BUTTE, Mont. — If you want to sit on this bench and talk to Butte’s homeless shelter director about the problem of homelessness in the Mining City, he’s got plenty of time for you — in fact, he’s got all night.
“I’ve got 23 and a half hours left,” Brayton Erickson said.
Watch our full story below:
Erickson was just getting started on Oct. 8 for his 24-hour shift of sitting on a bench outside just off Harrison Avenue. This is part of a national event called "Conversations on a Bench" in which he invited people from the community to join him and discuss the homeless issue. He wants to hear from community organizations, churches and even those experiencing homelessness.
“There’s people out here that are unhoused, they may be living in a tent or a car or couch surfing, you know, and their experience matters,” Erickson said.
Crissie LaBare was one of the first to speak with Erickson. She used the services of the Butte Rescue Mission to help her when her life began to spin out of control.
"I got three aggravated DUIs, and I felt like if I didn’t get the right help I would probably die from falling in a blackout,” LaBare said.
She’s had more than a year sober and credits the Rescue Mission for her new life.
“It’s great, it’s great, I’m for a place, I work out of the Southwest Vets Home, and I love it,” she said.
The event, which is being live-streamed at the Conversations on a Bench website, hopes to bring people together and come up with good ideas for addressing the issue. For Brayton, he’s not sure how the next 23 hours will go for him personally.
“This is kind of a social experiment. I don’t know if I’ve really stayed up for 24 hours straight. And I may say funny things; there may be no sense in what’s coming out of my mouth tomorrow morning,” Brayton said.
