Crosswalk Outreach to the Homeless is a student organization that works to provide meals to the homeless in the Columbus community. Credit: Courtesy of Crosswalk Outreach
Crosswalk Outreach to the Homeless is hosting a food-and-supply drive for the homeless, which began Nov. 26 on the first floor of the Ohio Union.
The student organization, active on Ohio State’s campus for eight years, works on a weekly basis to provide meals, offer supplies such as personal hygiene items and first-aid kits, and help build camaraderie with the city’s homeless population.
The Winter Collection Drive will be a two-week event split into two separate drives: a food drive that will run until Dec. 1, followed by a supply drive from Dec. 2 to 7.
The food drive hopes to collect items such as dried foods, canned goods, trail mix, granola bars and bottled water, while the following supply drive will need supplies such as sleeping bags, winter clothes, hygiene products, menstrual products, diapers, backpacks, items for first-aid kits and reusable bottles.
Andrew Hu, a fourth-year in biomedical science and president of Crosswalk Outreach, said it goes further than material items.
“There have been times when we’ve ran out of food for this individual and he said ‘It doesn’t matter: you came up to me, you talked to me, you noticed me. Half the time, people will just ignore me,’” Hu said. “It’s much more meaningful than just the food or the supplies, so I think that connection is [as] important as the items we give out.”
J’Mauri Jackson, a fifth-year in psychology and a member of Crosswalk Outreach, said the mission extends beyond the group.
“The reason why this drive even started wasn’t about us,” she said. “It’s about the people that we serve. It’s a group of people — it’s a community, and they’re also citizens. But yet there’s a lot of misunderstanding and antipathy towards them.”
Jackson said the antipathy is borne out of misunderstanding.
“They’re heavily stigmatized,” Jackson said. “A lot of people when they see someone who’s homeless or appears homeless on the street, they automatically think they’re alcoholics or dangerous or their circumstances are their fault — that’s where the antipathy comes in.”
“But there’s also a lot of people that genuinely want to help but don’t necessarily know how to.”
Jackson said her time with Crosswalk Outreach has been inconsistent, with times where she got too busy to make the outings. But when she showed up last week, she was reminded why it was always worth the time.
Jackson saw a family with their infant child and knew she needed to be there.
“And then I remembered why we’re doing this drive,” she said. “That’s why we’re calling out for Ohio State’s community.”
For students or groups interested in volunteering with Crosswalk Outreach for the Homeless, the group’s official email is [email protected]. The organization meets 1 p.m. every Sunday at Summit on 16th United Methodist Church.
