Scout’s Sleep Out Recognizes Local Housing Insecurity – and Fellow Scout

Landon, a Plymouth resident and Providence Academy student, has participated in several Interfaith sleep outs over the years through his Scouts troop.

But last November, he held his own sleep out – not only to support our annual effort, but to honor a local scout who, 25 years ago, slept outdoors until he raised $10,000.

“A scout leader on our troop told us [about a former troop member who] passed away last summer, and he asked us if any of us would be willing to do what he had done,” also noting that, 25 years ago, the scout didn’t have resources like social media or a smart phone to support his fundraising.

Landon jokes that it was probably a rhetorical question – but he was inspired, nonetheless. With a little help from a tent, GoFundMe, Instagram, and our generous community, he slept outside for 17 nights before reaching his $10,000 goal – ultimately surpassing it with a total of $11,640.

“It was fun to keep people updated on the sleep out and fun to see people that I knew –and that I didn’t know – rally to support a good cause in our community,” Landon recalls.

But, of course, it was also a learning experience.

“The most challenging part about my sleep out was the restless nights, because life doesn’t slow down for you,” Landon explains. “During the period when I was sleeping out, there was an additional layer of stress and fatigue in my everyday life that was hard to manage. This should be alarming, since some people live like that all year round,” he observes.

Landon said he’d love to do this type of sleep out again and hopes it will inspire others to participate, as well.

“Living homeless comes with many struggles that we don’t think about every day. This experience really reminded me to give thanks for what I have.”

Thank you, Landon and Troop 3570, for continuing this Sleep Out tradition!