Charity helpers to be saluted
Related Articles
THE students who are sleeping rough on a Dublin pavement to help people less fortunate than themselves are a credit to their school and a symbol of the times. Belvedere College boys sleep rough every Christmas to raise money for various charities, but this year is rather different. For a start, the nights on O'Connell Street are considerably colder than previously.
And the climate has changed in other ways too.
Although people -- many having lost their jobs -- are volunteering in droves to offer their services to charitable organisations, hard cash is less forthcoming.
Even as more and more people seek their help, charities find their resources diminishing. The reason is not hard to see. Thousands of people have lost their livelihoods and are struggling to survive on social welfare; those who still have jobs have seen their income eroded. Even without imposed cuts and levies, CSO figures show that earnings have fallen all across the board.
With 331 homes repossessed so far this year, those who still have a roof over their heads are the lucky ones, even if many have postponed the day of reckoning with interest-only payments, or other arrangements.
Others are less fortunate and would simply starve on the streets were it not for the tireless efforts of unsung heroes who man mobile soup kitchens and day centres where the poor and homeless can grab a bite.
Everyone is feeling the chill this Christmas, but for some it's a matter of life or death.
