HEALTH AND SANITATION
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got put out of restaurants, stayed up countless days, and
experienced every aspect of homelessness first-hand,”
he says. “This gave me the perspective and insight
to learn the realities and needs of those experiencing
homelessness and how Love Beyond Walls can better
focus to raise awareness and meet those needs.”
In March 2019, Love Beyond Walls opened the travelling
Dignity Museum, an interactive experience that provides
insight into what it means to be homeless. The museum
is a shipping container that has been divided into three
rooms: the first has information about who is homeless and
why; the second gives a virtual-reality experience of being
homeless; and the third educates the visitor on how to get
involved and help.
In observance of the 50th anniversary in 2018 of Dr Martin
Luther King Jr.’s assassination, Lester participated in the
386-mile March Against Poverty from Atlanta to
Memphis, Tennessee.
“This march is a testament to the legacy of Dr King and to
shed light on the millions of people across the nation from
all walks of life and nationalities who experience the harsh
realities of homelessness and poverty,” he says. “It is time
for the next generation to pick up the baton and we are on
the front lines to leading the charge.”
Love Beyond Walls has also helped place portable sinks in
Birmingham, Alabama; Columbus, Ohio; San Bernardino,
California; New Orleans and Baltimore. He says they recently
sent 25 to New York City.
In order to expand its reach, Love Beyond Walls recently
began a partnership with California-based non-profit
LavaMaeX, which has designed a do-it-yourself handwashing
prototype and toolkit for communities to build and
deploy nationwide. Lester says the response to “Love Sinks
In” has been overwhelmingly supportive.
“We are grateful for all of our sponsors, partners and
supporters who have given their time, money, resources
and words of encouragement to really stand behind this
cause,” he says. Lester offers a reminder to keep things in
perspective during the pandemic.
“As we are fighting over toilet tissue and complaining about
having to stay inside, there are well over a half-million
homeless people who would give anything to have a safe,
warm place to lay their heads,” he says. “As we are talking
about social distancing, there is a homeless population
that have been social distancing by default — long before
the coronavirus. My life’s work, and my past as a former
homeless person, would not allow me to let the homeless
population be an afterthought during this time of crisis.” PA
“This march is a
testament to the
legacy of Dr King
and to shed light
on the millions
of people across
the nation from
all walks of life
and nationalities
who experience
the harsh
realities of
homelessness
and poverty.”