Students will get a taste of the homeless life through this year's Box City, an annual event sponsored and founded by Students United to Remain Free.
Participants will build shelters out of cardboard boxes, where they will live from 6 p.m. today to 6 a.m. Saturday in the Noyer Bowl.
"You're just sitting in your box and the ground is cold and damp," said Adam Gaff, Residence Hall Association representative for Trane hall.
Four bands -- Atticus, No Louder Than Leaves, St. Thrall, and Shinky -- will provide entertainment. Ray Raynes, director of the Muncie Mission, will speak twice about removing the stereotypes of homelessness between the bands' performances. Food will also be provided.
SURF is a housing option for students wishing to remain substance free. Its halls are located on Tichenor and Trane of the DeHority complex.
SURF members will be collecting donations and selling T-shirts to raise money for the Muncie Mission.
"We're trying to connect the campus and community and hoping students will have a better understanding of homeless issues," said Luke Bickel, director for Tichenor and Trane halls.
They also hope that Box City will receive a good turnout despite the cold weather and unpleasant conditions.
But Gaff said he hopes this will give students an idea of what the life of a homeless person is like.
"It's as close as we can get, and it's just like any simulation," Gaff said. "It's the next best thing."
Kate Paul, hall council president for Tichenor and Trane, said she thinks Box City will help remove stereotypes about homelessness.
"This could happen to anyone, and it's a year-long problem," she said. "They're ordinary people that have hit on a hard time."
According to the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty Web site, over 3 million men, women and children were homeless in 2001. The demand for shelters rose by 13 percent.
"You don't want to think it could happen to you, and it's hard to imagine you could get to that point," Paul said. "It's almost a detachment, and it's comforting to think there's simply no way it could happen."7723+â-Ç-¿+â-ú*FBox City 2 (use this one)DNEditorial772SORT+â-å+â-ä2AUDT
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