Vosicky: The lessons of a single homeless night

Most of us live similar lives, at least in terms of the basics.

We go to school or work a job and, at the end of the day, come home to a place that is warm and comfortable. There is food and a bed to lie down in and hot and cold running water. There are lights to drive away the darkness and, if we are so inclined, entertainment in a variety of electronic forms.

Most of us take these things for granted. We do so because we've never been without them.

But some of us are, every day.

Some of us live without the most basic needs, without a home and the comforts that come with it.

I got the smallest taste of what that must be like recently when USCB Civic Engagement Coordinator Danielle Breidung asked me to take part in "Sleeping Under the Stars," an event designed to raise awareness about homelessness in our community.

Christy Turner of the United Way and Ben Boswell of the Human Services Alliance worked with Breidung and USCB professor James Glasson to coordinate the event. In a small classroom in the USCB Library, Turner and Boswell explained what our community faces.

What I learned shocked me.

It is much easier to become homeless than I imagined.

Unemployment, a lack of affordable housing, bad credit, unexpected medical bills, mental illness, and domestic violence can all lead to homelessness.

"The stigma is that these people are just lazy, when in reality most of them work longer hours than we do and still don't make enough money to pay for their basic needs" Boswell said.

"Most of us are just one medical emergency or natural disaster away from homelessness" Turner added. She said that most of the homeless here were "families sleeping in cars with their children" or "living in sub-standard housing, motels, or in tents in the woods."

A large percentage of the homeless are veterans.

As part of a new initiative to bring immediate relief to those who have nothing, Turner and Boswell want to give the homeless in the county "City Packs" -- military-grade backpacks containing a blanket, a towel, toiletries, food, water, duct tape, ponchos and a medical kit.

After the presentation in the library, we were all given such packs and told to sleep "somewhere on campus."

Having a blanket, poncho, and duct tape made quite a difference in terms of shelter. My alternative would have been a makeshift shelter constructed from cardboard and trash bags. My dinner was simple, barebones -- peanut butter and crackers.

I was there one night.

I could not imagine what it must be like to live that way every night -- with no end in sight.

There are people in this county who do.

We, of course, cannot rescue them all.

But we can do something. We can donate needed items. We can volunteer our time.

And we can remember this:

"I have learned to give, not because I have too much, but because I have known the feeling of having nothing." - Anonymous

Brian Vosicky is a Marine Corps veteran who served in the Middle East, Europe and Africa. He is studying psychology at the University of South Carolina Beaufort.

This story was originally published September 27, 2015 at 9:19 PM with the headline "Vosicky: The lessons of a single homeless night."