The NoHo Home Alliance is hosting a “sleep out” fundraiser on Oct. 3. Guests will spend a night sleeping outdoors to help the nonprofit continue its work serving unhoused people in North Hollywood.
The first-ever NHHA Socially-Distanced Sleep Out begins Oct. 3 at 6:30 p.m. The event runs overnight both on-site at NHHA’s courtyard and online through 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 4.
According to NHHA Executive Director Stephanie Jaeger, the goal of the event is to create an experience where participants sleep on the cold, hard ground to “deepen their empathy,” so that “when faced with making decisions or judgments about homelessness or unhoused neighbors, those judgments don’t come from a place of fear but from a place of understanding.”
If you choose to participate, you’ll be spaced 6 feet away from others and must wear a mask. You’ll spend the night outdoors, as so many fellow Angelenos do. Except, of course, you’ll have the luxury of going home afterward. And you’ll get to enjoy a comedy show, a concert and more projected on a big screen. For social distancing purposes, only the tech team and a small number of live hosts and guests, presenting one-by-one, will be present.
Snacks, a light breakfast and single-serving drinks will be provided. You’ll also get one clean blanket, but are welcome to bring your own bedding, such as a sleeping bag and pillow. Organizers suggest dressing warmly and leaving valuables, other than your phone, at home.
You can also “sleep out” in a location of your choice and watch the show over Zoom. It kicks off at 6:30 p.m. with assembly member Richard Bloom (CA-50), followed by performers, including comedians Brian Kiley, Karen Rontowski, Dana Eagle, Angel Gaines and Dwayne Perkins; Trinidadian-American singer-songwriter TRISHES; country music artist Rob Mayes and more. At 9 p.m., the spookier, seasonally appropriate afterparty begins featuring “Insidious” and “The Conjuring” composer Joseph Bishara, short films from director Mike Mendez (“Tales of Halloween,” “Big Ass Spider!”), author Danny Bell (“The Black Pages”) and voice actor/model Whitton Frank, and Zombie Joe of Zombie Joe’s Underground Theater in NoHo.
Tickets to join in via Zoom are $15 and $30 to sleep out on the terrace. You can also make a direct donation to NHHA.