AUGUST 7, 2026 ON MY CORNER MEET YOUR VENDOR Stephanie Duncan, Groundcover vendor No. 66 In one sentence, who are you? I’m a 55-year-old woman with a great attitude. Where do you usually sell Groundcover? 5th and Liberty. When and why did you start selling Groundcover? When I became homeless in 2010. What is one place in Ann Arbor that feels like your own personal sanctuary? Every footstep in Ann Arbor. I love it here! What’s your life motto? Live life to the fullest. What advice would you give your younger self? Stay positive and smile. What is your comfort food? Chocolate. If you were stranded on a desert island and could only bring three things, what would they be? Food, phone, and a good book. If there was a theme song for your life, what would it be? “Imagine” by John Lennon. If you could travel anywhere, where would you go? Hawaii; I love the skirts and flowers! Most people are aware that homelessness is a serious problem. It affects many people, from the unhoused to the everyday man or woman who sees a homeless person suffering on the streets and feels compelled to help, even if they don’t know how or can’t afford an extra dollar themselves. People become homeless for many reasons. I personally became homeless the first time due to addiction. I beat the addiction with the help of Jesus Christ, but how I got off the streets was a bit of a struggle. You don’t always have control over who you meet when you're facing being unhoused. Sometimes you’ll find yourself in a conversation with someone wise facing economic hardship, other times you could be chatted up by someone who is unfortunately barely lucid, suffering from mental illness and ranting, unaware that their words are illogical. I was lucky the first time I was homeless to meet a kind person who was intelligent and interested in sharing. Between the two of us we could afford a room in a hotel and suddenly instead of sleeping on the streets there was a bed and four walls to GROUNDCOVER NEWS I beat homelessness ... for a time whole thing is a misunderstanding or miscommunication based on having my mail sent through the homeless shelter, and hope to have my Social Security reinstated soon. In the meantime, things DAVID PUTMAN Groundcover vendor No. 679 keep us out of the elements. Between the two of us, we were able to acquire just enough Social Security income to pay for an apartment in Ypsilanti. What’s more, shortly after setting that up, I was able to temporarily patch things up with the person I’d been living with previously, and my apartment mate and I both got off the streets. It’s strange the way that certain government programs that people depend on can be unreliable when you need them most. In an effort to fill my time with productive activity, I acquired a job at a local restaurant, only to have my Social Security completely revoked. It had been my understanding that I was allowed to earn a certain amount of money before my benefits would be forfeited. I still believe that the became unlivable with the person whose house I was staying at after I was unable to provide any money until my benefit situation is remedied. I found myself back on the streets again. It’s unclear to me if the shorter path to being off the streets once more will be to acquire another job, or have my benefits returned. But I almost certainly won’t be able to do both. Whichever solution, hopefully I won’t be unhoused for very much longer. All it takes to overcome economic hardship is perseverance. I hope all the people I see holding cardboard signs and sleeping outdoors like me find a way to change their situation for the better. Thank you for listening to my story, and if you ever find yourself in a situation like mine, I wish you luck, and all the best. God bless. 3 Introducing the She Team The She Team is a women’s empowerment group focused on today’s and tomorrow's community solutions. In her research to find opporSUCCESSFUL HELPING ELEVATING TRANSFORMING EMPOWERED AND MOTIVATED tunities for Groundcover, Anna Gersh, Ph.D. discovered some important facts about women in poverty: “In America, women are 20-35% more likely to live in poverty than men. Part of this is women's disproportionately high caregiving responsibilities and the vulnerabilities associated with becoming pregnant. According to the National Institutes of Health, poor women are more likely to live in life-threatening situations, such as highcrime areas, and are disproportionately vulnerable to violent victimization, including assault, sexual violence and intimate partner violence.” Gersh has been the Groundcover News board president since 2023 and has been a board member for six years. She, along FELICIA WILBERT Groundcover vendor No. 234 with Groundcover vendor and board member Shelley DeNeve, are the founders who came up with the brilliant idea for a women's group at Groundcover — a community of strong, supportive women who are committed to empowering all women — called the She Team (see graphic to the left). With each meeting we support, mentor, encourage and uplift one another. Together we celebrate each other’s successes while working on challenges. Our goals as a collective are leadership development, personal growth, mentorship, community service and networking. This creates stronger bonds throughout the community and elevates every woman. As a way of introducing some of the members, I asked the She Team women the following question: "What do you like about the She Team?" Gersh, President of the team, stated, “My favorite thing about our new She Team meeting is that Groundcover now has a place for women to discuss issues that affect them in particular. Another reason I love this meeting is because I get to meet new and old vendors and writers all the time.” DeNeve, an Ann Arbor native and Vice President of the group, stated, “I think Groundcover She Team is important. It gives me a see SHE TEAM page 9
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