Douglas Robertson, of Umatilla, unzipped the front of a tent at his campsite along Umatilla River Road south of Umatilla.

A tent offering a bit of warmth, a bite to eat and a fragment of privacy becomes home for those who have nowhere else to go.

Around those tents springs a community of “river people,” those thrown together by circumstance and chance, bound by a need to survive.

Monday, about 14 people called the camp near the Umatilla River home. In the summer months, the camps have been home to as many as 20 or 25 residents.

One is Douglas Robertson, a longtime resident of Eastern Oregon who has been in the camps for about a year.

“A lot of people lost their jobs. That’s why I’m here,” he said with a shrug.

After losing his job and his apartment, Robertson moved into a tent near the river and started looking for another job. Then he said he lost his wallet, and to replace his identification card he had to replace his social security card, which had been in the wallet. The process took months. His new ID shows his address as “Under I-82 overpass, Old River Road, Umatilla.”

“I just got those replaced, so now I’m looking again,” he said. “Right now, I’m just unemployed, waiting for the factories to pick up, which is next month.”

Most of the campers were moved from their campsites in Umatilla in August when the city passed a ban on longterm camping within city limits. The campers moved to a spot further upriver, but had to move again this month because of rising waters.

When the move order first came down, Douglas moved his items then helped others. He found a spot in the trees next to a collapsed tent and moved in. He left the tent and its collection of clothing and items untouched.

“I figured it was none of my business,” he said. “How would I feel if I took that over and then the owner came back? I’m not a thief.”

The current residents of the Umatilla camp each repeat the same refrain: we’re not thieves, we’re not criminals, we’re not bad people. We don’t steal anything from anyone.

For James Johnson, life snowballed, tragedy following tragedy — his father died, he lost his job, his wife left him, he was arrested. Now on probation, Johnson said he did not want to be a burden on his mother and took to life in the camp.

“I was taught survival when I was a kid by my dad, and I’ve been camping most of my life,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of pride. I don’t want to live off anyone.”

Johnson has been homeless for about two years. In addition to working side jobs and searching for full-time employment, Johnson is the camp’s designated firewood cutter, helping those without the benefit of survival training survive in the camps. Most of the campers use fires to cook meals, and some take the embers into their tents to keep warm but must watch for carbon monoxide poisoning. When they can afford them, the campers hook Coleman stoves to propane tanks to cook meals and heat their tents at the same time.

The campers have little, but all say they share food, sleeping bags and firewood with others who stop by.

“Anyone who needs a place to stay or a meal, people send them to us. We can’t help much, but we try,” said Laurie Love, one of the newest members of the camp.

Homeless for about six months, Love is one of the newest members of the camp. After losing her home due to divorce, Love found herself on the streets. She said she has an RV, in storage, but has been turned down by RV parks because she is now homeless and has a record for being unable to pay fines.

“I never dreamed I would end up here,” Love said. “I used to be very judgmental, but sometimes God wants to put you on the other side of the tracks. I’ve learned a lot, and I’ll never forget it. It can happen to anyone.”

Love points out people treat her differently when they find out she is a “river person” now. Some people close off or assume she is a criminal; other people offer help or food or clothing.

“People think all the worst things, that we’re thieves, liars, vagrants, but this community also has really awesome people,” she said. “No, no one wants to have a town with homeless people in it, but most of the people here didn’t do anything wrong. Something bad happened, and it happened fast.”

The most recent move has been difficult on some in the group, because the camp is now very visible from the road.

“I’m beginning to wonder if they’re using us to clean up the river. We move to a site, we get it cleaned up, we haul off the trash that’s been there for years — then they tell us to move,” she said. “Now, here we are by the road, and it’s embarrassing.”

Umatilla City Manager Bob Ward said the city council will discuss finding a set space for campers to stay where they can meet hygiene needs and have access to law enforcement.

“We have been getting a lot of complaints here from people about the presence of the tent camp,” he said. “It’s not really growing, it’s that as the river waters rise, the people who have been camping are moving to higher ground. At this point, all of the calls we have received have been complaints and not necessarily suggestions.”

The council may discuss the campers and homeless situation at its next meeting. Meanwhile, Umatilla County is working on a solution to move the camps off the roadside.

“We have been working collaboratively with out code enforcement, planning, and board of commissioners to put together a plan to deal with things out there,” Umatilla County Sheriff Terry Rowan said. “It is still in its infancy, but I do foresee a plan in the near future.”

That plan will likely involve identifying everyone in the camps, arresting anyone with warrants and posting signs for no overnight camping or parking in the area, Rowan said. The campers continue to work on finding food and shelter while trying to get back on their feet.

“We don’t plan to live here forever. Going to college, you live in a dorm before you graduate. Until we get another job, this is where we are,” Love said. “Just because someone doesn’t have anyone to turn to doesn’t make them a bad person. It doesn’t make them a loser. It makes it hard.”