DESC Downtown Emergency Service Center The clients don't rip off your stuff the staff of this shelter do!!! seattle, Washington

During my stay at the DESC (which the social workers happily call Doesn't Everyone Smoke Crack?) I witnessed many times the abuses made toward the homeless by the staff of the DESC. One man had left on a medical emergency and the staff took his posessions which included a brand new Dell computer bagged it up for him and placed them in a locked room which only the paying working staff has access to and assured him his belongings would be there when he returned. When this client returned from the hospital all of his possessions were there except for the computer. While in the smoking area he confronted Lisa the program director at the shelter and she said with a straight face that it had to be the volunteers that took it. This client is mentally ill and had no recourse against the lies this woman was telling him.

They also have a belonging sweep. During this the staff comes around and takes people belongings that are being unattended. Lisa then gives them the choice get your belongings back or stay outside for 24 hours. I have seen the clothes and other personal items taken from the homeless in the DESC thrift shop. They also use this sweep as a form of harassment against some of the clients. The reason why they have such a good sucess rate is because they only help those who they know they can help and get into shelter. All the others they create lies and harassment to get rid of the people.

Lisa is a very poor adminstrator. She creates an atmosphere of hostility. A good adminstrator creates an atmosphere of accessebility not hostility.