It's cold to be outside for just a little while with the biting wind chills we've had for weeks, but imagine if you didn't have a warm home to bunker down in during the cold weather.
Students at a Newington church are learning first hand what it's like to live outside to see what the area's homeless population faces in the winter.
"It's very cold and it's like you're awake because it's too cold to go to sleep," Julia Holland, of Newington, said.
The experience started night before with a visit by two area homeless people, who shared stories of surviving the cold winter months with the students.
With just a sleeping bag and cardboard box to stay warm, middle and high school students, members of the Church of Christ Congregational in Newington are learning the cold reality faced by our homeless population.
"It's cold," Jillian McCormick, of Newington said.
The students slept in two hours shifts. Emily Donovan, of Newington, said it's hard to sleep and had been outside an hour when NBC Connecticut spoke with her. Besides being cold, she said "it's really lumpy."
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While the students slept in cardboard boxes, the adults gathered around this fire. They know some homeless people don't even have that, but the experience was still a reality check for the group.
"Just to see the reality of homelessness and to see how close it is to the communities in which they live," Eric Sherlock, of Church of Christ Congregational, said.
Parishioners raised $3,000 for the cause. The money will go to a group called Family Promise.
"The organization seeks to combat homelessness and keep families together by partnering with houses of worship to house the homeless," Sherlock said.
The little time outside went a long way toward teaching the students compassion for those less fortunate.
