Matt Rigsby gave up luxury to live among the homeless for two weeks
Original Source – Summer 2015 – Page 5
Imagine willingly giving up life’s luxuries to better understand homelessness. For two weeks, this is what CU graduate Matt Rigsby did.
“I came to the realization it was naive of me to think I had any idea what these people need,” he said, quoting Henry Ford about other’s points of view.
Rigsby, of Campbellsville, moved to Nashville, Tenn., where he soon saw the poverty level and decided to create a solution for it. A 2015 report shows 17.8 percent of Nashvillians live in poverty.
“I knew I wanted to help, but realized until I had a solid, sustainable business model, I couldn’t move forward,” he said.
For six months he brainstormed, volunteered and asked for help until he created “The Secret Shirt Project,” a Kickstarter campaign turned business that fights hunger and homelessness. The “secret” is that by wearing an SSP shirt, you’ll get discounts at participating restaurants. Fifty percent of shirt sales go to cause-related organizations.
“My original thought process was ‘If we can afford to eat like we do, we can afford to make a difference in this way and get the money back in savings,’” he said.
In July 2014, Rigsby quit his full-time job and started researching restaurants that wanted to help, and began selling shirts (and wristbands) at festivals. In January, the Kickstarter was launched, and Rigsby decided he would live among the homeless until the $3,500 goal was reached.
His days were documented on homelessmatt.blogspot.com, where he said, “My prayer is that God can work on my heart during this time, grant me insight and empathy for the people I want to help and get the creative juices flowing.”
He soon started meeting people and learned of their experiences. Many used to have normal and successful lives until they became addicts. Several had been released from jail. Some had made bad financial decisions and were in between jobs. Others became homeless by choice — usually to escape from their life or an addiction.
“I went into it with the hopes of learning how to best help the people our company cares about, but came out with much more,” he said.
Rigsby said his two weeks living with the homeless was a life-changing experience. He typically walked two hours each night to get warm before sleeping on the ground or a bench — sometimes in his car when it got too cold. His days included accessing the public library Internet for 30 minutes, and interacting and learning how the homeless survive each day. He never went home.
He also learned about the indifference people feel toward the homeless.
“Be cautious of separating yourself from others when you do not know the entire story,” he said. “Every single person God has ever created has a different story, but what we often forget is all these stories are just lines in THE STORY. We have ALL been invited to play a role. Listen to the Director.”
The Kickstarter ended up exceeding its goal and raised $4,326. Rigsby has since changed the business model to empower nonprofits. In addition to Nashville, SSP has also become active in Campbellsville.
For more information on the Secret Shirt Project, visit www.secretshirtproject.com.