“Martha Aladjem Bloomfield knows the power of stories to heal. Her deeply personal journey into the lives of the formerly homeless reveals their search for home as uniquely American. In doing so, My Eyes Feel They Need to Cry becomes a timely call to action and a critical blueprint for change.”
—Vincent Delgado, Academic Specialist for Civic Engagement, MSU Residential College in the Arts and Humanities, and Co-Founder of the Refugee Development Center
“This uniquely original enterprise is about offering a new home for the homeless—a home of a life revisited and fulfilled in a newly found sanctuary of poetry, story, art, and humanization. Martha Aladjem Bloomfi eld’s book is not a work of charitable compassion but an empathically sparked glimmer of hope and recognition for the socially outcast.”
—Haim Hazan, Professor, Social Anthropology, Tel Aviv University
“The homeless live from one day to the next, ever focused on satisfying their hunger, thirst, and need for sleep. Listen to them bring back their memories of brighter days, and offer them your understanding. By enabling them to express themselves through music, art, or storytelling you’ll awaken in them self-confidence and human dignity!”
—Ilja Hradecký, Founder and Director of Nadeje (“Hope”), Czech Republic
“Engaging the stories of hope from some of the darkest corners of society, this book and project uplift and illuminate the humanity of those who have been marginalized.”
—David Votta, President of the Board of Directors, Michigan Oral History Association, and Community Engagement Librarian with the Midwest Collaborative for Library Services
“It is the combination of the very first and last lines in Bloomfield’s book that teaches us the challenge of developing resilience. All remaining lines in My Eyes Feel They Need to Cry show readers that learning to set and express goals—especially while experiencing the depths of despair—functions as the tool to bounce forward toward success. Each individual’s story in this book represents the power of personal adaptation, and thus the possibility to change future generations.”
—Darlene A. G. Groomes, Associate Professor, Oakland University
