Dutch NCH Interns Experience the Homeless Challenge

The following reflections are from two Dutch NCH interns who took the Homeless Challenge in May 2009. They had some great insights, so read on...

CHARLOTTE

I have found the Homeless Challenge to be a very useful and impressive experience. Coming from the Netherlands and working here always gave me the feeling that I was doing something good but I wasn’t able to imagine myself in a homeless situation. By doing the challenge I was able not only to imagine but actually putting myself in a homeless situation.

After taking the challenge I finally realize that living on the streets is not really living, it is like the homeless population says, surviving. I also realized how difficult and heartbreaking panhandling actually is. People are not going to give you money or attention unless you literally feel really bad. With this realization it becomes evident that it is very logical that many homeless people suffer from depression etc. It made me an ever stronger supporter of measures which will take people off the streets as soon as possible!

During my challenge I did not find the citizens of D.C. willing to help me and I think that goes for the whole of the U.S. This is another sign for me that the work that NCH does is very important and will be continue to be successful. Part of this work is the Homeless Challenge, through which many individuals will open their eyes and see homelessness for what it is in the most true form possible, without being homeless themselves.

TED

After having worked at NCH for over 4 months I thought I knew what I was getting into when I decided to do the homeless challenge. This soon proved to be a false presumption. The things I experienced during my 48 hours of homelessness were unforgettable in every sense of the word. Not only did I learn that asking someone for some spare change is a lot harder to do than one might expect, I also found that I severely underestimated the amount of walking a homeless person has to do in order to get some food.

Both of these things had already been stressed to me by members of the NCH Faces of Homelessness Speaker’s Bureau but to get a true sense of what being homeless is actually like you need to experience it yourself. Doing the Homeless Challenge has therefore led me to believe that if people wish to effectively work towards ending homelessness, they need to have experienced it first. The experience is something I will always remember and although being difficult at times, it was definitely worth it.

I would recommend doing the Homeless Challenge to anyone who has an interest in the issue of homelessness. It provides valuable insight into the lives of homeless people. The experience will change you.