AnnMarie Walsh uses free wi-fi at a train station to check her social networking accounts. Photo courtesy of Daily Record.

AnnMarie Walsh was homeless but wanted to share her story of survival and educate the public about the plight of the homeless. So she opened up Twitter, Facebook, Youtube and blog accounts and used a computer at a public library in Chicago to update fans.

According to this article on Chicago’s WGN-TV, Walsh soon had more than 4,000 followers on Twitter. Her tweets also led her to a hospital social worker who helped Walsh find permanent housing.

Now Walsh, 41, is using social networking to help homeless people who are seeking advice.

“Most of them think that homeless people are all criminals, on drugs, alcoholics,” she told the Daily Herald. “They think we don’t try to get out of homelessness and that we aren’t successful at anything. Some (homeless people) have college degrees and because of the economy got laid off.”

To read more about Walsh click here and click here.

To learn more about how social workers help people from all walks of life visit the National Association of Social Workers “Help Starts Here” Website by clicking here.