By Claire Corrigan
The sixth annual ‘Sleep out for the Simon Community’ took place from 21 to 23 October at the Market Square in Mullingar. Charity worker Brian Fagan runs the event every year to raise money for the homeless service and to draw attention to the conditions that homeless people endure every day.
“I do it because we have homes to go to and food to eat and there are a lot of people here in Westmeath who have no homes and are sleeping rough and with winter coming in, they need all the help they can get.”
For the sleep out, Mr. Fagan spent 48 hours in a shed which is loaned from Denis Corroon of Corroons Timber Ltd. Harbour Street, every year and erected in Market Square by Mr. Corroon. There was a collection on 22 October followed by collection marches on 24 October.
Robert Troy TD spent the night in the shed on the first night of the sleep out and various other people from the town also came to visit the square to offer Mr. Fagan moral support throughout the duration of the fundraiser.
Mr. Fagan told Topic that he believed that the construction of a homeless centre in Mullingar was essential especially with the colder months fast approaching. “Even today we had a few people passing by who were desperate for a place to stay and asked us where the shelter was.
There is none in Mullingar and I feel that there has to be a shelter built. They have nowhere to go but they’re not on any lists so they’re not counted. There are families being kicked out of their homes that have nowhere to go so we have to build a decent shelter to make sure people are safe.”
Mr Fagan said that although the Simon Community is doing all it can to help people who find themselves homeless, the charity has become overwhelmed due to a decrease in budget and the ever rising numbers of evictions. “Every penny we get is going to people who desperately need it but there’s never enough because the problem is getting worse and worse – we keep trying and that’s all we can do.”
Chris Burley, a member of Simon Community, told Topic that while steps have been taken to alleviate the problem in Dublin, little has been done throughout the rest of the country. “They’ve agreed to put up these modular houses in Dublin but there are people all over the country who experience homelessness.”
Mr. Burley also praised the generous donations the charity received by the people of the town during the sleep out. “The people of Mullingar have been brilliant any time we do this. The amount of people who come along and give sizeable donations is amazing. It’s something that everyone seems to connect with.”
