What we can’t ignore is that each of the five prophecies that Matthew selected as evidence that Jesus should be accepted as the promised messiah required the past to be gathered up and lived again, not left behind or rewritten. We want the gospel to be an improvement, for the good news to show progress. Instead of Jesus as the solution to our historic problems, we get Jesus the joiner in our suffering.
Jesus doesn’t redeem the historic enslavement of Israel by conquering Egypt, he goes there as a refugee.
Jesus doesn’t wipe Rachel’s tears and promise it will never happen again, he joins the children of Bethlehem on the cross.
Jesus doesn’t protest the historic marginalization of the Nazarenes and demand better treatment, he becomes a Nazarene.
Jesus doesn’t silence the long-spoken scuttlebutt about Mary’s moral transgressions, he joins it by blessing a despised woman who washes his feet with her tears, dries his feet with her hair, and anoints him with expensive perfume.
It has been a long year. Ancient history keeps repeating itself. Rachel still weeps. A voice was heard in Sudan, Gaza, Haiti, Yemen, Myanmar, the DRC, Ukraine,
Syria; wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel still weeping for her children; she refuses to be consoled, because they are no more.
Currently there are 120 million migrants scattered across the world. Many of them were forcibly displaced from their homes having fled from the threat of violence. And many of them, like Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, will resettle for now in their own version of Nazareth, which is to say, nowhere any one of us wants to be.
Instead, we are told our Lord will fulfill our desperation by joining it.
And like the people living under Herod’s rule, we have become familiar with the consequences of maladjusted leaders who deploy cruelty as a political message.
We desperately want and need immediate, final solutions. Instead, we are told our Lord will fulfill our desperation by joining it.
As we turn toward 2026, the invitation isn’t to believe things will get better, but to trust a God who joins all the parts of our history and ourselves we’d rather forget — that which is still precarious, unsolved, and fragile — to show us how to live through it.
Reverend Amos Jerman Disasa is senior pastor at the First Presbyterian Church of Dallas.
Editor’s Note: Each Friday morning at 10 a.m., The Stewpot hosts a Writers’ Workshop. prose or poetry. In this edition of STREETZine, we feature the essays
By Mike McCall
When asked “what do you want people to know about you,” the first thing that came to my mind was the transformation in my life in the last five years. I have moved from unhoused to housed, unemployed to employed, and poor health to getting better every day.
This is all tied into my pursuit for sobriety. Without my sobriety, nothing positive would have happened in my life. With the help of many others, I was able to see the world through a different lens and embrace the beauty that follows.
This change in my way of living is important because it happened right after I had given up all hope. When I reflect back on the time I gave up, it brings tears to my eyes. I was so full of shame, crushed by defeat, and lost in the grips of a force with supernatural powers: my addiction.
Through the help of others and shoulders to cry on, I was led out of a life filled with
darkness to the land of the living. By the time this paper is published, I will have almost acquired four years of sobriety. And I will have a life unrecognizable from the devastating one my soul used to travel.
After so many years of enslavement to my addiction, thinking of a life filled with freedom seemed like a distant shore — one whose horizon seemed to only get further away as I swam towards it.
Amazingly, it is an island I now call home with my recovery tribe, drug counseling employment, and a slew of fellow addicts trying to also swim to the shore. The beauty of my new life is completely contingent on my sobriety. Without it, all would be lost. As uncomfortable as change may be, that was exactly what I had to do.
The immensity of the change was what makes this accomplishment worth more than anything in this world. Sobriety is not accomplished through one simple move. It is achieved through changing everything.
This is why I and my life are unrecognizable from the way they used to be. This quote sums it up:
“Addiction is giving up everything for ONE thing.
Recovery is giving up one thing for Everything.”
Four years ago, I asked God to help me change. Through the help of my recovery community, Stewpot volunteers, The Bridge Homeless Recovery Center, and family and friends, my wish was granted.
