Bundled up in a puffy blue jacket, the exhaustion in Jack Crowley’s eyes was clear Thursday morning.
Crowley, president of Water Street Mission, spent the entire night sitting on a wooden bench off South Prince Street. By 10 a.m., he estimated he slept only in 20-minute increments throughout the night. With a sleeping bag, he tried sleeping on his side or even sitting upright to get a little shut-eye in the 40-degree weather.
The nonprofit leader began sitting on the bench at 3 p.m. Wednesday afternoon and remained there until 3 p.m. Thursday. The goal wasn’t to imitate homelessness, Crowley said, but to raise awareness of the trials homeless people experience, in observance of World Homeless Day, which was Thursday.
After 19 hours outside, Crowley felt as if he gained a new understanding of what people who are experiencing homelessness go through.
“Imagine those individuals who are like, ‘OK, how do I take the next step forward in my life when I don’t know where to go … because I’m scared, because I’m cold, because there’s no comfortable place to lay down,’ ” he said. “It’s no wonder people struggle to take the next step.”
Still, Crowley said, his 24 hours outside didn’t compare to what real people go through day in and day out. He was able to go inside for bathroom breaks and had easy access to food, water and coffee when he needed it. At the end of the day, Crowley said, he’d be able to go home to a warm bed.
Crowley called the bench sit-in a “gimmick” meant to grab people’s attention. The daylong event was streamed live at lanc.news/24HoursOnABench so people could tune in to hear Crowley speak with guests about housing and homelessness.
People from across the community came out to talk to Crowley, including elected officials like Commissioner Alice Yoder and City Council member Jaime Arroyo. Nonprofit leaders including Lancaster County United Way President and CEO Kate Zimmerman and Lancaster County Food Hub Executive Director Paige McFarling also joined Crowley.
“Sometimes folks don’t want to talk about (homelessness). They feel that if they can ignore it, it doesn’t exist, but these challenges do exist,” Arroyo told Crowley on Wednesday. “The more we can have conversations with our neighbors, partners, we raise awareness about it and there might be that idea that sparks, that we’re able to carry out.”
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The public also was welcome to join Crowley, and some people did. A woman who had experience with homelessness stopped by in the evening to talk. Her daughter, Crowley said, had stayed at Water Street for a period of time years ago.
The idea for the bench sit-in came from other rescue missions across the country, like Fresno Mission in California, where the nonprofit’s CEO in January sat outside for a day.
Rescue missions, like Water Street on South Prince Street, offer shelter services and food for people in need. At Water Street, people can stay with limited restrictions for 90 days. They are then given the option of moving to a residential shelter, where people must participate in classes and religious studies. Otherwise, they have to leave the shelter and wait 60 days before returning.
The number of people experiencing homelessness in Lancaster County has increased for the thi…
Some people criticize Water Street’s model of not welcoming the whole community, which Crowley addressed with people throughout the day.
“We want to hear each other out,” he said. “That’s not the first time I’ve had that conversation, and it won’t be the last.”
Crowley’s bench sit-in comes at a crucial time in Lancaster. The county’s only low-barrier shelter closed in June and will not reopen until December. At the moment, Water Street’s shelter is at capacity. The city also has begun strictly enforcing camping restrictions in public parks, making it difficult for people to find places to sleep.
Crowley expects it will take time to fully process his experience but hopes to take back a greater sense of empathy to his work. He also wants to see the community come together to talk more about growing affordable housing.
“My hope is that I’ve always led out of a space of empathy, but I think (the sit-in) maybe (doubles) that and reminds me to encourage our staff to feel that way, too,” Crowley said.
Staff writer Nathan Willison contributed to this report.
