The Online Reflector

At the final “Sharing My Story” event of the semester, junior nursing major Amanda Carter shared her experience of living among the homeless.

While most students were at home or on vacation, a small group of students, including Carter, were sacrificing part of their summer break to volunteer at the Wheeler Ministries Mission Center and other Indianapolis-based homeless assistance organizations.

This event, and the other “Sharing My Story” events, are faith-based forums for faculty or students to share their experiences in the pursuit of their vocation or their experiences serving others, according to UIndy Chaplain Lang Brownlee.

At this particular event, Carter shared her story of volunteering with four other students, two from Indiana University and two from Purdue University, during her Alternative Break.

The students experienced how it feels to be homeless. For four days, they were only allowed a backpack of clothes and quickly learned to do without the comforts of home.

The students stayed in the Wheeler Center, the largest and oldest homeless shelter in the state.

While living at the center, the students helped serve lunch and clean up around the center. One activity entailed stripping the beds to rid the center of bed bugs.

In addition to helping out at the Wheeler Center, the students volunteered at the Coalition for Homelessness Intervention and Prevention of Greater Indianapolis (CHIP), Exodus Refugee, Second Helpings, School on Wheels and the PourHouse.

CHIP is an organization with the goal of ending homelessness in greater Indianapolis within 10 years.

Exodus Refugee takes in refugees displaced from their homelands, usually due to disaster, war or famine, and helps them get housing, learn English and find a better life in America.

Second Helpings offers a 10-week program for job training and delivers 3,000 meals throughout the metro area.

School on Wheels seeks to inspire learning, empower children and end childhood homelessness by providing educational assistance to homeless children.

PourHouse is an organization focused on going beyond basic needs for the homeless.

It seeks to empowers the homeless to go after their dreams and make a better life, according to Carter’s presentation.

Before her four-day Alternative Break experience, Carter had never been exposed to the homeless.

While living among them, she learned the importance of letting go of the misconceptions she, like many others, had about the homeless.

Carter said she learned that homeless people are not the stereotype that is often portrayed. She learned that in some cases they are people who did not get the same opportunity as others.

“Homelessness doesn’t care if you are white, black or Hindu. It will attack anyone,” Carter said.

After her experience living amongst the homeless, Carter said she came away with a better sense of how homelessness feels.

A tornado warning was issued one night while she was volunteering and Carter and the other students were caught outside in the rain and wind.

All throughout that experience, Carter  said she was more concerned about the plight of the homeless than the fact that she and the other students were soaking wet.

She said she realized that she and the students could go to the shelter and dry off, but that is not always the case for people who are really homeless.

Carter also learned that the homeless have no true place to stay if the shelters are full.

“They try to go under bridges but the cops make them leave,” Carter said.

So, shelters like Wheeler Center are the only real option for the homeless, and when those are above capacity, the homeless are exposed to the elements without shelter, she said.

The Indianapolis homeless population is estimated at 4,500-7,500, according to Carter.

Many,  beyond just those in Indianapolis, are families who have been thrust into homelessness because of the tough economy.

As a result, there are many children without homes and without a good opportunity for the future.

Carter urges UIndy students to educate themselves about an issue they are passionate about and go out and make a difference.

She  also urges students to abandon prejudices and try to walk in someone else’s shoes. These actions can help change people’s minds about certain situations.

“The best way to help is to go out and do it yourself. Actions speak louder than words,” Carter said.

From her small town roots of participating in 4-H and the Girl Scouts, to her work with Circle K and the Interfaith Forum at UIndy, Carter has lived her own advice.

Along with Alternative Break, Carter has traveled to serve in Sierra Leone, Appalachia and other needy areas.

“To say that she [Carter] is passionate about service is an understatement. She is a tremendously compassionate person,” Brownlee said.

Carter  said she urges other students to consider an Alternative Break because “it puts you out there and you can really see the issue versus just reading the statistics.”