ABSTRACT
While completing the community service requirement for a social work course at Oasis House, a shelter for persons who are homeless, Emily faced a difficult situation. Emily had developed a special bond with one of the residents, Lorinda, a single mother with two young children. Lorinda and Emily were the same age and had many similar interests. They had both been on their high school track teams and had competed in the same events. During one of their frequent conversations, Lorinda asked Emily for money. She told Emily that she needed the money so her boyfriend could take a bus back home. He had gone to another city hoping to find work so he could earn money and send for Lorinda and the children, but he had not found a job and had no money for the trip back. Lorinda assured Emily that she would repay the money as soon as she and her boyfriend found jobs.
