I would like to know how you feel about this problem. Please don't misunderstand my post here...we will help anyone with a legitimate need for a good meal or help in general. I'm talking about the one's that work the truckstops and seem to always run out of gas or need a dollar mainly on the weekends??!!! We've had them knock on the doors in the middle of the day until the early hours of the morning with no regard to whether or not your sleeping or talking to family on the phone etc. When they jump on the running boards and get in your space it really makes me uncomfortable. Anymore, when stopped..we close the curtains in hopes we won't be bothered. Just want to know how you all deal with it and do you think it's getting worse.
Panhandlers and beggars
- Thread starter bruchar
- Start date
The worst of the panhandlers are those that put on a ball cap with an expedite carrier logo and seek out drivers from that company to bum a few bucks til they get a run and an advance. Thinking they are family, of sorts, it's easier to help them than send them away. I haven't been stung by them yoe, but it's only a matter of time
i have call 911 and reported them to local police and they have come and pickem up and taking them away
or see someone trying to hitchhiking call for a ride for them
one time at a flying j in perrysburg oh this person came up to us and ask for some money for gas we told him we buy gas for him but won't give him money, and we got gas and he was very up set that we did that
later found out that he did this about 3 or 4 times a week
and was able to make couple of hundred dollars working all the truck stops in the area
or see someone trying to hitchhiking call for a ride for them
one time at a flying j in perrysburg oh this person came up to us and ask for some money for gas we told him we buy gas for him but won't give him money, and we got gas and he was very up set that we did that
later found out that he did this about 3 or 4 times a week
and was able to make couple of hundred dollars working all the truck stops in the area
We don't park at the truck stops anymore. If you have to, get a hold of the store's manager and let them know they have a problem. We were at a Pilot in Dexter, MI on I94 and the homeless were shooting up with needles and leaving their syringes everywhere. We got the manager out there to see what was going on. This is a health issue. This was the last straw for us. It is safer to just get a hotel.
We had a lot lizard try to break into our truck while we were in the shower, and she pretended that our truck was hers until she realized we were the owners.
Here is a good way to keep them from bothering you:
1. Pretend that you are deaf and pretend to sign. They will leave you alone because it is too much of a hassle to talk to you.
2. Always keep a bat in your vehicle just in case it is a druggie needing a fix. They have been known to do desperate things to get their drugs.
3. Offer them food instead of money.
4. Keep urine jug in plain view.
5. Ask them for money.
6. Beat them to their punch line by asking them first.
7. Tell them that you were looking for a partner to polish wheels.
8. Ask them if they were the ones on the CB asking for money to clean the interior of your truck. Tell them there is a buck in it for them.
9. Tell them you need a co-driver.
10. Leave a sign in the window that you are using the porta-pottie, please do not disturb.
Seriously, it is becoming a big problem. We gave a sack of food to a couple that ended up throwing it away. They were drug users with an outrageous story. We still give, but it is through our utility company as well as at the checkout line at the grocery store by buying a coupon that helps the needy. I believe in helping your neighbor when there are kids and elderly involved, but not a young person that is able bodied.
We had a lot lizard try to break into our truck while we were in the shower, and she pretended that our truck was hers until she realized we were the owners.
Here is a good way to keep them from bothering you:
1. Pretend that you are deaf and pretend to sign. They will leave you alone because it is too much of a hassle to talk to you.
2. Always keep a bat in your vehicle just in case it is a druggie needing a fix. They have been known to do desperate things to get their drugs.
3. Offer them food instead of money.
4. Keep urine jug in plain view.
5. Ask them for money.
6. Beat them to their punch line by asking them first.
7. Tell them that you were looking for a partner to polish wheels.
8. Ask them if they were the ones on the CB asking for money to clean the interior of your truck. Tell them there is a buck in it for them.
9. Tell them you need a co-driver.
10. Leave a sign in the window that you are using the porta-pottie, please do not disturb.
Seriously, it is becoming a big problem. We gave a sack of food to a couple that ended up throwing it away. They were drug users with an outrageous story. We still give, but it is through our utility company as well as at the checkout line at the grocery store by buying a coupon that helps the needy. I believe in helping your neighbor when there are kids and elderly involved, but not a young person that is able bodied.
My favorite is when they approach you with a piece of metal that is broken or has a hole in it. Then they say this fell off my car and I just need $6.47 to get a new one so I can get home to my daughters birthday.
Panhandeling has always been a problem and always will. I give zero my wife would give them everything we own. you can imagine some of those discussions that have happened.
Panhandeling has always been a problem and always will. I give zero my wife would give them everything we own. you can imagine some of those discussions that have happened.
