Would you spend just one night sleeping on the icy city streets? Imagine spending every night struggling to find shelter from the elements, to stay warm, to stay safe…
On the 5th of August 2016 members of the FlowCentric Technologies team took on the elements to raise awareness and donations for the less fortunate. The month long Sympathy SleepOut 2016 campaign to gather clothing, blankets and food was inspired by the CEO SleepOut event, and motivated by our concern for the homeless of our city.
We are all too familiar with the sight of people sleeping on the streets, begging at traffic lights, or pushing shopping trolleys filled with all their possessions. Unfortunately, this is such a common occurrence in our daily lives that many of us have become a little numb to the plight of the homeless. The city streets are not forgiving at the best of times, but in winter, when the temperatures plummet to below 0° Celsius, they can quite literally kill. Where do people go for shelter? For warmth?
Our online search for registered charities, in Tshwane, that focus on supporting homeless adults, left us a little despondent. Many of the telephone numbers we tried were disconnected or emails bounced. If we, with internet and telephone access found it hard to identify a charity that would assist the homeless, how much more challenging must it be for those without such luxuries?
The FlowCentric Technologies team selected The Potato Foundation as their charity of choice. The foundation caters to a wide range of people in need, from the very young to the elderly. All the clothing, blankets, toiletries, dried food and canned goods that were donated during the month will be handed over to The Potato Foundation for distribution to those in need.
“This experience has given many of us a better idea of the hardships the homeless face. It’s more than just seeking food or shelter from the elements. It’s the feeling of being vulnerable to assault or robbery, the risk of illness, the challenge of cleaning yourself, the complexity of transporting all your goods…The list goes on.” explains Denis Bensch, CIO FlowCentric Technologies.
“We trust that our efforts will make a positive impact on those in need. We have learnt a lot from this experience and look forward taking on the challenge next year.”