With the constant stress of homelessness in their everyday life, many homeless individuals turn to unhealthy habits to deal with their stress, such as substance abuse, smoking and alcohol dependency. However reading is a healthy, alternative way to deal with stress with studies that show that reading can reduce overall stress by 68%!
Unfortunately, people experiencing homelessness have limited access to a library and without a permanent address they are unable to get a library card, eliminating yet another resource for them. By making literature available to the homeless, we are providing an alternative choice to help them deal with stress and their mental health.
So together as a Chapter we decided to host a book drive for homeless individuals at a local shelter. We had 750+ books donated for the event. Each person was able to select their favorite books and we had so many they could have more than one! This was such a rewarding event and great to see so many smiles.