I know those arguments well, lol, - I've had them with myself. My marshmallow side feels sorry for anyone who is reduced to begging - but when the beggar is a male who doesn't have any obvious infirmities that would prevent him from working for a living, I get annoyed pretty quick. (Just as, the first couple times I was awakened by a knock on the truck door & looked out the window at a female who was clearly expecting a male, I found it amusing - but not for long)
I don't have any trouble saying NO anymore, (except when it was a family, with little kids, and everything they owned in thier car) and getting a manager, or calling the police, are good ideas. If all else fails, I keep a sharp knife (for slicing tomatoes, of course,)in the pocket on the back of my seat, where it's out of sight, but handy. Just knowing it's there makes me feel better. Especially in August, when the beefsteaks are ripe! :9
I don't have any trouble saying NO anymore, (except when it was a family, with little kids, and everything they owned in thier car) and getting a manager, or calling the police, are good ideas. If all else fails, I keep a sharp knife (for slicing tomatoes, of course,)in the pocket on the back of my seat, where it's out of sight, but handy. Just knowing it's there makes me feel better. Especially in August, when the beefsteaks are ripe! :9
rfrogger120
Expert Expediter
You should have emphasized the word SHARP. LOL
I was a little hard hearted before.I will not let folks go hungry. One time I was at an Arbys in Lincoln IL and a family of 4 pulled in. It was obvious that all of their possessions were in the beat up Ford they were in. They were only able to buy 2 sandwiches and literally paid for them with pocket change. This was for 2 adults and 2 kids. When I left I went to the counter and ordered about $20 worth of food for those folks and left without letting them know.
They did not beg,they were down for whatever reason so thats a
different story.
They did not beg,they were down for whatever reason so thats a
different story.
tom tinker
Expert Expediter
H i Security to me would be a great concern. Sleeping in your truck, I know depends on where. Theladies unless they run team with a guy I would put sign in window sleeping do not disturb. I hope being truckers they would not look the other way if a person needed help. Like a lot of people don't want to get involved. I,v seen shows on TV where truckers are quite often first to help. I hope this makes sense been up long time. Good night Tom Tinker
Goodness, where do you people park??!!
I park at truckstops of all kinds, and rest area's and travel centers all over... I've yet to have panhandlers knock on my door and wake me up. I sleep pretty good though, and not too much wakes me up. I'm actually surprised, I had more problems with the tour busses than the semi's. I drive semi's now and have no problems...
I'm a cold person though, and when somebody does approach me for money... I look at the big picture... and tell them too.
Example: "Good clean sneakers, nice clean jeans, clean shaven, nice coat... don't look like you need money to me.
Or... Clean clothes, clean shoes, clean body, nice hair style... don't look like you need any extra money to me <works for both male and females that want you to think they're financially strapped.
My grandfather always told me you can tell alot about a persons shoes.
BigBob, and I'm on my way too. Smile!
I park at truckstops of all kinds, and rest area's and travel centers all over... I've yet to have panhandlers knock on my door and wake me up. I sleep pretty good though, and not too much wakes me up. I'm actually surprised, I had more problems with the tour busses than the semi's. I drive semi's now and have no problems...
I'm a cold person though, and when somebody does approach me for money... I look at the big picture... and tell them too.
Example: "Good clean sneakers, nice clean jeans, clean shaven, nice coat... don't look like you need money to me.
Or... Clean clothes, clean shoes, clean body, nice hair style... don't look like you need any extra money to me <works for both male and females that want you to think they're financially strapped.
My grandfather always told me you can tell alot about a persons shoes.
BigBob, and I'm on my way too. Smile!
I try to avoid the spots where they are the worst and I keep the doors locked and curtains up when I'm parked.
Leo Bricker, owner trucks 3034, 4958
OOIDA 677319
73's K5LDB
Highway Watch Participant, Truckerbuddy
EO Forum Moderator 1+ Years of Service
-----
Support the entire Constitution, not just the parts you like.
Leo Bricker, owner trucks 3034, 4958
OOIDA 677319
73's K5LDB
Highway Watch Participant, Truckerbuddy
EO Forum Moderator 1+ Years of Service
-----
Support the entire Constitution, not just the parts you like.
One of the reasons I like Minnesota is forty degrees below zero keeps the riff-raff out. In Minnesota, even our street people have to be innovative and industrious. If they are not, the weather will kill them. But go to Florida or California where the weather is temperate year-round and the street people seem to be everywhere.
In many cases, they represent sad stories of mental illness and funding cuts that closed programs to help them. When I worked in a prison (one of my technology gigs), I saw first hand people there who really should have been in a group home. But with the funding cut and homes closed, and with these people unable to operate appropriately in society, they ended up first on the street and later in prison as they interacted and reacted inappropriately with people around them.
