MOLLY BARTELS PHOTOGRAPHY

Editorial: Stories: Homeless

Monica Trullinger takes a nap with her baby, Zelda Melton, 5 months, on the couch at the apartment she shares with her boyfriend, Tony Melton, in Vero Beach. In 2001, at age 24, Trullinger was dissatisfied with her life in Seattle, Wa., and decided that she wanted to try being homeless. "I thought it was kind of fascinating. I wondered what their day to day life was like." said Trullinger. But she always knew she did not want to be homeless forever. "It was a lot harder to get out (of being homeless) than I thought," said Trullinger. "I'm not homeless anymore but I'm still in poverty," said Trullinger. "And I don't want to raise a child in poverty."
Monica Trullinger takes a nap with her baby, Zelda Melton, 5 months, on the couch at the apartment she shares with her boyfriend, Tony Melton, in Vero Beach. In 2001, at age 24, Trullinger was dissatisfied with her life in Seattle, Wa., and decided that she wanted to try being homeless. "I thought it was kind of fascinating. I wondered what their day to day life was like." said Trullinger. But she always knew she did not want to be homeless forever. "It was a lot harder to get out (of being homeless) than I thought," said Trullinger. "I'm not homeless anymore but I'm still in poverty," said Trullinger. "And I don't want to raise a child in poverty."