On Friday October 21st, ten staff from Avolon spent the night outside to raise awareness and funds for Focus Ireland as part of its Shine a Light Night.

[vc_row][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]On Friday October 21st, ten staff from Avolon spent the night outside to raise awareness and funds for Focus Ireland as part of its Shine a Light Night.

Shine a Light Night has become an annual event where the Business Community come together for one night to raise vital funds and to stand in solidarity with people experiencing homelessness in Ireland today. This was the first time that Avolon staff have participated in the event but we would hope to increase our level of participation next year.

As part of the fundraising efforts, Avolon staff held a cake sale in the morning which in turn provided some much needed fuel for those sleeping out for the night. Staff, family and friends donated generously to the cause as did many in the local community including Maia and Centra in Ballsbridge who supplied food and hot drinks for the evening. Energie Gym kindly provided gym mats.

The night went well for the team with temperatures around the 8 degree celcius which also provided insight as to what people go through on a daily basis.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of those who contributed to making the event such a success. To date, we have raised over €11,300 through our donation website (https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Belinda-McEnerny) and CARE matching funds of €5,000.

Focus Ireland is an expert organisation in helping families, young people and children at risk or affected by homelessness. Focus Ireland believe everyone should have a right to a home and provide over 70 services nationwide. Their plan is to reduce the number of people stuck in homelessness by finding a secure home – be it social housing or private rental accommodation. 6,525 people are homeless today in Ireland, this is the highest number ever recorded. 1 in every 3 in emergency accommodation is a child. For additional information on Focus Ireland and the services they provide, please visit their website at https://www.focusireland.ie/[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_gallery type=”image_grid” images=”5743,5744,5746,5745″ img_size=”130×87″][/vc_column][/vc_row]