Hunter 
Hunter left California because he knew he would die if he stayed. Twenty years of motorcycle gangs, prison, drug sales, and methamphetamine addictions out west were destroying his body and mind. He called his family in Michigan and told them he needed to come home. Although his family initially supported him as he sought a new life in his hometwon, through counseling he eventually realized their unhealthy ways of manipulating, judging, and putting others down were harming him. Hunter moved to Camp Take Notice in the middle of winter, and it has been a safe place for him to recover, to work on his own stuff, and to bring his gifts to a community. Hunter is a force of momentum and leadership for the group.
Stretch
Stretch grew up in California and lost his wife, his high school sweet heart, when he was 21. He left town with a broken heart and joined the armed forces, serving in the First Gulf War. When he resigned from the military twelve years later, he took a drug addiction with him. Stretch has been struggling with addictions ever since, but has been clean from drugs since November 2008 thanks in part to the community he has at Camp Take Notice. At camp organizing meetings, he has been known to enthusiastically interrupt with a word about how important this new community is to him.
Caleb
Caleb grew up in Ann Arbor and began training with Huron Valley Emergency Medical Services as a 17-year-old. He became a senior member of EMS and developed a passion for teaching and mentoring students of emergent medicine. After working in the Emergency Department of several area hospitals, he began assisting in research at U of M and building a simulation model for teaching life saving skills.
All this time, Caleb battled medical depression.
Sometimes his mind slowed to a crawl; his active mind muddled and he felt he
was putting patients at risk when at work. When he couldn’t function, he’d ask
to leave early; eventually he lost his job. Caleb has a passion for emergent
medicine, and when he lost the work that was so meaningful to him, his
depression spiraled. Without income, he realized he was going to be homeless.
So he left Ann Arbor.
In Seattle,
Washington Caleb found community
through a self-organized, self-governed tent community of 100 homeless people.
For two years he had a place to heal, to contribute, and to enjoy life in
community. In August of 2008 Caleb heard some distressing news about his family
in Ann Arbor
and came immediately home to help. At the time he planned to return to Seattle, but when he saw Ann Arbor
through the eyes of a homeless man and realized the numbers of people who might
join life on the streets because of Michigan’s
economy, he dreamed of a tent community for his hometown. MISSION is the launch
of that vision.
Rob
Though Rob grew up in Michigan, he has long wanted to travel in the U.S. In between jobs in Michigan he took opportunities to visit Florida and New York. Upon returning to Michigan however, he has not been able to find work. He's never had trouble with alcohol or drugs, but like many of the homeless, a slight mental disability adds a significant barrier to maintaining steady work. Difficult social circumstances resulted in his current and second stint of homelessness, but he's inspired to make some stark changes in his approach to contributing to the local community. The peace, quiet, and elements of self-governance at Camp Take Notice, have given Rob a chance to re- group his affairs and begin to feel that he is positively contributing to a community effort, i.e., the camp and MISSION, itself. A long-time camp member, his experience of citizenship, and personal and group responsibility are the most important drivers of his continuing successful transition.
