by Emma Ballingall
Dehumanising language used to describe two people living rough in Drouin's Anzac Park greatly affected Baw Baw Shire Cr Ben Lucas.
Cr Lucas, who has twice found himself on the brink of homelessness, used the derogatory and disgusting terminology being circulated in the community to inspire his call for a council report into local homelessness.
And now, he hopes the Gazette Community Sleepout will take the next step to create conversations, understanding and empathy to the growing issue.

"Until you experience something, you don't really know," he said.
Sharing his raw lived experience, Cr Lucas admitted "life got me" when he returned to West Gippsland following seven years in the Australian Army in Townsville.
Within six months, his marriage broke down, he was running a new business and he had nothing. He found himself living in a caravan in his mum's backyard - a move he reflects "saved my life."
"I'd been places, I'd done things, I'd achieved a lot, but all of a sudden I'm 30 and back with mummy. It was a big hit to the pride.
"But, if I didn't have that safety net, I would have been on the street."
"During COVID, I found myself back there. The inability to make a wage made me believe I was back at square one."
During these periods that Cr Lucas entered a depressive state and used alcohol to numb the pain. He said he drank to make himself feel better or for relief - "a can of bourbon was my best friend."
Cr Lucas spiralled further, when just months after being elected a councillor, he was caught drink driving.
Resigning from council and pleading guilty to two charges of dangerous driving and drink driving "was the start of the rebuild".

"Rock bottom is the best foundation to build a life on. With an optimistic attitude, even at the worst, I just held on to that belief one day it would get better."

And, it has. After rehabilitation and a wellness journey, Cr Lucas was re-elected to council last year.
Hoping to inspire others doing it tough, he also acknowledges the great times spent in that caravan across a cumulative two-year period.
"I raised my kids in there; we had somewhere safe, dry and warm. There was food on the table."
Cr Lucas praised his mum, who had always sacrificed for family, and her partner, acknowledging "I don't know where I'd be without that support."
During his hardest times, Cr Lucas gained a visit and shared conversations with his Uncle Tom, who lived a nomadic lifestyle.
Describing his mum's brother, he said "the system let him down, a lot of things let him down and led him to the point where he was a very colourful character going to all ends of Australia."
It wasn't until an eye-opening trip to Renmark in his later teens that he understood Uncle Tom's plight.
Visiting his tent on the banks of the Murray River, Cr Lucas said "that's the point that I became aware. It's not just the fantasy, there's probably more of a harsher reality of that life".
"He wasn't in great health, conditions weren't great. He looked like a typical bushranger. The way people would divert around him, and the way people discriminated (against) him and would treat him really stuck with me."
"But he was always so loving, so giving, so caring," he said. "Loved a beer, probably too much."
His experiences, as well as Uncle Tom's, inspired Cr Lucas to take a different approach to the pair he saw sleeping in Anzac Park.
Seeking to humanise them, he cautiously approached, had a chat and encouraged Daniel and Rebecca to share their story.
"A simple conversation on a human element" was how Cr Lucas described the resulting chat. "It brought me back then and there to Uncle Tom's story. I found myself asking what can we do, how can we help from a council perspective."
Cr Lucas said raising concerns about homelessness in the council chamber was only hot air unless something tangible followed. He was quick to jump on board to help organise the Gazette Community Sleepout and is working with council to launch an online directory of support networks.
"With The Gazette's help and bringing the community together we can gain a greater understanding of people doing it tough. And, it's only going to get worse before it gets better," he said.