Homeless but not hopeless

Belvedere College SJ students are back on the streets and hoping to raise a record amount of money for charities that work with the homeless with this year’s annual SleepOut on Thursday 22, Friday 23 and Saturday 24 of December 2022.

The students will be in two locations: outside the GPO on O’Connell Street, Dublin 1, and in the College grounds. In total over 280 boys from 4th, 5th, and 6th year will be sleeping rough and fasting, across both locations, or in their back gardens, as part of this event.

The College Jazz band and College orchestra will be live on the streets to join the boys’ singing carols to add some seasonal spirit in support of the efforts. There will also be haircutting (one of the students is a member of a charity that offers barber services to homeless people on the streets).

“It’s been a terrible record year for the homelessness figures – with over 11,400 people now homeless – the highest figure ever in the history of the state. So we want to make it a record fundraiser this year going beyond the €225,000 that was raised in 2017 – our highest amount ever,” says student SleepOut organiser Cian Byrne. “This is the first SleepOut since Covid-19. In the two previous years students slept in their gardens and last year raised €100,000. So, we’re continuing the garden sleepouts as well as the on-street in Dublin this year.”

The students have made a good start at record-beating. The garden sleepers have already been outside in freezing conditions this weekend and have raised almost €100,000 from online donations on their JustGiving platform.

Donations for the three-day Sleep-Out can be made on the street during the event, (even with a credit or debit card) or online at any time via the SleepOut 22 donation page Belvedere College SJ Annual Sleep-Out 2022 – JustGiving

The three charities that will benefit from the generosity of the Irish people are Focus Ireland, The Peter McVerry Trust, and Home Again. “The charities supported by SleepOut 22 are doing amazing work looking after the homeless and housing those they can.” says Cian Byrne, adding, “But the homelessness crisis has reached a breaking point, and this winter will bring more suffering and hardships for thousands in this country. That’s why we are appealing to people from all around the country to support the Sleep-Out either by donating online or joining us at the GPO on O’Connell St.”

Listen here to the team podcast with Pat Coyle of Irish Jesuit Communications.

Watch the official Sleep-Out promotional video here.

Instagram – @sleepoutdublin | Twitter – @belvosleepout | TikTok – @sleepoutdublin