63-Year-Old Faces Homelessness Due to House Renovation: Coreen Lenore White Looks for Help Amid Difficult Life

Coreen Lenore White says she has lived a difficult life but help is on the way.

The 63-year-old told a Nation team she was soon to be homeless as the house in which she lives is to be renovated and she has not found another place as landlords were reluctant to depend on the Welfare Department for rent money.

She said that her life has been filled with unfortunate events, bad decisions and numerous ailments.

“My house burned down in 1983. I had nothing so I had to put my children in a home. That led me to drugs and I became an addict,” she admitted.

White had been living at the rehab facility Marina House in St John for many years but was recently forced to leave. She found a place in Ellis Village, Halls Road, St Michael, in March – a house owned by a family member where she was reunited with one of her children. However, she said her son blamed her for the past and today, they basically had nothing to do with each other despite living in the same house.

The frail woman, who had a stroke in 2018, showed a medical document with a long list of ailments and medications. She suffers from asthma, high cholesterol, lung infections, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, hypertension, middle ear infections and more. She said she also contracted COVID-19 at one point and stayed at Harrison Point. In addition, she uses oxygen tanks, which she has to get refilled, to assist in breathing.

White said the house was falling apart and often filled with water when it rained. It also has no toilet. “I already had two bad asthma attacks in here and had to go to the hospital.”

She said the house was going to be rebuilt – though this meant she was going to be homeless.

“My niece, who lives overseas, owns the house. She said she wanted to remake it and rent it out so I have until the end of the month to find a place to live. I went to Welfare and tried to find a house but the people don’t want to work with Welfare. They say it takes too long to get the rent. I had an application for a house at NHC (National Housing Corporation) for years now but nothing,” she said.

White said she was desperately looking for a home and hoped to get some appliances, such as a washing machine and stove, to make a start.

When contacted, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs Jehu Wiltshire said he would send a social worker to conduct an urgent needs assessment today and see what assistance could be provided.