Yesterday we had around 55 students and staff participate in the annual Vinnies Sleep Out to raise money towards meals, shelter and help for the 116 000 people experiencing homelessness every day. We crossed over to the CEO Sleep Out where Mrs Rey was sleeping out, heard from our guest speaker Mattew Wilson from Vinnies, played some games and had a liturgy to reflect on the issue of homelessness.

We made our way to the terrace for the students to find a space to sleep, away from the wind as best they could! Storage King kindly provided boxes for the students to sleep on during the night. While it was a challenging evening the students all did a fantastic job and we thank them for their efforts. Thanks also to Dominic Charter, Nic Whatman, Louise Bignell, Amber Donoghue and Kirstie Gibson for supervising through the night, and Steve Thomas and Teena Zorzi for helping out in the evening.

A standout has been the radio interviews of our students, with Ivy Keating and Jordan Skerritt interviewed by Adrienne Francis on Drive yesterday just before 6 pm and Liliana Beckett and Hayley Silcock to be interviewed this afternoon. They are outstanding ambassadors not only for the cause but also for our College – articulate, passionate and committed.

We have been overwhelmed by the support of our community, with donations coming in thick and fast, particularly in the last few days. To date, we have raised just shy of $9000 as a school – an amazing result! We could still aim for our goal of $10,000 as donations are possible until the end of July.

Here is the link if you would like to donate:

https://www.ceosleepout.org.au/fundraisers/catherine-rey/canberra

Thank you all for your wonderful support of our brave and generous students and the work that St Vincent de Paul does to support those in our community who are less fortunate than ourselves.

Alyssa Markmann, Nic Whatman and Catherine Rey