In prison, they continued to interact and react inappropriately to the people around them so off to the hole they went (segregation). Corrections officers are not mental health workers. When an inmate acts up, off to the hole he goes.
Even in the hole, these people interacted and reacted inappropriatly, doing things like painting their cell walls with their own feces, tearing their clothes into tiny pieces, tearing their flesh from their arms with their own teeth, and/or screaming at the top of their lungs until their energy ran out. Put a handfull of screamers in the segregation cell block where every sound echos off every wall and you have a chamber or horrors in this so-called enlightened day and age.
When people approach you looking for a handout (or an opportunity to rob, rape or kill you, or to steal your truck or your load), and when they have a sympathy-generating story or appearance, it's sometimes very difficult for caring and open minded people to say no or keep the door or window closed. For many, it is a matter of conscience and upbringing. We're taught to share and help others. Yet with street people, it's hard to know if they are on the level or not.
I can relate to RichM's story about the family he helped. Sometimes you run into people to whom your heart goes out and you immediately reach for your wallet. But most other times, and especially when someone approaches you, instead of you approaching them, a host of negative emotions come into play, as well as safety concerns.
One way to deal with it, we've found, is to have a planned giving program where you contribute money to organizations that help street people, the mentally ill, the poor and others.
No one expects anyone to help everyone. Even if you were a multi-million-dollar lottery winner, you cannot help everyone. No matter how many people came to you for help, and no matter how much money you gave away, people would continue to come. You are just one person, but there are millions in need.
You can't help everyone, but you can help some. A planned giving program gives you the ability to know that even while you are waving off the street people, you are doing your part to give as you are able and help others in need.
In many cases, they represent sad stories of mental illness and funding cuts that closed programs to help them. When I worked in a prison (one of my technology gigs), I saw first hand people there who really should have been in a group home. But with the funding cut and homes closed, and with these people unable to operate appropriately in society, they ended up first on the street and later in prison as they interacted and reacted inappropriately with people around them.
In prison, they continued to interact and react inappropriately to the people around them so off to the hole they went (segregation). Corrections officers are not mental health workers. When an inmate acts up, off to the hole he goes.
Even in the hole, these people interacted and reacted inappropriatly, doing things like painting their cell walls with their own feces, tearing their clothes into tiny pieces, tearing their flesh from their arms with their own teeth, and/or screaming at the top of their lungs until their energy ran out. Put a handfull of screamers in the segregation cell block where every sound echos off every wall and you have a chamber or horrors in this so-called enlightened day and age.
When people approach you looking for a handout (or an opportunity to rob, rape or kill you, or to steal your truck or your load), and when they have a sympathy-generating story or appearance, it's sometimes very difficult for caring and open minded people to say no or keep the door or window closed. For many, it is a matter of conscience and upbringing. We're taught to share and help others. Yet with street people, it's hard to know if they are on the level or not.
I can relate to RichM's story about the family he helped. Sometimes you run into people to whom your heart goes out and you immediately reach for your wallet. But most other times, and especially when someone approaches you, instead of you approaching them, a host of negative emotions come into play, as well as safety concerns.
One way to deal with it, we've found, is to have a planned giving program where you contribute money to organizations that help street people, the mentally ill, the poor and others.
No one expects anyone to help everyone. Even if you were a multi-million-dollar lottery winner, you cannot help everyone. No matter how many people came to you for help, and no matter how much money you gave away, people would continue to come. You are just one person, but there are millions in need.
You can't help everyone, but you can help some. A planned giving program gives you the ability to know that even while you are waving off the street people, you are doing your part to give as you are able and help others in need.
sixwheeler
Expert Expediter
All you really have to say is "NO" these people have heard it before.
If you try to give them excuses as to why they have arguments to present.. a forceful "NO" is all thats needed.
Theres plenty of people in the world who just barely keep the rent paid and food on the table, the car running, etc., the only difference between these people and the career bums is that they re trying. If they stopped trying they d be homeless and destitute in a hurry too. Screw the bums, get a job.
Of course if I would see a family with kids obviously living out of their car and they looked like they actually needed some help, I probably couldnt sleep if I didnt help them out.
If you try to give them excuses as to why they have arguments to present.. a forceful "NO" is all thats needed.
Theres plenty of people in the world who just barely keep the rent paid and food on the table, the car running, etc., the only difference between these people and the career bums is that they re trying. If they stopped trying they d be homeless and destitute in a hurry too. Screw the bums, get a job.
Of course if I would see a family with kids obviously living out of their car and they looked like they actually needed some help, I probably couldnt sleep if I didnt help them out.
