5 Days for the Homeless

In March of 2010, a group of students at the University of British Columbia will sacrifice basic necessities in attempt to draw attention to the plight of the homeless in their communities. The event will see these students living without shelter and disposable income for five days, with all food and drink donated to them by passersby on campus. In addition, they will still complete their academic responsibilities and post their experiences on a daily blog. The event was initiated by a group of students from the University of Alberta in 2005 and has now grown into a national event. Ten universities across Canada participated last year raising over $170,000 for youth at risk across the country, with the University of British Columbia successfully raising $15,000 in March of 2009. This year, the money raised will go towards supporting Directions Youth Services Center.  Directions is an integrated one-stop center that provides a wide range of social, cultural, education, housing, employment and life skills services to homeless and at-risk youth between the ages of 12 and 24. To hear the stories of youth who use the center check out www.inourshoes.ca. Check out the Campaign to see the full list of rules.