When Deacon Reginald Russell pitches his tent in Macon’s Carolyn Crayton Park on February 29, 2024, it will be the fifth night he has slept on the cold ground as a participant of the Greater Macon Sleepout. The Sleepout is a fundraiser for Depaul USA Daybreak Resource Center in Macon, which provides daytime meals and support services to people who are homeless.
“The first time I did the Sleepout, someone had dared me to sign up,” Russell said. “I wasn’t sure I could spend a winter night in the elements, but then I was thinking about the people who sleep outside every night, and I was only doing it for one night. My eyes were opened to how hard it is. I realized how fortunate I am to have a home.”
The second Sleepout he attended stands out in his memory because thunder and heavy rain kept him awake. “I thought I’d get soaked and I thought about leaving,” he recalled. But the tent stayed dry inside and eventually the rain stopped.
“It was another eye-opening experience. It made me aware of my blessings and of the challenges faced by people who don’t have a warm, dry place to live,” Russell said.
Touched by the impact of participating in the once-a-year Sleepouts, he realized he wanted to do more for people experiencing homelessness in Macon.
Now as a retiree (Russell served in the Air Force for seven years and had a 29-year career with the U.S. Postal Service), he has the time available during the day to volunteer at the Daybreak center on Walnut Street.
He typically helps in the center’s tech room, which has computers and phones available for people who are homeless. Daybreak participants also can use the center’s address to receive their mail, and they have access to on-site medical and dental care, showers, laundry facilities, enrichment classes, and assistance with housing placement and transportation.
Russell often includes references to his Daybreak and Sleepout experiences in the sermons he gives as a deacon at St. Peter Claver Catholic Church. He has attended the church since he was a child.
Ordained a deacon in 2018, Russell says he is grateful for the opportunities to give back to the parishioners. “They raised me, they prayed for me – I owe the parish a lot and I try to give back in some way.” Visiting the parishioners who are homebound is especially important to him because “these are people I grew up with,” he explained.
“I try to give back because I realize so much has been given to me. Others struggle day to day to find a meal, to find a safe place to sleep,” he noted. “Volunteering, donating to Daybreak and participating in the Sleepout are for a great cause – helping others in need.”
Russell’s father-in-law joined him for the Sleepout last year, which was the event’s 10th anniversary. That evening many people shared their stories about Daybreak’s influence, including individuals who had used the center’s services and now live in apartments and work at jobs they enjoy.
The Daybreak center has about 1,900 participants in a year and serves 16,000 meals annually. This spring, Daybreak in partnership with Macon Housing Authority will open new next door to Daybreak to provide 82 units of housing, 16 will be supportive housing apartments, as well as a medical respite for homeless people being discharge from the hospital.
Russell said nonprofit organizations, churches, companies and individuals donate items to help Daybreak’s participants. He views the Sleepout as a special way the community comes together and shows it cares about people who are homeless.
This year the Greater Macon Sleepout begins Thursday, February 29, at 5:30 p.m. After setting up tents at Carolyn Crayton Park, participants have a soup dinner at the Daybreak center. Breakfast is served in the morning.
To register for the Sleepout or to donate, go to Maconsleepout.com. For more information, contact Monica Davis at Daybreak@depaulusa.org or call Daybreak Day Resource Center at (478) 216-9119.
