An additional part of my leadership in action summer was to volunteer at food distribution and drop in centers for the unhoused. This aspect of my summer aligned both with the mission of the Laidlaw Foundation and also with my personal beliefs. I have been so beyond fortunate to be where I am and to receive all of the help that I have received it is imperative that I give my time toward the betterment of others in the Jesuit spirit of people for and with others. At Safe Harbor in West Chester PA I had the chance to volunteer with the men’s services. Safe Harbor is the only support service in West Chester PA that provides men and women food, a bed, and a locker to be used during the day. Before I volunteered, I had assumed that a bed was the biggest benefit for individuals there but I soon found out the importance of having a locker to store things in during the day without worry. Many of the men who came in for food and/or a meal had full time jobs but were still poverty-stricken. Having a place to leave their things while at work not only allowed them to do their jobs better, but provided a piece of mind I had not anticipated. At the Georgetown Ministry Center (GMC)  Drop-In, I saw how different homelessness looked in an urban environment compared to the more homogenous suburb of West Chester. It is impossible to characterize the group who I had the opportunity to serve while there because they all had come to it from so many different avenues. Some were struggling with alcohol and drug abuse, others with mental health struggles, others with disability, others with family troubles or a recently lost job, and even more with combinations of all of those. GMC not only provided basic necessities like food, water, coffee, snacks, headphones, clothes, support services, etc, but also provided a sense of normalcy and dignity by washing the clothes of guests and allowing them to shower. While not in the drop-in center and walking around DC doing outreach with GMC, I saw how on top of all of the physical struggles many were undergoing, they also had the mental struggle of feeling like ‘everyone was looking at them.’ This constant othering is a burden that many of us do not recognize, I know I didn’t, and by allowing guests to become clean and wear clean clothes it gives them an opportunity to exist in a more  ‘normal’ way. In all of these environments I was surrounded by social workers and volunteers who dedicated so much time, in some cases their entire lives, to the betterment of their community and the alleviation of suffering. Their commitment and drive and open hearts were such inspiration and I am so glad to have been able to work with them. Additionally, with each guest that I saw I witnessed a fight in them to keep going even when it seemed insurmountable from the outside.