Key Club hosts ‘Welcome to Our Home’

“We’re only going to be homeless for one night. The people who are really homeless don’t have any choice” – Rick Whitney,
Key Club advisor

By Mike Lange
Staff Writer

    DEXTER — The Dexter Regional High School Key Club got lucky this year.
    Their annual “Welcome to our Home” campout and fundraiser on Sept. 27 was blessed with nice weather for a change.
    “It’s almost like July,” said Key Club Advisor Rick Whitney. “Usually, we’re bundled up with the fire barrel burning.”

Observer photo/Mike Lange

    OUR HOME – Nearly 100 high school students joined this year’s “Welcome to Our Home” overnight campout on Saturday evening into Sunday, sponsored by the Dexter Regional High School Key Club.

    The nice weather and festive air didn’t deter from the serious message that the overnight event was trying to convey, however. The mostly-teen students volunteered to be “homeless” for the night to draw attention to those who are really on the streets through no fault of their own. “We’re only going to be homeless for one night. The people who are really homeless don’t have any choice,” said Whitney.
    While they had rest rooms and water available from the nearby Abbot Museum, campers were required to turn in their smartphones, iPads and any other electronic devices before the event started. Many used cardboard boxes to ward off the chill.
    In addition to students from the host school, there were campers from Nokomis, Foxcroft Academy, Piscataquis Community and Penquis Valley high schools. “The kids here from PCHS gave up their homecoming dance tonight,” Whitney noted
    In the last seven years, “Welcome to Our Home” raised over $25,000 in cash plus several thousand dollars’ worth of blankets, food and toiletries that were donated to homeless shelters, Whitney said. “The kids have to get $25 in pledges to participate,” he said. “Many businesses have been very supportive with donations of cash and goods.”

Observer photo/Mike Lange

    RICK WHITNEY — Key Club advisor Rick Whitney addresses “Welcome to Our Home” on Sept. 27-28 with Jillaine Wentworth of the Penquis Journey House in the background.

    Before the estimated 100 kids settled down for the night, guest speakers from the Shaw House, Spruce Run/Womancare and Journey House spoke briefly about their programs and thanked the Key Club for supporting their efforts.
    Arthur Jette of Spruce Run/WomanCare said that homelessness is due to many factors, but an estimated 25 percent of the cases are due to domestic abuse. “Just imagine being thrown out of a home that you shared with someone that you thought cared for you,” Jette said. He urged the teens “not to allow anyone to treat you in an abusive way, that you won’t tolerate someone calling you names and that you won’t call anyone else names.”
    Dan Fleming from Shaw House praised “Welcome to My Home” for supporting his organization’s efforts, citing their limited resources and increasing caseload. “Nothing makes me happier than to be able to give out a blanket on a 20-degree night to someone on the street because every shelter space is taken,” he said. Shaw House deals with 400 kids a year, but only has a capacity of 16 beds.
    The messages were taken seriously by many teens at the campsite like seniors Dana Webber and Taylor Dow.
    “It’s for a good cause,” said Webber. “You don’t really think about the problem because you don’t see many homeless people around Dexter.”
    Dow was participating for her first time at the urging of her classmate. “I just joined Key Club this year, so this was something I wanted to do. As the speakers pointed out, people can become homeless for many reasons,” Dow said.