Surrounded by the tools for success I was allowed to do the work to make it to that distant shore. Four years ago, I was able to take a life that I thought was destined for failure and turn it into one that supplies its own beacon of hope.
Mike McCall is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
By Evan Williams
Something I want people to know about me is that I’m a hardworking leader looking to seek God and spread his message through my life.
As a homeless person looking to do better with my life, I have a role model in Martin Luther King Jr. who worked with President Lyndon B. Johnson and the NAACP on civil rights.
It is important to present something in my life that inspires improvement, like Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game. These examples show me that having a dream can be achieved and that we’re at a pivotal point in history. This is motivation to me, like Steph Curry and his miraculous threepoint shooting abilities.
It pushes me forward to do good things like going to church and activating my food stamp card. These are important to
Workshop. During the sessions, participants address selected topics through essays of writers that discuss what they want people to know about them.
put myself in a better position not only as a resident, but also with the church and Winners Assembly, so that my character is better as well.
Another thing I want someone to find interesting in me is that with Valentine’s Day arriving soon, I can join in the festivities of sharing and gifting by giving my personality. I wear a wrist band with a Bible verse on it, Psalm 46:10. It says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted on earth.” That helps ground me and can inspire those around me to be welcomed to the parade as well.
In conclusion, with the attitude of change and the vision that I live by, I can translate how I am to those around me very easily. That way, my conduct of leadership is one to follow.
Evan Williams is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
By Darin Roman Thomas
What I want people to know is I’m a true peacemaker and I love seeing people happy.
We only live once, so I really want people to know that I want to be the best father, husband, God-fearing man, son, brother, nephew and so on. I’m a really good person and I want the world to know it.
I came from a good family and was raised by my grandmother — my mother’s mother. I want people to know she did a wonderful job with me and my four siblings. She taught me how to be a good person and live for God. I walk with my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
I love to share with people going through rough times in their lives, especially when they have a hard time with forgiveness.
I had a really hard time with it as well. I want people to know how I turned to God to forgive my father for murdering my mother. I believe Jesus Christ died for my sins and forgave me for my sins. So, I forgive my father for what he did to my mother, my siblings, and me.
I want people to know I’m a true peacemaker and believer in forgiveness. And I love loving on people! I love being a Godfearing man and a true believer of Jesus Christ.
I love the people that are there for me and treat me like I’m somebody. I want you to know I’m very thankful for them and keep them in my prayers always.
These are some of the things I want people to know about me.
Darin Roman Thomas is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
By Jason Turner
I’m not too mysterious. In fact, I’m a pretty regular guy.
For example, I’m doing fairly well in college and should be graduating in about a year. Once I finish my drug counseling associate’s degree, I’ll be able to become a drug counselor and work with clients.
I’ve learned a lot in school about how to deal with clients and problems that could come up in a session. I have learned to do motivational interviewing, and to provide a therapy that produces positive feedback when people are in denial.
Meanwhile, I love to play video games in my spare time. I love games that involve role playing and specialize in magic and skill sets.
I play phone games for money too, although the outlet is closing and it’s getting harder and harder to accomplish.
I have made some pretty good money from doing that.
I also work on lanyards of all different colors. I learned how to do lanyards when I was in Boy Scouts. I make them for key chains and give them to people when I figure out their favorite colors. A lanyard is a four-way braid, so it is like I was doing hair but with plastic strings of assorted colors.
I’m a family man and enjoy going on walks with my mom and playing with my sister’s dog Stormie, a female pit-bull. It has tons of energy and loves playing with toys.
I watch a lot of movies with an app I downloaded. That keeps me very busy. I like sci-fi, action, drama, and horror flicks.
When I do work, I like to canvass for political campaigns, mainly Democratic candidates, and getting people to get out and vote. When I’m not canvassing, I do small jobs like work at Goodwill or pizza
places.
Sometimes I watch educational programming. I enjoy a channel on YouTube that emphasizes crazy dark issues that have happened in history. Morbid facts are so interesting. Some of them are outrageously funny and are meant to be that way.
