Group Fasts From Shelter on Court Street
by Jennifer Proctor
THE POST
It isn't easy to sleep on the Athens County Courthouse steps with clock bells ringing every 15 minutes, cars going by continuously throughout the night and drunk students' heckling after 2 a.m.
But for the past six years, the staff of the homeless shelter Good Works has gathered at the courthouse on Good Friday in a "Fast from Shelter."
"We do this for our benefit, so we can identify with the suffering of Christ and the homeless," said Hylie Flournoy, a Good Works staff member.
Employees, residents and volunteers of Good Works participate in the fast, but the shelter still is open for residents.
"It's a small step to show we care enough to try to better understand," said Keith Wasserman, executive director of Good Works.
Surrounded by enlarged newspaper articles about the shelter, participants chatted on the courthouse steps.
Staff member Kim Verhey said people stare and walk by, just as though the staff were really homeless.
Wasserman stressed the need to keep the fast in perspective by remembering the staff was homeless only one night.
"We have sleeping bags and all kinds of things to keep us warm that the homeless don't have," said Malisa Pence, a student employee at Good Works.
Verhey said at least the staff had each other, and it was a bonding experience for them.
"If I was really homeless, I would be all by myself," said Christi Hysell, a volunteer at Good Works.
Wasserman said the biggest difference between the fast and the true plight of the homeless is that the staff has a place to go home to Saturday morning.
"Afterwards, you feel lousy because the dings from the clock keep you from sleeping and your body aches because of the concrete," Flornoy said. "You feel drained."
She said she would not have the morale to look for a job after a night on the street.
"People don't truly understand what it's like," Flornoy said.
Wasserman said the staff can't relate in every aspect, but they have to start somewhere.
If forced to, anybody can feel the emotional side of homelessness.
Wasserman said the community has had a wonderful response to the fast and Good Works in general, but he hopes this response will continue, Wasserman said.