Sleeping rough in Adelaide for a good cause
By ANTHONY CASTLE
Thirty brave souls roughed it for the inaugural Salvos Sleepout SA at Parafield Gardens Salvos in Adelaide on Saturday 16 September.
The sleepout was preceded by a community event including a barbeque served by Salvation Army Emergency Services volunteers and a range of community organisations providing information and activities for locals in northern Adelaide. About 100 people attended the community event.
Sleepout participants raised close to $25,000 to go towards Salvation Army homelessness services.
Both events were coordinated by a group of Salvos Mission Expressions including Parafield Gardens and Playford Corps, Doorways, Salvos Housing, Salvos Stores, Emergency Services, Chaplaincy and PR.
Over more than six months of working together, everyone increased their understanding of The Salvation Army’s work in the community and developed a strong sense of team.
Two sleepout participants shared why they got involved:
One said, “I decided to sleep out because there is a homeless lady near my work who I walk past every day and, like everyone else, I think, ‘What can I do to help?’. So, when I heard about this on the radio, I thought, well, that is something small I can do.”
Another said, “I know first-hand the effect of homelessness. I work with people in custody, and we don’t want our prison system to be a public health system. We need to do better. That’s why I am doing this sleepout – to raise money for people who are sleeping rough. We all have a role to play in ending this homelessness crisis in Australia.”
Organisers said they were very grateful to Harcourts SA, Conveyancing SA, John Fulbrook MP and Fresh FM for funding and promotional support.