I also like programs about the James Webb telescope and its observations. Sometimes I sit around and watch people on Earth and wonder about gravity. How awesome and different it would be if we had half of the gravity in Earth. I also think about how wonderfully the Earth has been crafted compared to other known planets.
This is a little about myself that not too many people know about. It’s not extraordinary, but it’s my life.
Jason Turner is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
By Savita Vega
Something that I don’t often talk about but which I would like everyone to know about me is that I struggle with schizoaffective disorder. I was only diagnosed with it a couple of years ago after being hospitalized for a psychotic break. Even so, this diagnosis would never have come about had it not been for my doctors at Parkland Hospital.
For the majority of my adult life, I have never had access to medical insurance. It was at Parkland via their Parkland Financial Assistance program that I first gained access to psychiatric care and began to see mental health professionals on a regular basis. Through this ongoing care, they were able to accurately assess the state of my mental health and arrive at a diagnosis.
What I would like people to understand is the ongoing struggle that those of us with mental health issues face. Although a di-
agnosis (coupled with access to care) can be a turning point in our lives, it does not necessarily mark the end of the battle.
Finding the right medications — ones that actually work without causing unbearable side effects — is a quest that seemingly never ends. Some medications work for a while and then stop. Some only work at high doses, so high that they cause side effects that cannot be endured.
An example of this is high cholesterol. I eat a relatively healthy diet, and high cholesterol is not something that I ever had to worry about before starting treatment for schizoaffective disorder. It is, however, a common side effect of many mental health medications, specifically the ones that I am on. So, maintaining physical health while pursuing treatment for mental health issues can be challenging.
Another challenge we face is the stigma. It is a balancing act that we play between wanting to disclose our condition and being concerned about what people might
By Sandra Robinson
I always wanted to own my own business. I planned on naming the company LMC International after my grandmother Laura Mae. I also planned on giving money back to the neighborhood I receive the money from. Reading books on how to raise seed money and how to purchase an established business was my favorite topic. I purchased Forbes and Entrepreneur magazines.
I played around with computer programming, html, and gaming. I took drawing courses to learn how to create my own characters for gaming. Epic and Unreal game engines are free to learn how to create your own game and movie.
Sections of the Matrix used the Epic game and Unreal game engine. I once was studying to get a degree in gaming. I was placed on shortterm disability and I started looking for jobs in the gaming industry. The state of Texas had no jobs available in the gaming profession. I switched my degree to communication. My counselor told me not to sign up for a focus in communication: public relations, social media, digital media, or event planning.
When I became a guest at Austin Street Center, I heard about The Stewpot’s Writers’ Workshop course. I joined Writers’ Workshop to increase my skills in the communication profession. I just recently joined the iPhone video club, and I plan on joining their art classes. I plan on creating characters and making videos using my iPhone. I plan on self-publishing my essays, novels, and iPhone videos on Amazon’s Kindle.
Sandra Robinson is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
think. Letting an employer know, for example, can be a good thing because it enables them to understand why we might sometimes have to miss work if we aren’t feeling well. But then, we wonder if informing an employer might cause our ability to perform their job to be called into question.
Even telling friends and family can be questionable. Sometimes doing so can cause others to treat us differently, resulting in a sense of isolation.
On the whole, what I would like others to know is that, although I may appear okay, sometimes I’m not. Sometimes just doing the simplest things can be a challenge and getting through the day seems a monumental journey. So, if sometimes I fail to meet others’ expectations, I only hope that they will be patient and understanding.
Savita Vega is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
By Lisa López
Once I purchased property and left the homeless shelter on February 4, 2024, I was laser focused on eliminating any and all trace of homelessness from my life. At first glance, this was simple. I would cut all ties with the people, places, and things related to the unhoused community. I would get a job to pay my bills and live like every other human in modern society. Except, I am not like every other android in present day culture. Before I knew it, The Stewpot had nestled comfortably into my routine and heart.
