Students at the University of Regina exceeded their fundraising goal from the Five Days for the Homeless campaign.
In its 13th year, the campaign raised $40,550.30 for Carmichael Outreach. The initial goal was $40,000.
Three students spent five days outdoors on campus. They had no shelter, showers, cell phones and only donated food. It was just a small glimpse into what life is like for those experiencing homelessness.
“I find you can’t really understand something unless you experience it,” Diego Osorio, one of the students who took part in the five day project, said once it ended on Friday. “I knew going in that this was going to be nothing compared to what it’s like actually experiencing homelessness, but I wanted to get somewhat of an understanding of what it would be like.”
All three students said it was a challenge. All pinpointed different aspects that they struggled with the most.
“The weather was definitely – it’s something you really can’t control, so I think just learning how to get around that [was the hardest],” Ben Phommavong, another student participant said.
Rebecca Adimula, the third participant, also agreed the cool weather was tough to cope with.
“Also the mental part of it,” she said. “It was nice to see friends and family come over and get that little break.”
Representatives from Carmichael Outreach said the money will go a long way to help fund food and housing for those in need.
Bettyann Cox, the CEO of Carmichael Outreach, said it’s coming at an important time.
“The issue of homelessness is, I think, at crisis epidemic proportions,” she said. “We need to address it as a community with understanding and empathy and as well, we need to be able to educate others.”
She said that’s what this project has successfully done.
As the students prepared to return to their homes on Friday evening, they said they’re walking away with valuable lessons.
“We take for granted a lot of small decisions that we don’t really think about as opposed to when you’re out there with nothing. Then you take those really small decisions into consideration,” Osorio said.