Sunday, January 22, 2012

SEATTLE – More than anything, it was the stories they heard.

One talked about having earned a master's degree. Another was from foster care.

Some had gotten into drugs. Another had run his own business.

The stories -- that's what resonated most with Seattle Pacific distance runners Robyn Zeidler and Daniel Hamilton. All of the people they met had a story.

And all of them were homeless.

Now, with Tent City 3 settling into Wallace Field for a two-month stay, Zeidler and Hamilton have stories of their own to share. Stories gleaned from living homeless themselves on Seattle's streets for five days as part of the school's Urban Plunge project. Stories that opened their own eyes and altered their own lives in ways they're still trying to grasp fully.

Stories that reminded both of them of one of life's most basic tenets – yet one that is so often forgotten.

“We're all people, we're all brothers and sisters – it doesn't matter where we've come from,” said Zeidler, a sophomore from Plymouth, Minn., who was a big factor in SPU's strong finish to the women's cross country season last fall and now is gearing up for track and field, both indoors and outdoors.

Hamilton, a senior from Missoula, Mont., who has completed his athletic eligibility but is finishing his degree in computer science, appreciated being reminded of that very same thing during the five days he spent in Urban Plunge late in 2010.

“You hear fascinating things and heart-wrenching things,” he said. “It's a great connection to make from a human being to a human being.”

When the decision was announced late in the fall that Tent City 3 would be coming to Seattle Pacific, it was greeted with enthusiasm by some, skepticism – and even criticism – by others.

On the enthusiastic side, it was seen as a perfect opportunity to live out the gospel that is at the very core of the school's foundation.

Those on the skeptical side worried about things such as safety, cleanliness – even lawlessness.

A handful of meetings with students, faculty, staff, and neighbors helped calm some of those concerns.

Yet, as valuable as those meetings were, Zeidler could have gotten the same message across with a single, simple exhortation.

“It's just the importance of getting to know people for who they are, rather than who you think they are,” she said.

SO WHO ARE THEY?

As she headed for five days on the streets after the completion of finals in December, Zeidler's biggest concerns were “being hungry, being cold, or not finding a bathroom.”

She found that she was able to fulfill those basic needs, but discovered another gaping hole that the homeless face – a hole she hadn't even thought about finding.

“What really struck me was how many relational needs were not being met,” Zeidler said. “I never felt so dehumanized and alone. I thought I would be overlooked in some cases. But the vast majority of people didn't even acknowledge our presence.

“The first lady that stopped for me, I just started crying, and I said, 'Thank you so much for not ignoring me.' We started talking and sharing stories, and it turns out she works with street youth up in the U-District.”

Within Tent City, some of those relationship needs can be fulfilled among the residents themselves. But during its stay at SPU, which extends through March 24, Hamilton is hoping that enough community members, both within or outside the school, will rise up to help meet some of those needs, too.

“A lot of things that I kind of thought and felt before were legitimate things from the way I was raised – don't talk to strangers, don't talk to people you don't know,” Hamilton said. “Those are things you need growing up. But now, it's to the point of, shoot, I do want to talk to strangers. There were prejudices and hesitations that I didn't even know I had.

“When you don't know their stories, it's easier to pigeon-hole them into what you think their story is,” Hamilton added. “But once you hear their stories … it changed (my perspective) a little bit from thinking it was people who brought it on themselves or made bad decision to (realizing) it was people who really needed help, or were stuck in a rut and just need a hand up.”

WALKING A FINE LINE