My karma (all the choices that led up to the crisis of not having a home) had transformed into my dharma (life purpose) of becoming the highest and greatest version of myself. Or in layman’s terms, a visual performance artist. The Stewpot provided me with all the tools and opportunities. Had I not become homeless, I would have not been able to make a living as a visual performance artist. Most volunteers and employees eat, live, sleep, and breath the mission of loving their neighbors. As a result, I felt safe, loved, and totally supported. It seemed I had found my second home and was starting to get comfortable; not pack up.
I still took the part-time job as a cashier/ server to pay the bills and exist as the rest of my contemporaries. I spent the rest of my time singing and painting at The Stewpot. My paintings began to sell. My “Last Supper” series sold out entirely. “Shelter Me” a Dallas Street Choir rock oratorio original, was taking form and the 50th anniversary celebration of The Stewpot was underway. I was front and center in all of these projects. I felt like I was in the right place at the right time, of course, doing the right thing. By the end of 2024, I quit my job at the restaurant and decided to devote myself entirely to my god-channeled creativity. My new job title starting 2025 would be: Visual Performance Artist. Not surprisingly I received negative feedback from fellow modernistic minds who did not deem being an artist at The Stewpot as being financially feasible. Nonetheless, I did.
I was determined to put my god-given creativity front and center in my life. By the summer of 2025 I was feeling confident in my abilities to sustain myself while pursuing my dreams or life purpose. In June, the art studio shut down for a few days while
we moved into the new location on Malcolm X. I was not prepared. I was stumped again. Without the structure to create, my flow of ingeniousness could not find a proper outlet. It was around this time I decided to join the Writers’ Workshop. Not only did I reconnect with my passion for writing, but my work came to good financially (we are paid per article by The Stewpot). Lastly, I would be reaching an audience both digitally and in print. Once again, The Stewpot was facilitating my innermost dreams into material reality.
It was the peak of the summer, and no art shows were planned for either July or August. This meant I would not be making any sales those months. Fortunately, creativity always comes to good. By serendipity and the good grace, kindness and generosity of people I made it through the financial drought. Nourishing my creative spirit and pouring every ounce of love into myself was more than enough sustenance to keep me moving forward. My “The Life of Jesus (The Ascended Christ Master)” collection began to take flight, in the choir we were recording a musical track with pop/rock superstar Bonnie Tyler, and I was establishing friendly connections. At home alone, however, there was still a part of me that could not shake the wound of not having a home.
It seems I was stumped again until the weekend of October 18, 2025, when the wheel of fortune turned sharply and left a handful of events that changed my life instantly. The events surrounding the fire in my building highlighted and reaffirmed the wound of not having a stable, loving home. This time however, I was gifted with a whole new perspective about gratitude and miracles.
Without knowing it I had let my past hurts and misconceptions narrate the sad story of the time I was alone and without support or a home. This was simply not the truth. I did have a home. My unit was the only home without any damage in the building that burnt down. The process of grieving and crying about all my mental, physical, and emotional losses gave me the strength to face the news that I had become a widow. As tragic as it sounds and feels, death is closure. Death is veracity. The truth is I am now happily housed, pursuing my artistic dreams, and creating a solid home in Dallas. I am no longer homeless.
Lisa López is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
By Vicki Gies
The two things I would like people to know about me are my love and kindness. These two things go hand in hand.
From the time I was little, and all through my life, I was surrounded by love and kindness. I was taught by my family to love and be kind to people … everyone! I learned that if I treated people with kindness, they would be kind to me, like the quote says, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”
For the most part of my life that was true. I had some low blows and letdowns during part of my life, but I got through all that with the help of some of my remaining family, close friends, and God.
I really do love life a lot more now, like I did in my early days, and I don’t take things for granted anymore. I like to help people more now. I once learned in church to be quick to listen and slow to speak. This was good advice, and now I listen more than I talk.
