Checking in With Troy Skaggs in South Bend, Indiana

[Troy Skaggs on 3/2/25]

You’re living in a group home. How much are you paying? How many housemates do you have? Please tell us a bit about them.

-I left my VA subsided housing six months ago. Now I’m in a South Bend boarding house at the edge of the “hood” and near the historic district downtown. Despite its challenges, it’s a better situation, by far, than being alone in an apartment with psychotic neighbors.

At $325 a month with wi-fi, I feel pretty lucky. I have five housemates. This street is much quieter than the last. There’s a homicide memorial next door that’s hard to miss. At least it’s fancier than the garbage cans and pillars in front of my last place. Though the shooting was a few years ago, some people need to hold onto it. The memorial is a small bench with the usual liquor bottles and talismans.

I’ve gotten to know Michelle from Philly. She’s in a tough spot after losing her partner to a heart attack. Though despondent at times, I do my best to help her out.

She’s not particularly happy here, but knowing what it’s like in Philly, she doesn’t plan on going back. That Philly accent, gravelly as heck! She’s had a tough life. We talk a lot about some of our problems and hangups. This simple human contact is a true bonus. I have nowhere else to go, so feel lucky just to be housed.