Published: April 04, 2008 11:10 pm         

Homeless — for a night

Several Goshen College students took a trip outside of their comfort zones Friday night in an effort to raise awareness about the realities of homelessness and what they view as a lack of affordable housing options in Elkhart County.

The group, sponsored by Campus Ministries, elected to spend the night in cardboard boxes on the courthouse lawn in downtown Goshen as a way to raise money for Habitat for Humanity as well as awareness for local homelessness.

“We’re just trying to raise awareness for homelessness in the area and the need for affordable housing,” said Phil Schmidt, a senior at Goshen College and student leader with Campus Ministries who helped organize the event.

Each student participant was asked to raise $25 dollars to go toward Habitat for Humanity of Elkhart County.

“We asked them to raise $25, and different people have been giving different amounts,” Schmidt said.

Earlier in the day, the group took a walking tour of downtown Goshen and the surrounding area as a way to get an up close and personal look at the often overlooked realities of homelessness in Goshen.

“We did the walk to kind of get a look at some of the places and areas we hadn’t seen before,” Schmidt said. “We saw some of the lower-income areas of Goshen.”

With Friday being his first ever “Shack City” event, Schmidt said he was glad for the opportunity to see the many areas of Goshen that often are overlooked during the everyday grind.

“It was also interesting to see the different service organizations, how they work, and how each has their own specific niche,” he said.

Some of the many local service organizations the students were able to learn about during Friday’s walk included Habitat for Humanity of Elkhart County, LaCasa Inc., the Interfaith Hospitality Network, and The Window.

Bryce Bow, a Goshen College junior and first-time Shack City participant, learned about the event through flyers on campus and through the campus worship night.

“I think this is a great opportunity to learn about the lives of homeless people and what they have to go through every day,” Bow said.

While the students were able sate their hunger with a spaghetti dinner provided by The Window, Bow said the event took the idea of fasting — a daily reality for many homless people — to a different place.

“This is kind of like fasting, but with shelter, not food,” Bow said.

Overall, Bow said, the experience has been a good one, noting that he would jump at the chance to participate in a similar event in the future.

“I think it’s a great cause,” Bow said. “It tests your limits a bit, moves you out of your comfort zone, which I think is important. You need to move out of your comfort zone sometimes — to grow.”