Through the winter Rudy Hummel slept outside of his Duluth, Minn., home in a snow quinzhee. This included more than 70 nights where the temp dipped below zero.
It’s a little more comfortable now in June. Hummel, age 17, is nearing the end of a 365-day goal to sleep outside every single night.
This Friday, June 6th, marks the one-year anniversary of Hummel’s Snore Outdoors project. The project is raising funds for Habitat for Humanity and Hawk Ridge environmental center.
In the winter Hummel had to use two foam pads and three inches of straw as his mattress. According to a Bring Me The News article, he’s slept in 30 different places — a platform in a tree, a snow cave in his yard, a campground, and on a hotel balcony in Chicago.
Hummel noted the experience has given him “empathy for the homeless” and also a perspective on his place in the world. “You think about a squirrel, or a bird at the bird feeder… we consider them visitors, yet they live here, and we’re just as much visitors as they are.”
See more at Hummel’s Snore Outdoors site and make a donation to the cause. —Stephen Regenold
