More than meals served at Pine Street Inn

More than just meals were served up at Boston’s Pine Street in as the city’s  homeless community gathered for a luncheon Monday attended by Cardinal Sean O’Malley.

The Cardinal was in attendance not just to serve plates to the men and women of the streets, but to highlight the vexing issue that is homelessness in Boston.

"You can be homeless and still have a full-time job," O’Malley said. "It's the reality."

"I’ve been homeless for about a year," said Farney Nuby.

During the Christmas season, homelessness can feel even tougher – especially when you have distant holiday dreams.

"Next Christmas I hope to be with my girlfriend and my daughter," said Ed Montanez.

"The one wish I have for everybody is that next year they're not here in shelter, that they're in housing," said Lyndia Downie of the inn.

Homelessness in Boston is stubborn, both due to a lack of housing and the high cost of what is available. But the executive director of the Pine Street Inn says compared to other cities, the homeless problem here is actually small.

But it's no small problem when you are in the midst of the struggle.

"Nobody said life was going to be easy. Nobody said life was going to be fair," Nuby said.

"Some people look at us like we're a different species," Montanez said. "And we're just human beings too, you know."

Cox Media Group