In my darker years, I was just the opposite, and that didn’t work out at all. I have
By Paul Ranjan Watson
I participate in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop, and it helps me straighten my thoughts. For a long time, my mind felt like a library after a storm — carrying valuable information but strewn all over. The workshop gave me the space to articulate and gather my ideas.
My PhD work studied language. As a former journalist and professor, I had spent substantial time engaging with language and its impact. But it was during my time in academia that I was drawn to study the works of Chaim Perelman, a logician of language.
Perelman earned his first PhD in the logic of mathematics. He believed in the power of science and thought that if one had the ability to calculate, one could solve the problems facing humanity.
But the events of the Second World War jolted his convictions. Perelman watched with disbelief as scientific logic was deployed to decimate the very humanity
since listened to good advice from several people, and my life is so much better now. I’m a very happy person.
If anyone asks me a question, I do my best to give them the right answer. If I don’t know the answer, then I offer to let them know where to go to get the answer.
My love and kindness also paid off with the animal world. I’m no Dr. Doolittle, but I do talk to my dogs and cats. They are family.
I also learned about wildlife when I was homeless. I learned how to talk to animals in the wild to gain their trust. In the eight total years my husband and I lived in the woods, neither of us was attacked, bitten, or stung by any wildlife around us.
They say, “patience is a virtue,” and it really is. We were never afraid of the animals, just aware of our surroundings, and we got along just fine.
Whether I’m with my family or with strangers, or with my pets or even wildlife, I always try to be true to myself and do what I
it was intended to build. On a personal level, people of his own faith faced the brunt. He saw that engineers —men who understood math — used their skills to build gas chambers, facilitating mass killings. The events shattered Perelman who realized that math without the human element had turned it into a lethal tool.
Eventually Perelman turned away from numbers and found that there was a more powerful logic hidden within the abstractions of language. He spent his second PhD studying how everyday use of words could either build or burn lives. But the finding was not unique, as Perelman himself discovered that much earlier the Greeks had acknowledged the power of language and codified them in their arts and literature. Presently, the discipline is offered by universities as the study of rhetoric.
During my time at the workshop, I found the quiet I needed to return to my research. I spent my days at the Dallas downtown library, catching up on my work and sat among the stacks and studied advances in research and technology.
Thanks to the advances in computing, I found that we can convert language into mathematical reference points. In other words, one can now calculate the accuracy of a document with the same precision an engineer uses to build a skyscraper. I codified my findings into a patent. My work is drawn from research findings of Tomas Nikolov (2013) and Patrick Lewis (2020).
My work allows one to run thousands of pages of documents through a logical filter to see if the claims are true; a work which was previously assigned to law firms and accounts analysts. My method reveals whether a document is honest or misleading. In the world of business, it essentially changes the balance of power in corporations.
I acknowledge Stewpot and plan to return the favor someday.
Paul Ranjan Watson is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
By Kenneth Henry
It is hard for me to find something to write about myself. I am a very private person and have a hard time sharing things about myself that are personal.
I never thought I was a people person. I actually felt more comfortable with animals than people. During my youth, I made friends pretty easily, but as I grew older much less so. Friends tried to remain in contact with me, but I found myself pulling away. Being at home was more comfortable for me than going out with friends.
During my working years, I was comfortable in my routine. I would work my six-hour shift and come home to relax.
I would spend my time reading books, watching movies, cleaning, and washing clothes. Walking was another activity I did. I also had a pet cat to keep me company. I thought I was pretty well grounded during the first half of my working years.
My trouble began in my later years. I worked at a hospital for 17 years as a transporter and critical care tech for the critical care unit. I also worked 12-hour shifts overnight. This messed up my routine, and I eventually became burned out in the job. Leaving the job began my descent into depression.
I lived off my 401K for a while and became more withdrawn. When that money was getting low, I started looking for another job.