I STILL ENJOY MY VERY LOW TECH AND LOVEABLE WAY OF DISSUADING PANHANDLERS/LOT LIZARD AND CRIMINALS! CAJUN GYPSY, MY 12 YEAR OLD GERMAN SHEPARD/DAUGHTER (A POUND RESCUE), AND CHEWY, A CHOW-TYPE MUTT, (FOUND 5 YEARS AGO WALKING ON THE BEACH IN GULFPORT, ARE OUR WARNING DEVICES, OUR DETERRENTS, AND PERSONAL TRAINERS. (EVEN WHEN I DON'T FEEL LIKE EXERCISING, I STILL GOTTA WALK THEM). MANY PANHANDLERS, DRUGGIES, AND THE LIKE HAVE COME NEAR OUR WINDOWS AT NIGHT ONLY TO GET THE SCARE OF THEIR LIFE BY TWO LOYAL DOGS THAT DON'T LIKE VISITORS. (THEIR REAL NICE OUT OF THE TRUCK OR IF THEY KNOW YOU). ONLY ONCE, AT PILOT IN OKC, DID A LOT LIZARD APPROACH WITH THE DOGS THERE, BUT GENERALLY I CAN EVEN SLEEP PEACEFULLY IN (GOD FORBID), LAREDO....YOU GET USED TO THE BARKING. BEING FROM JERSEY, I'VR SEEN EVERY TYPE OF MONEY-GETTING SCAM THAT THESE PEOPLE COME UP WITH, BUT JUST LIKE RICH, IF I SENSE SOMEONE REALLY NEEDS HELP, I WILL STEP UP...AND OUT AND HELP. IT'S GOOD KARMA. GOOD NIGHT AND STAY SAFE!
MARK F.
MARK F.
I think the best help you can give the homeless appearing family in an auto would be to either help them get to a church or other social agency willing and capable of giving them long lasting help and support, or getting a social helper to the family. Most every truck stop has a ministry phone number listed somewhere near the drivers lounge, outside trailer or phone booth area. The investment of monies for a burger, fries and coke will last but a couple of hours; a 25 cent investment in a phone call can last them a lifetime. Assuming, of course, that they want some real help and aren't broke from one day too much at Disneyland
I have done the same for families down on their luck. Met a great mother and daughter that were living in an RV in California that I still keep track of. They are living in an apartment now and are doing well.
I think the world of them Best people I think I have ever met. Sometimes a humbling experience is what is needed to make us human again.
I think the world of them
Best people I think I have ever met. Sometimes a humbling experience is what is needed to make us human again.As more jobs leave this country I see more of a problem with this. You have to determine if the person is truly in need and buy them what they need not just give them money is how I feel about this. Truck stops seem to be a breeding ground for this kind of solicitation. If they only knew that most drivers are only 1 run away from being there themselves.... we won't mention any companies!!! The other day at a Flying J we seen this man nicely showered clean with his duffel bags standing out side around the corner of the building. He didn't say anything to us when we went in. When we came out a hour later he was still standing there. I said to my husband you think maybe he just got dumped out of a truck? I had to ask him and yep that was exactly what happened. I asked him if he had money on him he said he had 100.00 or so dollars. I also asked him how far he had to get home. He was along way from home and his wife was traveling there to get him. We asked him when she was to arrive. He told us she should be there today. We also asked him if he needed anything he politely said no, but thanks for asking. We left him with 50.00 dollars just so they had enough money to get home on and a good meal. When companies do this it sure leaves a very bad taste in my mouth!!!! There is no reason to leave an employee of yours out at a truck stop. Bring them to there home base first and then let them go.
creekindian33
Expert Expediter
yea they r a problem every were u go usaly i can spot one walking up i just wave my hand back in forth an say no not interested keep saying it thell get it an move on if they say they ran out of gas i ask them what kind of car they have an were its at if they r lagit an i might ad in three years ive only seen one time they will not stutter on tipe of car but they r every were we just brush them off tell them u just gave a dollar to the last guy sam thing whith cigeretsx(
roadweazel
Expert Expediter
I was in Covington, Ky and a ATM on a date and this guy told me he had a van of kids going to the Red's game. He told me "That the game was on the radio." I told him yes it is and there playing a away game(forget where). He told me i was lying. I turn to the right and point out the lights are not on at the Stadium. But i was the bad person!
(Gas station point of view)
Working at a gas station i don't alow people to "bum" from my customers. Main reason being the customer's don't like it, and may not return because of it.
Once i had a guy tell me he needed money for gas to get home i told him i would turn on a pump for $5.00 he told me just to give him the cash would be fine i just kinda laughed at him.
(Gas station point of view)
Working at a gas station i don't alow people to "bum" from my customers. Main reason being the customer's don't like it, and may not return because of it.
Once i had a guy tell me he needed money for gas to get home i told him i would turn on a pump for $5.00 he told me just to give him the cash would be fine i just kinda laughed at him.