Empathy exercise: Chaffee teen, teacher live like homeless people

Last week, Bailey Wiseman and Chaffee, Missouri, American history teacher Travis Calkins spent several days living the lifestyle of a homeless person.

Wiseman, a freshman at Chaffee High School, wore the same blue sweatshirt and gray sweat pants every day.

She showered only once during that time; her parents made her do it before attending a local Baptist church on Wednesday.

"Some of them like to tease. They say, 'What's that smell?'" Wiseman said of her fellow students.

The only meal Wiseman could eat was a peanut-butter sandwich -- for breakfast, lunch and dinner. She could drink only water.

After a few days, pizza rolls started to look like a luxury.

"The food thing was the hardest part," Wiseman said.

Every night, Wiseman would sleep on the floor -- a single blanket providing the only cushion.

Calkins said many students view their phones and the Internet as modern necessities.

Wiseman's phone was held by her parents on the first day, and she could use the Internet only for school.

Television also was off-limits.

"Will you just go into a different room?" Wiseman's siblings said when they wanted to watch TV.

Wiseman's experience has made her think twice about the things she wants. A $400 hoverboard now seems frivolous.

"I wanted to change my own thoughts about how well off I am," she said.

Her perspective on homeless people has changed from pity to wanting to help them much more.

Calkins said he did not realize the difficulty of the food portion of the challenge. On Thursday, all he had to eat was one-third of a cup of rice.

"I'm miserable," Calkins said. "I'm so hungry."

Wiseman and Calkins conducted this social experiment for Fellowship of Christian Athletes with the idea to show Chaffee students their collective good fortune. As a part of the experience, Wiseman has been carrying around a collection can. Chaffee students have donated about $70 that Wiseman and Calkins will use to provide food to a local food bank.

The challenge ended Saturday morning.

To celebrate, Wiseman and Calkins planned to go out to breakfast at the No Name Cafe.

Wiseman already had thought about what she was going to order: a sausage and cheese sandwich.

"We're going to order everything on the menu," Calkins said.

bkleine@semissourian.com

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Pertinent address: 517 W. Yoakum Ave., Chaffee, Mo.