By Cassandra Pulver

As part of the 2015 Catholic Education Week St Augustine's Yr 6 students volunteered to go homeless for a night.

The theme this year was “Engaging Minds. Igniting Hearts. Serving Others. It was fitting that the Schools’ Wrap up of Catholic Education Week newsletter highlighted “the act of kindness” as a central character strength within all cultures.  And what a way to demonstrate an act of kindness by the Yr 6 students volunteering to go homeless for a night.

As part of the St Vinnies Qld School-Sleep-Out kit, it states that the sleep out is predominately to raise awareness of homelessness within the school.  “Through ‘sleeping rough’ for one night during winter, the School Sleepout initiative hopes to give students a tangible experience of what it would be like to be homeless, to bring awareness about the realities faced by members of the community with no place to call home.”

Assistant Principal Josh Mullane was very grateful for the students’ efforts, explaining that “the Friday night sleepout at St Augustine's school was an integral part of Catholic Education Week, and being part of a Catholic Education. We strive for a holistic education, especially in passing on some important values to our students, like a desire for social justice, and that issues like homelessness can be changed if we do something about it.

“We work in the hope that our students then grow into adults that believe in a society and a world that can be changed into a fairer and more compassionate place,” he said.

Throughout the evening there were tasks and group activities for the students to participate in as well as an overview and debrief.   They also raised $105 and donated 2 baskets of  blankets and warm clothing to the St Vinnies.

While the event has come and gone, the message left behind and the student’s experience are the true indicators that demonstrate the level of awareness achieved.  And by reading through the student comments, it is obvious this outcome was achieved.

Student Comments:

“I learnt that its not just old mean with bushy beards that can be homeless, homelessness can happen to anyone.” Olivia 

“I learnt that anyone, at any time, could become homeless.” Hollie

“I learnt that 1 out of 8 are homeless in Queensland, and that some people have to move a lot between temporary housing.” Mia

“I learnt that it is a lot harder to sleep outside in Far North Queensland than most people think.” Josh

“I learnt that homeless people can have money, but sometimes it’s not enough to cover living expenses, so they have to decide to spend it on food, rather than somewhere to live.” Alex

“I learnt that there are lots of homeless people in Australia, and that it would not be nice to be homeless, and there are things we can do to help.” Sophie Le G.

“I learnt that it is hard and tough living on the streets, and its very uncomfortable, especially if you’re sleeping on the ground.” Courtney 

“I learnt that being homeless and Being homeless is hard because you need to try and figure out your budget and how you might spend what little you have.” Heath

“I learnt that it’s not only old men and women who are homeless, whole families and kids my age can be homeless too.” Noah

“I learnt that I do things to help the homelessness problem, and also what it might feel like to be homeless.” Shannon

“I learnt that with homelessness, there are more people couch surfing and moving from house to house that there are living on the streets.” Sophee

“I learnt that there are homeless people in towns and in the country, not just in cities. Vinnies helps as many people as they can.” Ella 

“I learnt that 1 out of 200 Australians are homeless on any day, and that would be enough to fill Suncorp Stadium twice. That is very sad. Help them now by donating to Saint Vinnies!” Ava

“I learnt how homelessness starts and how it feels to be homeless. I learnt that the amount of people that are homeless can fill Suncorp Stadium twice.” Della