Posted on 01/13/2006 11:14:39 AM PST by ApplegateRanch
Couple fend off public ire following news article
ASHLAND — Sudden notoriety and public condemnation have surprised an Ashland couple who make a living as panhandlers and refer to themselves as "affluent beggars."
Jason Pancoast and Elizabeth Johnson, who have three children, think the public has been taken aback by their unconventional image of a well-fed, well-dressed family that lives off the streets.
"What has happened is that we’re going along with a lifestyle that you couldn’t imagine we should have," said 34-year-old Pancoast.
A story in Sunday’s Mail Tribune about the couple, who sometimes make up to $300 a day and once made $800, triggered an outcry from local residents and sparked the interest of national media.
People in downtown Ashland have yelled at Pancoast and threatened him since the story was published, he said.
Angry e-mails and letters to the Mail Tribune and freelance writer Jennifer Margulis have described the couple as tax evaders, bad role models for their children, "common thieves" and abusers of a food stamp program designed to help people temporarily down on their luck. Pancoast and Johnson said they receive $500 a month in food stamps.
Local radio talk shows have spent airtime taking calls about Pancoast and Johnson, and the couple appeared this week on a Portland radio show. Fox News also expressed interest in interviewing them.
Instead of the usual image of the homeless begging for money to buy alcohol or drugs, Pancoast and Johnson are relatively clean-cut and use their money to get a safe place for their children to sleep, a warm meal and good clothes, they said.
"We’re challenging the stereotype of being a beggar," said 30-year-old Johnson.
But former Ashland mayor and local businessman Alan DeBoer, who gave Johnson $200 before Christmas, said that after learning more about the couple, he believes they are conning people — even using their 3-month-old baby as a prop.
DeBoer said he now regrets his generosity toward Johnson and would not give her any more money.
"I wouldn’t," he said. "I may never give anybody a dime again."
DeBoer said he would prefer to give donations to local organizations such as ACCESS Inc. that screen their clients. "They have the training to verify this stuff," he said.
He gave the money to Johnson after she gave what he thought was an "eloquent" speech at an affordable housing committee meeting.
DeBoer said begging has become so commonplace that you find people at almost every freeway off-ramp.
"You almost have to make panhandling in Oregon illegal," he said.
Pancoast, who estimates he and his wife can make $30,000 to $40,000 a year panhandling, said he doesn’t understand why someone with the kind of wealth and influence of DeBoer would begrudge him from using the money to keep his family safe.
He said the rich in the country have certain expectations of the homeless that are vastly different from the way he tries to live.
He said that he and his wife have no assets and are currently living in an Ashland motel. The couple were staying at another local motel, but the manager asked them to leave because of negative publicity, Pancoast said.
The couple say they stay in motels because it is difficult for a family with no consistent income and three children to find housing.
Pancoast, who is outspoken in many of his beliefs, said Ashland is being run more and more by the rich who can’t tolerate different lifestyles.
Pointing to the expensive homes on the hills surrounding town, he said, "Is this community theirs or is it ours?"
He said DeBoer could do more for the homeless if he found a solution to the affordable housing problem locally.
Pancoast, who admits he has a different perspective on reality than most, said he would like to get a job and stop living off the street.
"Ultimately it may seem like a cakewalk, but it takes a lot of energy to deal with it," he said. "We have to stay on the run usually."
Pancoast and Johnson said getting jobs would mean sacrificing time with their children.
Patty Claeys, chief executive officer of ACCESS, said all parents would love to stay home with their children, but the reality is that most people have to work to support their family.
While she applauds the couple for apparently taking care of their children, she said, "As long as people live in that kind of lifestyle, what are they teaching their children?"
She said ACCESS could help the couple find a house, but they would have to show some kind of income.
Claeys thinks the couple would be better off getting a job, and because of their large family they would pay little in taxes.
However, because some people have difficulty fitting into a job situation, she said, "I almost feel they would be more successful if they called that (panhandling) their business and paid taxes on it. That way they could legitimize what they are doing and have something to show for it."
Claeys said many of the people begging for money never come to her organization looking for help.
During her 15 years working there, Claeys has passed her business card out to the homeless who stand on street corners asking for money. She has instructed her staff to let her know if someone has shown her business card.
"In all these times no one has come in and asked for food and shown my business card," she said.
Johnson, who said she has unsuccessfully tried to get housing through ACCESS, said she would like to have a more stable lifestyle for her family.
Pancoast said, "All we want is housing so I can pursue other ways of functioning without wondering where my family is."
Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail dmann@mailtribune.com.
From left, Jason Pancoast, 3-year-old Adrianne, 3-month-old Synclair and Elizabeth Johnson say people are upset by their panhandling because they don’t fit the stereotype of beggars. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell
Looks like their gravy train may jump the rails sooner than they expected. I just hope that the IRS, the USDA Food Stamp Program, and OR Dept of Revenue all take a closer look at them, now that they have been publicly outed.
I bet he gets a visit from the IRS.
Ping to follow-up of "Affluent Beggars" story of last Sunday.
The IRS part will be fun to watch.
I bet they know how to say 'Please', 'Thank You', and smile.
(I have heard anecdotal evidence of a Seattle homeless man who panhandled 6 months and vacationed 6 months, then left $300,000 to charity when he died.)
This a logical extension of the socialist agenda. I can't see why in the world the leftists in Oregon should be upset by this.
Nothing like a panhandler with an attitude.
This man was mayor and he was that clueless about the "homeless"?
---this isn't exactly new, either. When I lived in San Francisco twenty-some years ago, there were plenty of them doing this and I'm sure a good percentage of the current Las Vegas crop are doing the same--although it's a bit unusual to subject kids to that life--
The whole episode reminds me a little bit of the Sherlock Holmes story "The Man with the Twisted Lip."
Put a sign around "Synclair's" neck: "Help! My Momma and Daddy can't spell!"
"Ultimately it may seem like a cakewalk, but it takes a lot of energy to deal with it,"
EXCUSE ME?? It takes a lot of energy to be a BUM?? Why don't you take some of that energy, put it into a real job and support your family, you ignoramous!!
They "make" $30k-$60k/year and can't afford housing? But stay in a motel?
I bet they pack up and move to another town within the week.
Who pays the property taxes, nitwit? ;)
BINGO!!!!
geeze, Cleveland is lousy with 'em...
Un-freakin-believable. In this country, much to the consternation of our resident socialists, we create security for ourselves and our families by getting a
Pointing to the expensive homes on the hills surrounding town, he said, "Is this community theirs or is it ours?"
I'd say it belongs to the people on the hill, who pay for the land you're panhandling on, not to mention the Food Stamps and other government perks you're taking advantage of on your $9,000.00 a month tax-free "lifestyle."
What an @ss.
P.S. Please ping me when the IRS visits these con artists. :)
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