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VOA慢速英语2015 社区中心帮助贫民区的女性

时间:2015-04-01 22:57:51

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AS IT IS 2015-03-31 Community Center Helps Women on Skid1 Row 社区中心帮助贫民区的女性

Many homeless people live in the “Skid Row” area of Los Angeles, California. These men and women have no permanent place to live. Skid Row is a place where many social service groups can be found. They work to help the homeless find work and a place to live. One such organization works with women.

Skid Row is like no other place in Los Angeles. The homeless fill its sidewalks at all time of the day.

Yolanda Waters has a job as a barista. She prepares and sells coffee. But she was once homeless and spent time in Skid Row.

“It is the place where everybody is dumped. If you do not ask for help, you are not going to get helped. For people to be looking at you like you are nothing, treating you like you ain’t worth nothing -- that is the hard part.”

Ms. Waters received help from the Downtown Women’s Center. The center trains homeless women and helps them find work so they can live in a place of their own. It shows them how to create candles, greeting cards and other products. The program teaches the women to arrive on time, complete a project and work in a group.

Joe Altepeter is head of vocational2 education at the center.

“Rebuilding self esteem3, developing relationships with individuals. Chronic4 homelessness, when you are living on the streets you become isolated5. So this is an opportunity to really deal with those issues.”

He adds that about one-fourth of the 58,000 homeless people in Los Angeles are women. The high cost of housing is one reason they do not have a permanent place to call home.

Poor women are more at risk of being homeless. Many homeless women struggle with mental problems or have been abused.  

The center gives them advice, health care and support.

“They come into the workshops, they might not have a community of friends or a support network, but they are entering this safe and the supportive environment, which offers that for them.”

The things the women make are sold at the Downtown Women’s Center, and at Bloomingdale’s, a store selling high-priced goods. Each handmade craft has a sign showing where it was made.

Kathy Suto works at Bloomingdale’s. She says the store has sold many of the crafts the women have made. She says she hopes other businesses will sell them.   

“We have been very pleasantly surprised. It is something. I am now working to get the other five Bloomingdale’s stores in the Los Angeles market just to start carrying it as a part of their assortment6.”

Yolanda Waters did not enjoy making crafts. But she did like making drinks in a small restaurant at the Downtown Women’s Center. After training there, she got a job. Now, she has an apartment home, and a reason to get out of bed.

“It feels unreal because sometimes I think when I wake up ‘Is it real? Do I have this real job that I really love?’”

Words in This Story

dump – v. to leave or unload (something or someone) quickly or without concern

self esteem – n. a feeling of having respect for yourself and your abilities

chronic – adj. happening or existing most of the time

isolated – adj. separate from others

workshop – n. a class or series of classes in which a small group of people learn the methods and skills used in doing something

carry – v. to have something in a store and ready to be sold; to keep something available

assortment – n. a group or collection of different things or people


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1 skid RE9yK     
v.打滑 n.滑向一侧;滑道 ,滑轨
参考例句:
  • He braked suddenly,causing the front wheels to skid.他突然剎车,使得前轮打了滑。
  • The police examined the skid marks to see how fast the car had been travelling.警察检查了车轮滑行痕迹,以判断汽车当时开得有多快。
2 vocational VhWwB     
adj.职业的,业务的
参考例句:
  • They have set a regular time for vocational study.他们把业务学习时间固定下来。
  • She was given some quick training at the vocational school.她在职业学校受过速成训练。
3 esteem imhyZ     
n.尊敬,尊重;vt.尊重,敬重;把…看作
参考例句:
  • I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
  • The veteran worker ranks high in public love and esteem.那位老工人深受大伙的爱戴。
4 chronic BO9zl     
adj.(疾病)长期未愈的,慢性的;极坏的
参考例句:
  • Famine differs from chronic malnutrition.饥荒不同于慢性营养不良。
  • Chronic poisoning may lead to death from inanition.慢性中毒也可能由虚弱导致死亡。
5 isolated bqmzTd     
adj.与世隔绝的
参考例句:
  • His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
  • Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。
6 assortment FVDzT     
n.分类,各色俱备之物,聚集
参考例句:
  • This shop has a good assortment of goods to choose from.该店各色货物俱全,任君选择。
  • She was wearing an odd assortment of clothes.她穿着奇装异服。

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