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Marc Lester's blog posts

In reporting on homeless, up-close approach reveals subjects’ humanity
posted 03/16/2015

Homelessness has long been a serious problem in Anchorage, Alaska. The challenge for two reporters at Alaska Dispatch News was to find new ways to cut through old perceptions and debates to tell stories that showed their subjects’ enduring humanity. Here's how they did it.

In Alaska, homeless face harsh realities and high death rates
posted 07/05/2014

Homeless Alaskans are being found dead on the street with alarming regularity. During a one-year period beginning in spring 2009, so many bodies appeared that some residents in the state's largest city that spread rumors of a serial killer. What's being done to assuage their plight?

Marc Lester's Blog
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In reporting on homeless, up-close approach reveals subjects’ humanity
Homelessness has long been a serious problem in Anchorage, Alaska. The challenge for two... more »
posted 03/16/15
In Alaska, homeless face harsh realities and high death rates
Homeless Alaskans are being found dead on the street with alarming regularity. During a one-year... more »
posted 07/05/14

Marc Lester's Work
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Project: The search for solutions for Anchorage's homeless — Part 4

Every day, outreach workers try to lift homeless alcoholics from the streets of Anchorage, Alaska. In the past, a sober life has always been the goal. But a controversial approach called Housing First is challenging that thinking. Last story in a four-part series.

Project: Addiction, survival and love on Anchorage streets — Part 2

Daniel Sopcak and Betty Sanchez are married, homeless and struggling with alcohol and other ailments in Anchorage. Their days are a window into a rough, often invisible world.

Project: An endless loop: Homeless, alcoholic and dependent on Anchorage's fraying and expensive safety net — Part 1

Being homeless isn't easy anywhere, but especially not in Anchorage, Alaska, where hundreds subsist at the confluence of chronic homelessness and addiction. These individuals are the most prolific consumers of public services, gripped by a lifestyle of compounding health problems and risk of death.