I found stints working at Amazon and eventually found a five-hour stint working at Walmart in the produce department but wasn’t making a great deal of money. I started looking for a hospital job again. The perfect job popped up, and I interviewed and got the position. It was another patient transporter position, but due to my previous experience, I made a great deal more money. This was in 2019.
Covid-19 was the beginning of my downfall into homelessness. I was let go in June of 2020 due to no elective surgery during this time. I did get severance pay, and I lived off that for a time, and eventually I found a job at Amazon. That job was difficult and demanding, and I could not keep up with the quota. I was let go. This began my journey into deep depression
and eventual homelessness.
By October 2024 I fell into deep depression. I had a hard time taking care of myself. I would sleep all day and neglect my hygiene. It got to a point where I didn’t want to live anymore. Getting my eviction notice was the last straw, and I also lost my electricity. I was living in the dark and had no one to turn to. I used the last of my money and bought a gun.
I haven’t written about this until now. I was at my lowest point, and as I sat in the dark, I picked up the gun and aimed it at my head. Without ever having used a gun, I clumsily loaded the bullets into the gun. It seemed like time had stopped, and I just sat there holding the gun to my head for what seemed like an eternity.
I finally got the courage to reach out to my brother. Luckily, my phone was still charged. Although we hadn’t been in touch for a while, he came over and took the gun away and took me to his place, which was a hotel at the time. He eventually got me into a psychiatric center. I stayed there for about two and a half weeks and went to a homeless shelter after discharge.
I stayed at The Bridge for about a year and a half. This was between December 2024 and June 2025. While there, I had no choice but to interact with people in the same situation. It was there where I learned to open up and connect with people. Metrocare services helped me see a counselor on a weekly basis. By talking to my counselor, I learned cop-
ing skills to help me talk and open up to people. I made a few friends that helped me during that time.
Eventually, I had to fix myself, because no one was going to do it for me. My brother gave me the push, but I had to jump in. While at the shelter, I had some unexpected benefits. I found out that I needed cataract surgery on both eyes and got them done for free. I now have glasses that I need for reading and driving.
I also joined a writing class where I go once a week to write about different topics for a paper called the STREETZine. This helped me get out and do different things to connect with people and not to be isolated. I am also learning video editing with my cellphone, which is very challenging. The Stewpot made this available.
In July 2025 I left the shelter and have my own place through rapid rehousing for homeless people. I am now getting back to my routine, with one caveat: I try to get out of my apartment and interact with people. It is not healthy to stay by myself all the time.
I hope my story resonates with someone and hope he can change his surroundings and circumstances for a better outcome and life. Just writing this article has helped me reflect on what I have been through and where I want to go from here. I hope people realize that at the other end of darkness is sunshine.
Kenneth Henry is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
Who Am I? The Fear of
By Ezra Gatlin
I am a writer and poet currently based out of Dallas, Texas. I was born in Denver, Colorado, on February 16, 2001. I was homeless for five months last year.
I moved from Denver to New Jersey on January 31, 2025. I lived across the street from the Lincoln Tunnel, which crosses into New York, but I wasn’t in New York. That was part of the problem. The tolls were too expensive. The bus fare was $4 one way. The subway was $2.90. I had to pay $16 just to get to and from work every day.
Then, I couldn’t even find a job. I lived in that apartment for three months, rentfree. My landlord wasn’t happy about it. Each month, I told him I had rent money, and I didn’t. I tried making a GoFundMe and crowdfunding donations from my old community in Denver. Later, I found out that no one donated because they never expected me to make it in New York; the Big Apple —
where dreams come to life. May 2, 2025: my landlord paid me $2,200 to leave quietly. On May 2, I became homeless.
I spent so much of the last year desperately trying to survive. I spent two months in California. While I was in Santa Monica, my days consisted of waking up in Douglas Park on 25th and Wilshire. I would take the bus down to the local homeless resource center and stand in line for showers starting at 6:30 a.m. The resource center didn’t open until 8 a.m., but when you’re homeless, you spend most of your life waiting in lines. Shower lines, food lines, housing lines, you name it. Get there early. There’s never enough to go around. After showering and getting my daily turkey sandwich, that was when I started thinking about my dreams.
