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6 GROUNDCOVER NEWS PEER LEADERSHIP NOVEMBER 15, 2024 Washtenaw Camp Outreach is modeling leadership and solidarity through community service On a Sunday in mid-August I visited a Washtenaw Camp Outreach cookout at Ypsilanti Waterworks Park for the first time. Washtenaw Camp Outreach is made up of individuals from various organizations, as well as unaffiliated individuals, many of whom have lived experiences of homelessness, poverty and other forms of economic hardship. Their day-to-day work involves visiting camps in person to connect with others in the struggle, share resources and supplies and assist others in living how they must to survive. This was an ordinary Sunday. I first attended the Groundcover News Visual Arts Contest celebration event at the MakeShift Art Gallery in downtown Ann Arbor where they display and sell local art. Then later that afternoon, I found myself at Waterworks Park where people were setting up for the WCO bi-weekly cookout. I parked the car and started helping to set up, when my friend and comrade Jim Clark asked me, “What do you think about leadership through community service?” I said, “I’m cool with that,” and then we had a brief conversation on the subject and proceeded to set up and have a great cookout. Later that evening at home, as I reflected on the day at the Groundcover News art event and hanging out at the WCO cookout, I began to ponder on leadership and community service. According to a quick Google search, “Leadership emcompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to ‘lead,’ influence, or guide other individuals, teams or entire organizations.” “Leadership” is a contested term, something that is argued over, questioned and disputed. Community service is work performed by a person or group of people for the benefit and the betterment of the community, contributing to a noble cause without the intention of getting rewarded or compensated. These thoughts of leadership and community service and the awesome MIKE JONES Groundcover vendor No. 113 camaraderie amongst those at the WCO cookout answered my question of what to do next in my life, in terms of reinventing myself. “Leadership through the means of community service.” There is an old saying, “lead by example.” From that Sunday forward I started thinking on how I want to give back to the community. I remembered in the "Ask Your Vendor" column of Groundcover where staff asked the vendors the question, “What would you bring to a BBQ?” My answer was cold water. So, from now on, I plan to be the water man and hand out bottles of water to individuals or at events such as WCO cookouts and meetings when I can afford to do so, and I also decided to volunteer with WCO in their frequent camp cleanups. I got to talk to Josh who is unhoused and has been involved in WCO since May of last year. He got involved with WCO camp cleanups because, “One of my unhoused camp buddies was a hoarder and I needed help cleaning up my campsite and the good people of WCO helped me clean up the campsite and it started from that moment.” Do you encourage or suggest to other unhoused people to get involved with camp cleanup? “Yes, I do. I believe in keeping our community clean and I encourage others in the unhoused community to do their part in keeping our camp area clean. People at WCO are genuinely good people, who truly care about the community they live in and serve, and deserve all the support they can get.” I also got a chance to talk with LK Washtenaw Camp Outreach Sunday BBQ has been a tradition of the group since it was established in 2020. who has been involved with WCO since the beginning. She shared, “WCO got started in 2020 during COVID and when the shelters were full, and most shelter options were deemed no longer available, thus leaving many with no safety net or preparation on how to protect themselves while out camping from the COVID-19 virus. That's when WCO started making sanitation kits and we also set up water stations at campsites for people to wash their hands and to have access to water. “Soon after COVID subsided, WCO transitioned to providing camping supplies for those who had no other choice but to be outdoors: sleeping bags, tents and other needed supplies. A lot of people tend to migrate to the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti area to try to pull resources like affordable housing, which leaves many homeless, and most camp in the same areas, culminating in a lot of trash. “Donations are really helpful this time of the year because winter is around the corner: clothes, blankets and camping supplies. All donations can be dropped off at the Hospitality House at 169 N Washington St [around the corner from the Ypsilanti Transit Center] or message us on Facebook. We also accept monetary donations via Venmo @washtenawcampoutreach. Funds are used for hotel stays, propane and buddy heaters.” Finally, I asked if there was anything The ground of a campsite before (left) and after a WCO cleanup. else LK would like our readers to know about WCO. She replied, “WCO is not a government or funded entity; no one other than ourselves and those who donate provides goods and services to our community. We do this because there is a need. At WCO, we have weekly meetings and every-other-week cookouts and discuss ways to combat systemic oppression that leads to homelessness. We stand with those in our community by providing supplies, resources and advocating to protect the rights of the unhoused and those forced to live outdoors.” Washtenaw Camp Outreach meets every Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. at 169 N Washington St., alternating between meetings, reading group and outreach (visiting camps). Every other Sunday there is a community barbecue at 2 p.m. at the same location.

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