Rosemount woman to go homeless for a cause

Article by: NICOLE NORFLEET , Star Tribune 

Updated: December 21, 2010 - 3:52 PM

Mandy Mulder's business cards say she's a "Giver, Server, Lover."

In the spring, armed with those cards, a video camera and little more than the clothes on her back, the 22-year-old Rosemount resident plans to start driving across the United States in an attempt to get a taste of what it's like to be homeless.

Sleeping in homeless shelters and eating in soup kitchens, Mulder will be documenting her journey along the way.

The project, which Mulder calls "Mission America," is intended to raise awareness and money to combat poverty.

"The whole idea of this trip is for me to give to those living in America who are experiencing poverty," she said. "I plan to serve those who are living in poverty and I plan to love those living in America who are experiencing poverty."

Since her high school days, it's been a dream of Mulder's to travel the country. But it wasn't until 2008, during a mission trip with her youth group to the Red Lake Indian Reservation, that she was inspired to help the impoverished.

"It was like stepping into a third world country," Mulder said of the reservation. "It was a huge eye-opener to me that this is happening, not only in my own country but in my own state."

Mulder was born and raised in Apple Valley. After she graduated in 2006 from the School of Environmental Studies, her family moved to Rosemount.

After spending more than two years at the University of Wisconsin-Stout, Mulder transferred and started taking online courses at Liberty University, a Christian school based in Lynchburg, Va. While she studied theology at Liberty and has worked as a youth pastor, Mulder said Mission America does not have a religion-based agenda.

She said its aim is simple: "People need to really understand what their fellow Americans are dealing with."

Mulder plans to embark in May on what she estimates will be a three-month journey. Because of safety reasons, she said, she will probably recruit a traveling partner.

"We were a little concerned about her safety, but we absolutely support her 110 percent," said Mulder's mother, Karen Lindberg. "Ever since she was little, she has always wanted to help people. Anybody who was an underdog she has wanted to friend."

Her trip will most likely start in Minneapolis and then head east before going down the coast and circling back to the west. Some of Mulder's stops will be New York City, Seattle and Chicago, she said. She plans to blog along the way.

Raising money for the trip is one of the biggest issues she faces. Mulder said she wants to raise enough to give a donation to each shelter she visits.

Mulder's currently taking donations on her Facebook page atwww.facebook.com/missionamerica.

Nicole Norfleet • 612-673-4495