The store, which Blackwell had run since July of last year, had fallen on hard times with the COVID pandemic. People didn’t visit a thrift store when they were afraid to leave the house, Blackwell said. “It’s not like I sell anything essential. Furniture, jewelry, shoes, sometimes things people donate. We had someone donate dried fruit, but we had to give it away. We’re not licensed to sell food.”
Blackwell, an African-American Puerto Rican Jamaican, described himself as a “local guy” who has lived in Phoenix for an awfully long time, though he wouldn’t say exactly how long. (“I’m hesitant to give away my age.”)
DailyTrib.com Support Community Press You can show your support of a vibrant and healthy free press by becoming a voluntary subscriber. Subscribe Now Marble Falls High School theater students Gabby Rinker (left) and Earta Bislimi are among 21 of the high school program s students who qualified for the International Thespian Festival in June. Courtesy photo
The Marble Falls High School theater program had a near record-breaking number of performance and tech students qualify for nationals with 21 overall, the department announced via Facebook Wednesday, Dec. 16.
Qualifications took place during the virtual Texas Thespians State Festival, which ended Dec. 5. The students now advance to the International Thespian Festival, a virtual competition held June 22-25, 2021.
Two cities tried to fix homelessness, only one succeeded
Housing First is considered a best practice for addressing homelessness, but where one city succeeded, another still struggles. A surge in pandemic homeless aid will help, but experts say only with strategic planning.
Audrey Jensen, Jill Ryan, Chloe Jones and Madeline Ackley Howard Center for Investigative Journalism
HOUSTON Nearly a decade ago, two U.S. cities with large homeless populations tried to solve their problem by adopting a strategy that prioritized giving people housing and help over temporary shelter.
But Houston and San Diego took fundamentally different approaches to implementing that strategy, known as Housing First. Houston revamped its entire system to get more people into housing quickly, and it cut homelessness by more than half. San Diego attempted a series of one-off projects but was unable to expand on the lessons learned and saw far fewer reductions in homelessness.