Concord Monitor – January 22, 2025
By MICHAELA TOWFIGHI
Sweatpants, snow pants, a t-shirt, a windbreaker plus an outer shell, hiking boots and a hat weren’t enough to keep Raymond Blodgett warm against the biting cold. It was as many layers as he could find that morning, though. Standing at the intersection of Interstate 393 and North Main Street, his bare hands held a tattered cardboard sign as he bounced side to side. Temperatures barely reached above zero after a night of negative numbers. Winds didn’t help Blodgett fight the cold that made his nose run and fingers numb.
Wednesday promised to be no different, with overnight temperatures expected to get down to 11 degrees below zero and feel even colder with the wind chill, according to the National Weather Service. For people experiencing homelessness, finding consistent shelter during the coldest temperatures means shuffling between a patchwork of options offered by nonprofits in the city.
Blodgett, 52, is no stranger to New Hampshire winters. Since 2000, he’s experienced homelessness in Concord, with consistent nights on the street sleeping outside through freezing temperatures in the winter, rainy spring days and summer heat waves.
These days, the cold takes more of a toll. “I’m older,” he said. “My body’s not liking it.” Blodgett pulled a red canvas wagon filled with his belongings as he moved throughout the city. The front wheel doesn’t function and bungee chords hold down a blue duffle bag. The snow-covered sidewalks along 393 meant that Blodgett trudged as close to the banks as he could, with cars speeding by. In 2016, Gene Parker was hit and killed along the same route while experiencing homelessness. There was no clear path in the snow for his wheelchair.
Blodgett knows he can get three hot meals at the Friendly Kitchen during the week and take a shower over at the Concord Coalition to End Homelessness’ during their Resource Center hours when needed. Not everyone chooses to make the daily trek between the two destinations. Timothy Russell, 29, sat outside the coalition’s Resource Center midday waiting for their afternoon hours to begin. He had a hole in his black sneakers and two pairs of black socks on to mask the appearance.
His long sleeve shirt, vest, sweatshirt, two coats and four pairs of pants provided some warmth. Still, the wind blew and he retreated into his jacket hood, pulling his sweatshirt up and his hat down to shield his face. Since December he’s spent most nights at the Coalition’s Emergency Winter Shelter. By 7 a.m., he’s up and out the door only to fall asleep on a table at the Friendly Kitchen during their breakfast hours.
For Blodgett and Russell – two of the estimated 300 people currently experiencing homelessness in the Concord area – passing the time on a bitter cold day looks different. Blodgett sacrifices a few hours outside to claim his spot along 393 with his sign. Arriving early morning, he’d collected 5 dollars and hand warmers in the few hours he’d stood there. Ideally, he’d get double that. Propane for the night cost $10. Without it, he turns to lighting hand sanitizer for a brief flame. Russell shies away from the public ask. He doesn’t want his kid to be in the backseat of a car that drives by looking at his dad in the cold asking strangers for any help.
His main focus is the steady job he holds as a dishwasher downtown – meaning he’s trying to shower and change into a relatively clean work shirt before his 5 p.m. shift starts. The steady routine, and money that comes with it, is a “God send” he knows friends in similar situations don’t have. “It’s hard to get out of this situation because nobody wants to hire somebody that can’t shower. Who wants to hire someone who can’t do laundry all the time, who gets a cold because they’re sleeping in a room with 40 junkies,” he said. That was the case for Blodgett. “I’m a felon and it’s hard for me to get a job,” he said. “The only job I can get is McDonald’s but then when they find out you’re a felon or homeless they kick you out. Then I’m right back to square one.”
With the extreme weather, the Friendly Kitchen extended their weekday hours from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. to align with the Coalition’s emergency winter shelter overnight offerings – providing 24 hours of continuous coverage. Earlier this month, the two service providers made the same extensions to provide relief into the weekend, as well. Russell wished people wouldn’t yell at him from their cars to get a job as he walked the route from the Friendly Kitchen to the Resource Center, and vice versa. He wishes the city had more affordable housing for people like himself and that he wasn’t sitting outside hungry and still cold.
Some days, he’ll pass on the Friendly Kitchen’s midday meal and take a moment alone walking over to the library. Here, he can “feel more like a regular person.” “It’s very reminding of the poverty you’re in when you’re constantly surrounded by these situations and these people,” he said. “It goes without saying but it’s hard to imagine unless you’re actually living it.”