Published: May 01, 2006 01:04 pm      

Night of Homelessness

Three rows of cardboard boxes filled a small grassy area outside the Effingham High School football field.

Some of the boxes were decorated in themes with elaborate paintings on them. One had cardboard bunkbeds, cardboard couches and other cardboard fixtures to make the inside of the box feel more like a home. Most were covered in plastic in anticipation of rain that was expected to begin in the early morning hours. And all of them were the homes of area students who participated in the 2006 Shanty Town project, aimed at raising money for Effingham County Habitat for Humanity.

Students from area schools including Effingham, Teutopolis and St. Anthony high schools got a firsthand look Friday night at what it would be like to be homeless and live in a shanty, which is defined as a cluster of makeshift dwellings.

In an effort to raise money for supplies for the Effingham County Habitat for Humanity’s next house-building project, 20 teams built homes out of cardboard, newspaper, plastic, duct tape and other items and spent the night in the shanty.

During the remaining daylight hours Friday, students worked quickly to set up their cardboard homes for the night.

Effingham High School senior Ashley Landrus, along with her teammates, worked to create a box that would not only provide shelter throughout the night, but also withstand the expected stormy weather.

“It was so hard in the beginning because the way we planned to set up our box wasn’t working because of the way the wind was blowing, so we tried several different ways and finally came up with a nice little and snug place to sleep,” said Landrus.

Other students also worked to overcome some of the obstacles created by the weather, with many working to secure plastic over the tops of the boxes.

At 10 Friday night, participants had to turn in to their boxes for the evening, and by 11 that night, activity in Shanty Town slowly began to quiet down.

The next morning, participants awoke at 6 a.m., which was the time they were allowed to come out of their boxes and the end of the activity.

“It was cold and uncomfortable at times. It was a very interesting experience,” said Landrus, who stood in the rain wearing a garbage bag she turned into a raincoat.

“It was much warmer and drier than I expected,” added Rodgers, who spent the night with her team in a mafia-themed box. “It was just a really good experience. It was really fun.”

Effingham sophomore Alex Hall described his experience as “sleepless,” but said he would do it again.

Teutopolis High School junior Fallon Koester agreed that it was hard to get to sleep, especially with the rain that began around 2:30 Saturday morning.

“When it started raining, it was hard to sleep,” she said. “But it was a good experience and I would like to do it again sometime.”

Students participating agreed the night spent in Shanty Town was worthwhile because they were able to raise funds for a good cause.

“It is for a great cause, and it helps those in need,” said Landrus. “There are a lot of people in our community and in surrounding communities that are in need. It is just a great way to reach out and raise money to better their lives in different ways.”

Rodgers agreed.

“There are so many people out there that need homes, and do have to live like this every day and night,” she said. “The more we can donate to Habitat, the more we can get out of this situation.”

Koester said she just hopes efforts by the students would allow Habitat to move forward with its project of building a house this year.

“I hope we made a difference tonight,” said Koester. “You don’t realize until you do this how bad (the homeless’) lives really are and how many people are homeless. Donating money or time is the best thing you can do to help.”

According to Julie Pruemer of Effingham County Habitat for Humanity, the Shanty Town project, which will be an annual event for the group, raised approximately $6,400 that will be used toward construction materials for a home this year.

“It went great. It exceeded what I ever thought it would be the first year,” said Pruemer of the fund-raising project. “I was very impressed by the involvement of not only the students, but from the community.”

Pruemer said parents, teachers and other residents helped students by providing materials, helping them set up and tear down the shanty, and by supporting the efforts with contributions.

“The support that I saw was really incredible,” said Pruemer.

Other area groups that help those in need in the area also participated in the evening events, including the local Catholic Charities organization.

“We are here to support the Shanty Town project, and we think Habitat does a tremendous job in providing affordable housing for folks,” said Sister Brenda Fritz, director of the local Catholic Charities organization.

Fritz added the event also gave the agency an opportunity to educate students on how Catholic Charities helps those who are homeless and to raise awareness among the participants of how there are homeless people in Effingham and other surrounding communities.

“It is a great project because of the awareness factor of how homeless people live not just for one night buy day after day after day,” said Fritz. “This is a tremendous experience for the young people to actually simulate being homeless for the night because it is no fun.

“My hope is that it encourages young people to get committed to their education, stay in school, study hard and stay off drugs so they don’t end up being homeless,” she added.

Kim Wiedman can be reached at 217-347-7151 ext. 128 or kwiedman@effinghamdailynews.com.