October 16, 2015

Homelessness

Here's something new to try: sleep outside on a cold October night. Sounds pretty crappy, right? Try doing it every day of the year, through winter storms and heavy rain and sweltering heat. Homelessness is a real issue that many people prefer to ignore. Us lucky sheltered citizens tend to feel uncomfortable when we see the tired souls on the corners of streets with signs, and many assume homelessness solely happens to people with drug problems, or that it is something people bring onto themselves. The homeless must be lazy, right?

Quite on the contrary, many homeless families are homeless by circumstance. It's a hard life that happens as a last resort. The homeless are often at the end of their line, and have tried everything to keep a home and job. Many are mentally ill. Some are even war veterans with PTSD, who have served our country only to end up on the streets. It's a difficult life, and there's no way to glorify it.

Last night, I took part in Homeless Night at my high school. About 120 high school students raised and contributed a minimum of fifteen dollars to register. Everyone brings their cardboard boxes and starts setting up in front of our school, some as early as 6:00. Everyone has to be set up by 9:00 pm, and the whole event is monitored by chaperones. Some pretty awesome box forts pop up, with lights and tarps and lots of cozy blankets and sleeping bags. And then we get cozy. Everyone spends the night and packs up by 6 am to go get breakfast. This is, of course, a glorified one night version of homelessness. Even so, we are all cold, cramped and tired at the end of the night. No matter how awesome our forts were, how many snacks we packed, and how cozy we were, we felt the wind through our layers of clothes. It was easier knowing there were over 100 of us freezing in boxes together. I can't imagine trying to live homeless alone. Participants listened to the testimony of a teacher whose father is living homeless on the east coast. I got less than 4 hours of sleep. This was my first year taking part in Homeless Night. But I'm already looking forward sleeping out again next fall.

I'm proud to say that my school school raised over $2500 for our local homeless shelter, and we're also collecting canned foods this month to send at the end of October. I learned a lot about the difficult lifestyle of the homeless, and I am proud to contribute to their comfort in these coming cold months.

If your school doesn't have a Homeless Night, plan one. Start a canned food drive. Or next time you see someone shivering on a street corner holding a sign asking for help, hand them some cash, or buy them a pair of socks, or treat them to McDonald's. It's just another meal to you, but that meal could be all they eat for the day, or the week. Homelessness is real. Let's address it.

Stay awesome,
Claire
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Read about Kid President's #Socktober initiative here!
Find your nearest homeless shelter.
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4 comments:

  1. Killing it! Homeless night is fun to partake in, but realizing that others have to endure these conditions every day and night is heartbreaking!

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  2. I think homeless night is good and bad. It is great that it is a fundraiser, but unfortunately it leaves some people thinking that it wouldn't be that awful to be homeless. Thank you for going over the negative aspects as well.

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  3. I got to say, I looked at doing a homeless night more as a fun activity rather than a way to support the homeless, but I was pleasantly surprised to find it was really gratifying and really did educate about the homeless. It was a great night and, like you said, it really did make me realize the struggle that so many face

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  4. I love this post and how you related it to the experience you had at Homeless Night! I also liked how you called others to help and make a difference like you. Inspiring. :)

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