Day Five: Chloe

Today started with one of my favorite things: art. I wanted to incorporate art into our experience here in Baltimore, especially with the city being such a huge art hub. Luckily, an exhibition about art and its place in the healing process of local veterans was open at a local art gallery. We packed into the van and visited the gallery, which made me really happy, and I think the others got a lot out of it too.

To see how something I'm so passionate about can affect others in such a positive way gave me a lot of hope. I'm hopeful that I, too, can turn my passions into social change.

Later in the day, half of our group visited Weinburg Housing and Resource Center, and the other half visited My Sister's Place Lodge. Both organizations are under the umbrella of Catholic Charities, and both are shelters, though for different populations. I visited Weinburg; we made sandwiches for those that would not be able to stay at the shelter at night and would not get a meal for dinner. We then toured the building and heard from some of the men that worked as supervisors on the dorm floors; they described the sense of helplessness that often overcomes those that stay at the shelter for extended periods of time.

When we got back to the church, we watched a film called Legacy. After watching, I understood how easy it can be to start feeling helpless; when the system is essentially against you, or not willing to support you, it can be difficult to get yourself back on your feet. We reflected on the day and discussed the politics of self responsibility, but I think we all came back to a conclusion we've been learning all week: homelessness is much more complex than we could have imagined, and it's impossible to think of a one-stop answer to the problem.