Bringing the near-dead to full life

Bob Coté, the director of a homeless shelter in the heart of Denver, does not mince words---even when describing the people he serves and loves with his Step 13 program: "'Homeless'? 'Hungry'? What does that mean? Most of them have thrown away their homes and have all the food they need. They're drunks and druggies."

But in these words, words that some might find harsh, is the secret to Coté's and the program's success. Step 13 treats drunks and druggies as human beings who can become creative and productive people once gain, instead of treating them as pets who must remain in the perpetual care of the state or government-funded agencies. As Coté said last Tuesday during an interview at The King's College in New York, "Any program that takes responsibility away from a person who can assume responsibility dehumanizes that person. Giving people money, or anything, without expecting something in return is killing them. It's suicide on the installment plan."

Coté made his comments in response to questions from WORLD editor in chief and King's College provost Marvin Olasky during a lunchtime session that is part of the college's Distinguished Visitors Series.

Olasky is himself an expert on the subject of care for the poor, and his research has resulted in several books on the topic, including The Tragedy of American Compassion, which played a key role in 1995's sweeping welfare reform. In introducing Coté, Olasky, who has visited many homeless shelters across the country, called Step 13 "one of the nation's best," largely because it emphasizes personal responsibility. The program accepts no government funds and is therefore not bound by government notions of what works and what doesn't. It also requires its clients to earn privileges. "Everybody's there to work," Coté said. "We don't just warehouse a bunch of drunks. This is not 'bunks for drunks.' We want to fix people, not just get them off the streets."

And fix people they do---or, at least, they fix many more people than similar programs across the country. Coté claims a 40 percent success rate for those who come to Step 13 and fully participate in their program---a process that can take up to two years. He said the success rate at similar U.S. facilities is less than 10 percent. Step 13 accomplishes all of this with a $650,000 annual budget.