A night sleeping under the stars to boost YMCA
VOLUNTEERS SPENT THE NIGHT SLEEPING ROUGH FOR CHARITY
MORE than £20,000 has been raised to help the homeless in Burton by 100 volunteers who slept rough for the night in cardboard boxes for a night.
They took to the outdoors on a cold autumn evening having been sponsored to take part raising money for the YMCA in Burton. Most people slept rough outside under the stands at Burton Albion’s Pirelli Stadium in the town.
Those taking part included Thomas Woods, who was helped to get back on his feet by the YMCA. He praised the charity for helping when he was down on his luck, and was taking part in his second sponsored sleep-out.
He said: “Without Lee, Sue, Louise and all the other staff I wouldn’t be where I am today. I’ve been living in my own place for five years now and worked for over three years. My confidence wouldn’t exist without YMCA Burton and I’ve fund-raised nearly £500 so far.”
Other guests included Ben Robinson, chairman of Burton Albion Football Club and president of YMCA Burton, as well as the Mayor of East Staffordshire Councillor Patricia Ackroyd.
They said they were amazed to see such a diverse range of people taking part and praised the YMCA for its efforts to help the homeless.
The announcement on how much was raised comes as the charity was named YMCA of the year and its annual sleep-out was recognised as a key part of achieving the accolade.
Councillor Ackroyd said: “I first completed the sleep-out 10 years ago and when I was elected mayor, I had to choose a local charity to support. The only choice for me was the YMCA Burton, they have run a local food bank for 20 years and now more than ever there is unfortunately such a great need for it.”
Mr Robinson said: “The life expectancy for homeless people living on the streets is tragically young, for a male it is 47 and for a female it is 43. What you are all doing at sleep-out is saving lives.”
Paul Laffey, chief executive of YMCA Burton, said: “We are so humbled over 100 people joined us for sleep-out this year.
“This was a mixture of people sleeping at Pirelli Stadium and virtually too. After what has been a difficult 18 months for many, we were so happy to see people walk through the gates once more to take part in our 13th sleep-out and have so far raised over £20,000 with donations and sponsorship money still to be collected.
“We want to thank each and every one of you who took part, sponsored or volunteered on the night – we could not make this event, and the organisation as a whole, run without you – thank you.”
If you would like to donate to YMCA Burton, you can do so online.