A Houstonian Angel
By Natalie Baker

In the cozy, dimly lit Mocha Life coffee shop on Almeda, a partially-played chess set lay next to a large, illustrated book of impressionist painters in the center of a round, polished coffee table while  Stevie Wonder’s music intermingled with coffee drinkers’ conversations and the aroma of freshly-brewed java.

Fittingly, a portrait of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. hung just above the leather love seat where 29-year-old Houstonian, Noah Rattler, spoke passionately about both his humble beginnings in South Park, what many Houstonians endearingly refer to as the “Dead End,” and about his plans to make the world a better place.

In less than two weeks, Noah will begin a journey of Biblical proportions – he is going to make a 1,800 mile walk from Houston to California. During a time when Black youth, particularly young Black men, are not readily associated with selfless endeavors, the Sterling high-school alumnus will brave innumerable dangers and complications, walking through deserts, badlands, and mountains to raise awareness about the nation’s homeless.

With an air of humility, Noah said, “I plan to leave Houston on March 24, 2007, and make my way to Los Angles, California, on foot, to bring light to the plight of the homeless across the country.” He added candidly, “My parents raised me to have a community spirit and compassion for others.”

When he was still a college student at Prairie View A & M University, Noah began to take up the plight of the homeless after volunteering with the Houston Search Project. There, he gained what he described as “a real, street-level view” of what homelessness is.

 “I came to the conclusion,” Rattler said, “that if you notice a problem, you should do what you can to solve it.” During the course of his four-month walk, Noah hopes to raise $1 million to advance Search’s mission of eradicating homelessness.

Noah purchased a $250 tent and, having carefully charted a route, he will walk approximately 20 miles a day through Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona, before reaching Los Angles some time around mid-June. Daily, Noah prepares for his strenuous journey by drinking water, eating raw fruits and vegetables and one serving of meat. Most important to his regimen are his daily 15 to 20 mile walks around the city. On Sunday afternoons at three o’clock, a group of Noah’s supporters meet at the sculpture on the hill at Hermann Park’s Miller Outdoor Theatre to begin a refreshing seven mile stroll down Main Street.

With bachelor degrees in both physics and mechanical engineering, Noah has foregone his entrance into corporate America to tackle issues he considers more pressing than his own physical comfort.

 “I am doing this unconventional thing to help people understand that not everyone chooses to be homeless and these are our brothers and sisters on the street. Most of them are hurting and need our help. And they deserve it,” Rattler said. 

In addition to helping homeless individuals across the nation, Noah hopes to serve as a role model for people in his community who might feel helpless and stuck.

Rattler said, “I am doing this to represent my community and to show the children that come from my community that [they] can do more than what [they] see around [them]. The youth in my neighborhood find guidance in a contemporary-urban lifestyle that leads [some of them] into gangs and selling drugs. I want people who are from the same place as [I am] to know that an avenue out of that lifestyle does exist if [they] choose to take it.”

According to Noah, in 2006, there were 3.5 million reported homeless people in the United States, and 40 percent of them were children. Another startling fact about American homelessness that concerns Noah is that 49 percent of the homeless population consists of African-Americans, yet African-Americans only make up approximately 12 percent of the population.

“It’s the same thing in the penitentiary,” Noah added, “disproportionate numbers of African-Americans are in jails and on the streets.”

Added to those figures are the disproportionate numbers of women and children who are victims of spousal abuse and who ultimately become homeless.

“I see a problem,” he commented, “and I will be held responsible if I notice it and I don’t do anything about it.”

“Community” is the one word that Rattler uses to motivate him as he contemplates his long and arduous journey.

 “[C]ommunity is a place wherein individuals and families all look out for one another. I am not walking by myself because everyone I have met has played some part in making me who I am…I am taking everyone that I have met -- friends, family, and community -- with me, I am not walking alone,” Rattler said.

“I am a representative of my community. We are doing this; it is going to take the community to solve these problems because it is the community that is suffering from these problems,” Rattler said with a contagious look of sincerity.

“Houstonians can spread the word that I am on the road, and in the same way that everyone is invited to join the Sunday Stroll, I would love them to be present at the send-off event on March 24th. Even if everyone cannot travel with me all the way to Los Angeles, every person who wants to eliminate homelessness can show that they symbolically walk for the homeless in their hearts,” Rattler said.

For more information about Noah’s journey, and to purchase an official “I am walking with Noah” T-shirt, please call Search Project at 713-739-7752 or email webmaster@searchproject.org.

Back to Noah's Page

Great steps began in Houston
By Natalie Baker

On March 24, Noah Rattler gathered with family and friends in Downtown Houston before he began his arduous 1,800 mile journey to raise money and awareness for homelessness.

Light rain and joyful tears bathed the sidewalk in front of the Houston Search Project, the place where Rattler gained his actual knowledge of homelessness, as Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee presented Rattler with a certificate of congressional recognition.

“We stand before a quintessential icon of homeless presence here in Houston… this certificate is to acknowledge that Noah is deserving of the respect, accommodation, and admiration of the United States congress because he has lifted us up beyond the latest headline and [he] [is] walking enough to ensure those who are looking up to us [there] [is] a better quality of life,” the congresswoman said.

Rattler responded to Congresswoman Lee and the crowd of supporters, who wore “I am walking with Noah” T-shirts, with humble appreciation.

“It feels good to see everyone here because the energy and vibe of the crowd assures me that I won’t be walking by myself. This is a community experiment, and WE are doing this,” Rattler said.

Larry Payne, the president of the Search Project, led the crowd in a chant: “Walk Noah, Walk,” as he too expressed his appreciation for Rattler’s time and efforts.

“It is a great thing that Noah has taken upon himself. He has volunteered with us for the past two years, and he decided that he wanted to give up four months of his life to make this journey to dramatize the need for consciousness about homelessness in the city…He is a special person,” Payne said.

Payne is one of the many supporters who believed that Rattler possessed a special quality that made his decision to walk 1,800 miles an easy one to swallow.

“I knew that Noah was a special guy, he had a big heart and he was very giving. He just always thought differently than everyone else, and I was not surprised when he told me what he planned to do,” Jason Luckett, Rattler’s longtime friend, said.

Congresswoman Lee felt that Noah’s efforts were something special, as she said, “Noah’s name is significant. If you recall Noah was able to save us 2 by 2, so I believe as Noah walks, there will be 2 by 2, 3 by 3 and 4 by 4; and the consciousness will be raised about homelessness in America.”

The crowd chanted the endearing phrase “Walk Noah, Walk,” as the philanthropist began his journey at 10:49 a.m., which left many of his supporters like Shamika Holmes in tears.

“If anyone could do this, it is Noah because he has always been special. It is special that we have someone who cares about society and humanity. To be a young African-American man taking a step, my spirits are really high,” Holmes smiled and said as Rattler’s back faced his supporters, which began his journey of biblical proportions.

Back to Noah's Page