Homeless Awareness - A Night Of Philanthropy, Learning, And Art

An example of Willie Baronet's art exhibit.

Friday night was special for Kelly and I. 

Every year, Southwest Michigan First hosts Catalyst University. It's an incredible day of leadership presentation, inspiring speakers, and an all-around energy-filled day. I'll be posting about that in a future blog under the "LEADERSHIP" portion of this site, but I'm so overwhelmed with information from that day that I need at least a week to process it. The speakers are called "faculty", and one of those individuals was Willie Baronet. 

Willie agreed to stay in Kalamazoo after he presented on Thursday in order to host a viewing of his documentary "Signs of Humanity", with the proceeds going to the YWCA of Kalamazoo. Over $800 was raised that evening in 90 minutes. The film was followed by a question-and-answer session with Willie, and he displayed his artwork made of signs he's purchased over the last 20+ years. Below is a short clip from the movie and an interview Willie did with Fox 4 News out of Dallas-Fort-Worth:

The movie is moving, and I hope that it becomes readily available for everyone to see it. Willie aimed to bring awareness to homelessness, purchasing signs from homeless men and women from Seattle to NYC and interviewing many of those individuals about their perspective. The question that hit home the most was, "What does home mean to you?" During Willie's presentation at Catalyst, he challenged us that just because you have a structure with at least 4 walls and a roof - it doesn't mean you have 'home'. 

The perplexing takeaway for me was that some individuals within the documentary said they preferred to live on the street as opposed to a shelter or a home belonging to someone else. This may speak to the issues that individuals with substance abuse have with the shelter system. The takeaway from the documentary that wasn't surprising in the least was how people treated these HUMAN BEINGS. I understand, I get it - you don't want to be harassed by people on your daily commute. I feel the same way sometimes. What I would challenge you to do, and this is coming directly from the challenge Willie discussed with the audience on Friday, is to talk to these individuals and treat them with respect. You will almost never know the reason why this individual lives on the street, and to judge them based on their appearance or the fact that they're asking for money so they can sustain life - what advantage does that bring you? 

Willie and Ron Kitchens from Southwest Michigan First finished the event after the viewing with a question-and-answer session from the crowd. Honest questions from individuals who just saw people struggling to survive across the entire country. Willie revealed that he's been chastised by people for giving the homeless money. His response to that challenge is that he's completing a business transaction with these people - money for their sign. It's more than that, though. What he's doing for every individual he comes into contact with is humanizing them, treating them as he'd want to be treated, and usually ends the conversation with "I care about you" or "God bless". One of the audience members asked what actions we should pursue and which organizations we should utilize. He replied that there are many organizations, like the YWCA providing the services to the most disadvantaged women in the Kalamazoo area while aiming to empower these women and eliminate racism, that are doing their own part in trying to solve this complex issue. One of my questions to Willie mentioned the challenge to the notion that there is some mysterious silver bullet, a one-size-fits-all model that we all know doesn't exist. Willie said many facets of society need to get better so these individuals are empowered and given the opportunity to succeed: improving Veterans Affairs, building better education systems, treating the mentally challenged instead of incarceration or ignoring their plight, etc. 

Upworthy featured the film as well: https://www.facebook.com/Upworthy/videos/vb.354522044588660/1079780652062792/?type=2&theater. 

Willie Baronet also has multiple TEDx presentations that speak more about his project. I encourage you to watch them on your own time, especially if homelessness pulls at your heartstrings. 

I'll leave you with this challenge: step out of your comfort zone. Volunteer at a shelter, donating to food banks, or do something as simple as not ignoring the homeless man or woman you pass every day on your way to work. Imagine what we can all accomplish with more love in this world. 

Thank you Willie Baronet for taking the time to impact our world and share your journey with us here in Kalamazoo. 

More information about the project can be found here: http://signsofhumanity.org/. 

Willie Baronet is an adjunct faculty member at SMU, an artist with his project "WE ARE ALL HOMELESS", and the former owner and creative director of GroupBaronet (known now as MasonBaronet).