Every Monday through Friday, I would walk to the Santa Monica Public Library to charge my devices and submit poems to dozens of free newspapers and magazines. My laptop was my most prized
possession. I wrote constantly. I used a website called ChillSubs to find new opportunities and track my submissions. My poetry was published in 14 magazines in 2025. I left LA and arrived in Dallas in August, but the work I had put in lived on.
On September 22, 2025, I was nominated for “Best of the (Inter)Net” with Arcana Poetry Press for my poem, “the ancestral home of transgender suicide.” (The poem had been published in their anthology, “Roots and Ruins” back in March.) Two weeks later, I was housed. I was safe. I escaped homelessness on 2, 2025.
I accomplished so much in 2025, yet I still had nightmares that I was back in a shelter for months after I had signed my lease. I want to sustain myself off my writing, but I can’t bring myself to open my laptop for weeks at a time. One day, I do want to become a famous writer and publish my manuscripts, but the idea also seems terrifying and overwhelming. Sometimes, I don’t even know if I actually like writing or if I just like being good at it. I have spent so long letting go of who I am that I do not know what I actually want. STREETZine has taught me what matters: I am creating.
While I have been a part of The Stewpot’s STREETZine in Dallas, I have been afforded the opportunity to work directly alongside multiple editors and receive immediate feedback on my work. Both my prose and my poetry have grown leaps and bounds as I work to tell my story. STREETZine has taught me that I can always get better, that I don’t have to be perfect to be good, and that I can figure out what I want along the way.
By James Varas
When I leave this earth to walk in paradise, I want one thing to be remembered about me: That I love Jesus Christ. I want people to say, “That James sure loved Jesus Christ. He was willing to stand up against evil and proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
I also want people to remember my love for others. I want them to say that James had a huge heart and would give you his support in time of need. I may not have trillions of dollars, but I do want people to remember my love in this life.
Jesus saved me and I tell Him every day when I am praying that all I have in this life is His for the taking. That includes my heart, soul, mind and body.
When I get to heaven and all my crowns are upon my head, I will lay them at the feet of Jesus Christ. I will present the Bride of Christ when the rapture comes. I spend every day praying for the most beautiful bride of Christ prepared for him.
You might be wondering, what does this mean?
If you read Revelation 19:7-9, the Bride of Christ, the unified body of believers in Christ, are prepared and ready to be united with Jesus Christ. The Spirit and the Bride (church) invite all to come in Revelation 22:17. To make it easy to understand, the believers are the Bride. The groom is Jesus Christ. We join in the wedding supper of Jesus Christ and are united forever.
I believe we are at the end of times, where good and evil are fighting for their kingdoms. I choose good. I choose Jesus Christ. I choose love.
You see I wasn’t always aware of good and evil. But we have reached a time where sorcery and witchcraft are accepted, and Christians are persecuted.
I feel it is my divine destiny to fight for the good of mankind. I proclaim victory over evil, victory over the devil, and victory over all the wicked who try to put chains on the innocent and plunder their blessings. This world has a beautiful life and the wicked try to bring evil upon the good, for wealth and power.
I would not be here if it were not because of divine intervention. I’ve had pistols pointed at my head and knives pressed against my throat. Jesus Christ is the only reason I am still here in this life.
I pray for the Bride of Christ each day and I use my prayers as a sword to conquer all evil. I put on the armor of God each day, as Ephesians 6:10-18 describes. I also pray for healing, wisdom, defensive support, living water, miracles, and divine anointing to guide me on my journey.
I want to be the one who presents the most beautiful Bride of Christ to Jesus Christ, our Savior. I want to be the servant of all, the one who serves all and the greatest servant in all of heaven. I want to be the humble servant who was found on his knees worshiping God: the Lord Jesus Christ, the Heavenly Father, and the Holy Spirit.
