Ryan Riddell – He Raised Awareness of Homelessness By Taking It On Himself

Ryan Riddell is a husband, father of three, and pastor of a church in Ohio. He and his family live in a nice home, and overall he has a pretty good life. But one day, Ryan gave it all up and lived for 30 days as a homeless man! As a pastor, Ryan felt called to help the homeless. He thought that by living as a homeless man and talking about it, he could get people to help.

Ryan just recently finished his 30 days of homelessness. But already he has made a big impact. Thousands of people have visited his website. They support his 30-day journey and want to help his worthy cause. This video tells the story of Ryan and days of homelessness.

This video tells more about the problem of homelessness in America.

Additional Resources:

• Here is Ryan’s blog that chronicles his 30 days of homelessness.

Topics for Discussion:

• Have you ever seen a homeless person? Did you ever think about how he or she got to be homeless?
• Ryan learned much by becoming a homeless man himself. What can you do to learn about the struggles of others?

Take Action:

• Visit a homeless shelter in your area and talk to the people there – you’ll learn that they’re not so different from you!
• Check out the Just Give website for 35 different ways you can help homeless people.

Teacher Features:

• Here is a link to a Critical Reading Skills worksheet that you can use for elementary school students.
• Here is a link to a Critical Reading Skills worksheet that you can use for middle school students.