DALLAS — Being a kid right now, well, it can be a little tough. Body image issues and bullying both online and in person, are just some of the things troubling the minds of kids and teens.

And it makes it even tougher when they don’t have a place to come home to.

“Before I was in Promise House, I was in foster care,” Sherry Bass told NewsFix. “I’ve been in foster care system since I was 13 years old.”

With the number of homeless kids in Dallas at over 1,200, one charity is shedding light on the situation with the second annual Promise House “Sleep Out.”

“In particular, you even hear less about youth homelessness. A lot of people don’t even know that it exists. And the reason for that is when kids are out on the street their really scared, they are scared, and they’re very vulnerable so they tend to hide,” said Timothy Fisher, Promise House Board Member and Event Chairman.

Many community leaders got comfortable with being uncomfortable and set up camp beside the many kids who have slept on the streets in real life.

“First of all, it’s giving us just a small taste of what these people these people in our community, and these children in our community are facing everyday,” Lauren Walters, a Senior Partner and General Manager at FleishmanHillard said. “But this really gives us an opportunity to shine a light on how big the problem really is.”

During the Sleep Out, beanies, sleeping bags and cardboard are provided but for those that have actually experienced being homeless, the scene is very different.

“These children are kids that are residing on the streets that have been abused and have turned to promise house to provide a place for them to sleep and roof over their head,” said Ashley Lind, CEO of Promise House.

With a plan to raise awareness, we hope a night under the stars will one day be in their own backyard.