This last week I had a wonderful experience. Urban Ministry in Charlotte, North Carolina, invited me out to visit homeless tent camps in the city. When we returned to their facility, Urban Ministry invited me to participate in the theater workshop.

In the past, I shared a few videos on how art, music, dance, and theater can help homeless people. But this was the very first time I have participated in an art workshop with homeless people. It will remain one of the most memorable experiences of this year.

Only an hour before the theater class, I happened to visit a homeless encampment under a freeway. I talked to a young homeless woman at the tent camp, but I wasn't sure I would ever see her again. To my surprise, the woman was in the theater class.

Although I do kind of wish I had filmed the workshop, cameras change everything. Seeing homeless people write and create their own theater productions was mind-blowing in many ways. So much community. So much healing. So much compassion and understanding. If I had broken out my camera, things might have been different, and at the core of our work is relationships come first.

Heather Bartlett is the therapeutic art coordinator at the Urban Ministry Center. There are no words to express how much Heather impressed me. Heather truly loves people and she loves her work.

Heather invited me back for this art class where we asked the people attending for their permission to go on video.

Art and music programs are a hard sell to nonprofits because funders don't see the value, and without funding, nothing happens. Please watch this video and share it with everyone you know that works in the homeless sector. I guarantee you programs like this can help people who are suffering from layers of trauma start to heal for more than talking to someone sitting behind a desk.

Your voice can help end homelessness. If we do not fix the affordable housing crisis, homelessness will continue to get worse. Click here http://invisiblepeople.tv/getinvolved to tweet, email, call, or Facebook your federal and state legislators to tell them ending homelessness and creating more affordable housing is a priority to you.

Special thanks to Urban Ministry https://www.urbanministrycenter.org

For more information on Mayors and CEOs for U.S. Housing Investment, click here: https://housinginvestment.org

Mayors and CEOs for U.S. Housing Investment paid for travel expenses. Invisible People did not receive any compensation for this video.

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There is a direct correlation between what the general public perceives about homelessness and how it affects policy change. Most people blame homelessness on the person experiencing it instead of the increasing shortage of affordable housing, lack of employment, a living wage or the countless reasons that put a person at risk. This lack of understanding creates a dangerous cycle of misperception that leads to the inability to effectively address the root causes of homelessness.

We imagine a world where everyone has a place to call home. Each day, we work to fight homelessness by giving it a face while educating individuals about the systemic issues that contribute to its existence. Through storytelling, education, news, and activism, we are changing the narrative on homelessness.

This isn’t just talk. Each year, our groundbreaking educational content reaches more than a billion people across the globe. Our real and unfiltered stories of homelessness shatter stereotypes, demand attention and deliver a call-to-action that is being answered by governments, major brands, nonprofit organizations, and everyday citizens just like you.

However, there is more work to be done on the road ahead. Homelessness is undoubtedly one of our biggest societal issues today and will only continue to grow if we don’t take action now.

Invisible People is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to educating the public about homelessness through innovative storytelling, news, and advocacy. Since our launch in 2008, Invisible People has become a pioneer and trusted resource for inspiring action and raising awareness in support of advocacy, policy change and thoughtful dialogue around poverty in North America and the United Kingdom.