Four John Wollaston Anglican Community School students will give up creature comforts this week and sleep through a night in the cold to raise awareness of homelessness.
Sixteen-year-olds Angela Roberts, Martha Dodge, Rhiannon Blair and Emma Winship have volunteered to take part in the Anglicare WA School Sleepout.
They will head to NIB stadium on August 4 along with 26 other students from schools across Perth with temperatures set to dip to 12 degrees.
They and two of their teachers will sleep without shelter, eat from a soup kitchen and take part in scenarios designed to simulate what it would be like to be homeless including being awoken during the night and asked to move to a new location to enhance the realism.
The school was hoping to raise $1000 and Rhiannon said she was excited to take part in the event.
“It’s a really important cause,” she said.
“It’s one of the things you don’t see as much and because of that you turn a blind eye to it.”
Rhiannon said raising her hand to support awareness was the least she could do.
“If you don’t think about doing anything, you won’t do anything,” she said.
The girls were asked to try and raise $200 each and were well on their way to their target with days to go.
While trying to simulate homelessness, medical supplies and emotional supporters will be in attendance as well as security to keep the students from any danger.
Money raised from the night will go to Anglicare WA’s Street Connect program, which supports young homeless people living in Perth.
Rhiannon said it will be an eye-opening experience.
“You don’t realise what it’s like to not have a home when you’ve always had one,” she said.
“We have to help homeless people get jobs and find homes so they can build their own lives and not have to worry about where they will be the next day or if they’ll have money and food.
“It’s good that we try to help these people.”
Emma Winship said her family was rapt with her involvement in the School Sleepout and hoped the students could reach their benchmarks easily.
“We’re not the only ones who have to deal with it and it’s not nearly as bad as having to do it every night,” she said.
Donations were still being accepted at fundraise.giveeasy.org/fundraising_event/anglicare-wa-school-sleep-out.
