Sleep out experience allows young adults to put themselves in the shoes of the homeless

Friday, Nov. 24, 2017

SALT LAKE CITY – As part of the national effort of Sleep Out America, 10 people slept in cardboard boxes and tents on the plaza of St. Catherine of Siena Newman Center, challenging the winter weather that on Nov. 11 brought some snow and freezing rain to Salt Lake City.

“It is a good way to bring people’s attentions to homeless youth,” said George Zinn, a member of Saint Catherine of Sienna Newman Center, who participated in the event despite the weather because “anything that is aggressive like this can make a difference.”

Seven youth and young adults from the Newman Center and three young adults from the Cathedral of the Madeleine embraced the Sleep Out America challenge with joy and determination.

“Putting ourselves in the shoes of others – that’s exactly the meaning of it and the importance of it,” said Dominican Fr. Lukasz Misko,  the Newman Center’s director of Campus Ministry. “If we understand the people that we want to help, we can really emphasize with them.”

Experiencing for just one night what the homeless live every day “is an act of mercy that will help us understand them better,” Fr. Lukasz added. “What little we do for the least fortunate and marginalized ones we are doing for Him. It’s about living the Gospel. ” 

According to the Sleep Out America organization, nearly 2 million youth in America will face homelessness this year.

Catherine O’Hare Adams, who organized the event at the Newman Center, said she was excited about having this event for the first time in Utah, and she hopes that in the future others will participate in it.

“I am sleeping inside a cardboard box, and if the rain keeps on coming down, then I will shelter under one of the benches. … This is what people that live in the streets face every day,” she said.

“While Sleep Out America involves placing a piece of cardboard and a sleeping bag in a place you normally wouldn’t sleep, it is not about pretending to be homeless. It’s about showing a group of kids the kind of unconditional love that all children deserve – proving that you care enough to be uncomfortable for one night, and to be vulnerable for their sakes,” reads the statement from Sleep Out America organization.

“This is something to do that will be very worthy,” added Adams.

For Michael Weight, a cathedral parishioner, the sleep out was also a way to experience firsthand what many people live. 

Weight was motivated not only by the people he joined that night but also because “most homeless people are mentally ill, and I have several very close loved ones that are mentally ill,” he said as he prepared a small fire in a brazier to try to keep warm.

Sleeping outside was important, he said, because “knowing about the relevant facts goes a long way. Feeling it and seeing it goes a long way, too.”