All things are possible with God, and I shoot for the stars when I talk with Almighty God. I want to follow after my King of Kings and Lord of Lords, who was born in a manger and gave His life for mankind, so that we could be saved. He had great power and even greater love. I pray for the healing hands of Jesus Christ. I not only want to protect the Bride of Christ, but I want to deliver divine healing to the Bride of Christ.
In John 14:13 Jesus Christ says, “And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.” Well, I want to speak the Word of God and everyday manifest healing over the Bride of Christ. I want to call angels from heaven above to come to administer healing and I pray for breakthroughs to happen and miracles to take place.
Miracles happen every day whether we acknowledge them or not. It doesn’t have to be angels. I just want in faith for the miracles to take place every day.
If you have the faith of a mustard seed and you tell this mountain to move, then it will move. I send my prayers every day, and I also bind Satan and all evil each day in prayer. Jesus Christ says in Matthew 16 that He will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you release on earth will be released.
He also says in John 14:13-14: “And whatever you ask in My name, this I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”
I ask for great things because I know my God listens. He is an awesome God.
James Varas is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
By Teresa Zacarias
Hmmm, interesting question, deep indeed: What do I want people to know about me?
Let’s start with some of the matters that I usually abide by. It is a bit hard to let others know about me, but I am going to try to do it with these brief introductions:
A) I am a simple, ordinary human being, who at times believes in my heart that God makes us all in a very special way. There’s no other like us. Our Father in Heaven breaks any pattern He makes. Don’t you all think?
B) I try to speak in a positive tone most of the time. At times, it is hard to keep up good vibes. But I try my best.
C) I paint, work, and I am a sister to the most wonderful brothers and sisters anyone can expect.
D) To be a very caring person does not mean you have to let yourself comply with other people’s every need and want. You must do what is right when it comes to interacting with others.
E) Friendship is the beginning of other things. “He who finds a friend, finds a treasure” is my motto.
F) Respect is as important as winning an Oscar. A pastor at church once in a while mentions that you can never learn from someone you despise. Respect is something you earn, never given to you for free.
G) Learning is a lifetime process. I can never give up on learning:
a. Languages — easy ones, of course
b. People’s behavior — what they do and why they do it
c. Law — I can’t resist trying to follow rules and regulations, although I don’t follow them all every time. I may cross the street while waiting for the green signal.
All of the above describe who I really am: Someone who values people’s lives, friendship, work, effort, success, and even failure.
Teresa Zacarias is a writer in The Stewpot Writers’ Workshop.
is STREETZine? STREETZine is a nonprofit newspaper published by The Stewpot of First Presbyterian Church for the benefit of people living in poverty. It includes news, particularly about issues important to those experiencing homelessness. STREETZine creates direct economic opportunity. Vendors receive papers to be distributed for a donation of one dollar or more.
Distributing STREETZine is protected by the First Amendment.
STREETZine vendors are self-employed and set their own hours. They are required to wear a vendor badge at all times when distributing the paper. In order to distribute STREETZine, vendors agree to comply with Dallas City Ordinances.
If at any time you feel a vendor is in violation of any Dallas City Ordinance please contact us immediately with the vendor name or number at streetzine@thestewpot.org
31, SECTION 31-35 of the Dallas City Code
Solicitation by coercion; solicitation near designated locations and facilities; solicitation anywhere in the city after sunset and before sunrise any day of the week. Exception can be made on private property with advance written permission of the owner, manager, or other person in control of the property.
A person commits an offense if he conducts a solicitation to any person placing or preparing to place money in a parking meter.
The ordinance specifically applies to solicitations at anytime within 25 feet of:
Automatic teller machines, exterior public payphones, public transportation stops, self-service car washes, self-service gas pumps, an entrance or exit of a bank, credit union, or similar financial institution, outdoor dining areas of fixed food establishments. Any other ideas? Take
