By NICOLE FOSTER Staff Writer
As the temperature dipped into the 30s, a group of Saint Rose students prepared to build cardboard shelters on the quad. The Office of Spiritual Life hosted the second annual Sleep-Out for The Homeless, an event meant to raise awareness for those in the community who don’t have a place to call home.
From 7 p.m. to midnight on Thursday, students were immersed in community-minded education and activities. A schedule was put together that included guest speakers from Albany’s Homeless Action Committee, Family Promise
and Interfaith Partnership. A TED talk was planned towards the end of the night and was followed by a closing ceremony at midnight. To encourage complete focus and immersion, a sign was displayed upon entering the Hubbard Sanctuary, “Will you please surrender your cell phone?”
Cardboard was donated from local appliance stores and participants were encouraged to bring items for donation to a local food bank. The more they brought, the more building supplies they were provided with. Duct tape and drop cloths were meant to provide a sturdier, more comfortable shack. Though students were permitted to spend the night, most were expected to leave around 12 a.m.
For Joan Horgan, director of campus ministry, the message of cardboard structures on campus was more important than the action.
“I don’t like to trivialize the fact that some people don’t have shelter,” she said. “We’re creating structures that get people’s attention.”
The temporary housing will remain on campus for a week, reminding the student body to consider what life is like without shelter. Each of the 13 participants built their own “home” and spent about two hours inside leading up to midnight. They will use paint to write quotes and facts about homelessness on the outside, drawing attention from fellow students throughout the week.
Horgan began the night with an exercise that asked each student to reflect on his or her life. She asked the 13 attendees to consider several real-life situations, including if they were a teen parent, if they have ever been discriminated against, if they had access to a car, had ever been involved with the criminal justice system and if they had ever been hungry. Horgan explained that most homeless people have experienced one singular event that resulted in their downward spiral, resulting in struggle.
In the audience sat the three students responsible for organizing Sleep-Out for The Homeless: Anna Rose Fragalei, Maria Hartz and Mariah Pasinski. They all come from different cities, major in diverse subjects and have unique plans for their futures, but one thing they agree on is the need to better understand the homeless.
“I actually brought the event to Saint Rose,” said Fragalei, 19. Her high school was deeply involved in community service and held a campaign each year to bring attention to homelessness and poverty. They called it “Cardboard City” because students built their own shelters. “It was the right thing to do, to bring it here,” she said.
Fragalei feels frustrated when people see someone who is homeless and don’t understand why they don’t have a job. “They don’t have money to buy clothes so they can’t go to an interview,” she said. “They don’t have a computer to make a resume. They don’t have a mailing address. People aren’t aware of all these little things. You can’t just say, ‘Go get a job.’”
Pasinski, 22, has worked with the homeless before. Whether serving meals at a soup kitchen or spending an hour in conversation, she has developed relationships with individuals who struggle. “That person on the street is not just a bum,” she said. “They’re as deserving of respect as anyone else.”
Before heading outside to build their cardboard structures, Hartz, 20, explained that students were encouraged to bring warm clothes and dress in layers. “But at the same time, it’s supposed to be a little uncomfortable,” she said. Like Horgan, Hartz wanted everyone to understand the night was about education, not to spread a stereotype that homeless people live in cardboard boxes.
“If you’re going to do service, know why you’re doing it,” she said. “Go out and help, but be educated.”
