Sleep-out to raise funds for homeless
By Dolly A. Butzdbutz@siouxcityjournal.com | Posted: Wednesday, October 15, 2008
SIOUX CITY -- Siouxlanders will get a small taste of what it's like to be homeless when they curl up in sleeping bags and hunker down in cardboard boxes Nov. 7 at Lewis and Clark Park during the Fourth Annual Siouxland Sleep-Out.
"As you're going to sleep at night and the chill sets in, you just get a little feeling of what it's like to be homeless," said Mike Wood, an event organizer and Mental Health Association of Siouxland volunteer.
There are around 21,000 homeless people in Iowa, according to Wood, and about 600 of them live in Siouxland. He said he expects those numbers to continue to grow due to flooding in eastern Iowa and the staggering economy.
"Poverty is the basic reason for homelessness, and certainly the poverty level increases as a result of the economy," he said. "There's got to be some trickle-down effect for that."
Last year 350 people pitched tents and set up makeshift shelters, raising $47,000 for Siouxland's homeless.
Siouxland Sleep-Out participants collect pledges from friends, family members and co-workers that benefit Shesler Hall, a haven for women with special needs; Henry Muller Hall, transitional housing for men with mental illness; and Community Support Services, which provides help finding suitable housing and other services to the homeless.
Bob Fisher, a shoe repairman from Wayzata, Minn., came up with the idea of a winter sleep-out in 1996. Fisher pitched a tent in his front yard with a goal of raising enough money to feed 100 families Thanksgiving dinner.
In 2005 the Iowa Council on Homelessness called for communities statewide to consider sleeping out during National Hunger and Homelessness Week. This year, 10 sleep-outs will be organized across the state, according to Wood,
"It's basically just to make the people in Iowa realize that there are, in fact, homeless people out there," he said. "You just don't see them like you do maybe on the streets of Chicago or New York, but they're among us."
How to get involved
What: Fourth Annual Siouxland Sleep-Out.
When: Nov. 7. Participants can start setting up at 1 p.m.
Where: Lewis and Clark Park, 3400 Line Drive.
What to bring: Layers of clothing to stay warm, sleeping bags, tents or cardboard boxes. Two large tents, food and water will be provided. There will be music, a fire pit, discussions about homelessness and projects for youths.
Whom to contact: For more information or to register call Mike Wood at 712-255-1691.
"As you're going to sleep at night and the chill sets in, you just get a little feeling of what it's like to be homeless," said Mike Wood, an event organizer and Mental Health Association of Siouxland volunteer.
There are around 21,000 homeless people in Iowa, according to Wood, and about 600 of them live in Siouxland. He said he expects those numbers to continue to grow due to flooding in eastern Iowa and the staggering economy.
"Poverty is the basic reason for homelessness, and certainly the poverty level increases as a result of the economy," he said. "There's got to be some trickle-down effect for that."
Last year 350 people pitched tents and set up makeshift shelters, raising $47,000 for Siouxland's homeless.
Siouxland Sleep-Out participants collect pledges from friends, family members and co-workers that benefit Shesler Hall, a haven for women with special needs; Henry Muller Hall, transitional housing for men with mental illness; and Community Support Services, which provides help finding suitable housing and other services to the homeless.
Bob Fisher, a shoe repairman from Wayzata, Minn., came up with the idea of a winter sleep-out in 1996. Fisher pitched a tent in his front yard with a goal of raising enough money to feed 100 families Thanksgiving dinner.
In 2005 the Iowa Council on Homelessness called for communities statewide to consider sleeping out during National Hunger and Homelessness Week. This year, 10 sleep-outs will be organized across the state, according to Wood,
"It's basically just to make the people in Iowa realize that there are, in fact, homeless people out there," he said. "You just don't see them like you do maybe on the streets of Chicago or New York, but they're among us."
How to get involved
What: Fourth Annual Siouxland Sleep-Out.
When: Nov. 7. Participants can start setting up at 1 p.m.
Where: Lewis and Clark Park, 3400 Line Drive.
What to bring: Layers of clothing to stay warm, sleeping bags, tents or cardboard boxes. Two large tents, food and water will be provided. There will be music, a fire pit, discussions about homelessness and projects for youths.
Whom to contact: For more information or to register call Mike Wood at 712-255-1691.
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