Winona State University's Newspaper since 1919

The Winonan

Winona State University's Newspaper since 1919

The Winonan

Winona State University's Newspaper since 1919

The Winonan

Polls

What is your favorite building to study in?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...

Homeless for a whole semester

Evie Trulen in front of her new home.            ANNA BUTLER
Evie Trulen in front of her new home. ANNA BUTLER

Elizabeth Pulanco/Winonan

Winona State University student Evie Trulen appears like an average college student, but she was recently hiding a shocking secret.

Last semester, she was homeless.

“It was scary how quickly I ended up homeless,” Trulen said.

Story continues below advertisement

When her plans for renting an apartment fell through, due to a lack of finances, Trulen found herself out on the streets.

During the summer she stayed with her family, but during the school year she had no place to stay.
Trulen adapted as best she could.

“I would bring a sleeping bag and go into the library study rooms and sleep in there until 2 a.m., when they would kick me out,” Trulen said. “After they kicked me out, I would stay in my car.”

She would also stay with friends and sleep on their couches when she could, but she would often feel guilty for taking advantage of their assistance.

She called this method “couch surfing” to avoid the negative connotations of homelessness.

Other than finding a place to lie down each night, Trulen tried to keep the rest of her daily routine as normal as possible.

“I did a pretty good job at hiding it,” Trulen said. “I sometimes went into Lourdes to take showers and get ready, and I would start my day.”

The last few weeks of the semester, she would put on all of her clothes use all of her sleeping bags and blankets to keep herself warm in her car. Fortunately, that was when she started staying with her friends more often.

“I’m lucky to have a great support system here in Winona,” Trulen said.

The Women’s Resource Center was eventually Trulen’s saving grace. They provided her with money and several necessities.

With these resources, Trulen was able to raise enough money to rent the house that she has now.

Even though she has a place to stay now, Trulen still finds herself affected by her past living situation.

“I’m still catching up on sleep,” Trulen, said. “When I slept in my car, I would wake up every 15 minutes, just making sure everything was okay.”

Trulen also mentioned that she wished she had asked for help sooner because it would have made her experience with homelessness shorter.

“I didn’t want to admit to myself and others that I was in this situation and that I needed help,” Trulen said. “When I said that I needed help, things started to get better.”

Now Trulen is staying at a house with a roommate, and she currently has a job at the costume shop downtown.

“I will never take a bed or privacy for granted ever again,” she said.

More to Discover