Adam Shepard – Scratch Beginnings: Me, $25, and the Search for the American Dream

Adam Shepard – Scratch Beginnings: Me, $25, and the Search for the American Dream

After graduating from college, Shepard tried an experiment. He traveled to Charleston, South Carolina with nothing but $25, and gave himself one year to meet a goal of having $2,500 in savings, a car, and an apartment. Among the rules he set for himself was he was not allowed to take advantage of his college education or take help from his family. He spent about two months in a homeless shelter, working odd jobs, learning the city, and looking for an apartment. By the end, he found a stable job and met his goals, and almost seemed pretty happy. Unfortunately, a family member’s health meant he had to return home and care for them. Good on him for knowing what’s important, and he still accomplished his goal of refuting the class-based hopelessness he found in Barbara Ehrenreich’s book Nickel and Dimed.