Homeless Fundraiser Closing 9th November 2019!
Donation protected
Hello all,
First of all I would like to say a massive thank you for all the support and kind responses that Derek and I have received over the last few days. I cannot stop smiling and it has really being truly overwhelming for us both, it’s something I could not possibly express enough gratitude for. Ashley Alexander whose idea it was to come up with this fundraiser, has tirelessly worked to try and promote this cause over the last few weeks and he feels this is the perfect opportunity to make a difference. Going back to the initial shared post on my Facebook page of myself giving away the trainers, we realised that so many other people’s personal experiences with Derek mirror ours. This convinced us, that we can use this moment as a community to do even more for this very nice and pleasant individual. This GoFundMe page has been setup to see if we could all go one step further for Derek and raise enough money to enable him to put down a deposit and try to get a roof over his head for this winter, the most difficult period of the year for the homeless. Ashley has been working hard over the last few weeks behind the scenes contacting local authorities to see how we can assist this man in regards to gaining an accommodation.
I have seen Derek regularly on the streets for the last 2-3 years in our town of Ipswich and through it all he has always had a smile on his face despite his perilous situation. During this time, I have always wondered to myself, what I could do, if anything to help him get out of his situation. It would mean more than the world to me, if we can work together and achieve this target to allow him to get a fresh start in his life. Every time I see him, he makes me and everyone else feel good about themselves by way of his compliments and positivity ,which I, and others genuinely appreciate and this was the motivation of my gesture towards him the other day. We know we cannot help everyone in the world but if we could start by just helping this one, it would make everything that has happened in the last few days all worth it!!!
I want to clarify our intentions in raising the funds for Derek and how we are planning to use it. We are getting in contact with Derek's support worker and the local authorities so we can provide clear updates and transparency to all our donor's with regards to where exactly their money is going and we will provide receipts of every penny that gets spent. We will initially support Derek with engaging with the local authority and relevant agencies so he can get the best outcome possible. Once he has been allocated an accommodation, the donations will go towards his deposit and ensure that his months upfront rent is paid. Remaining funds will then go towards providing him with things like bed sheets and furniture – if needed. If we go over our target for Derek, we will donate the remaining donations to regional charities such as FIND (Families in Need), Emmaus, Ipswich Locality Homelessness Project (ILHP) who all do a brilliant job in providing support to those who are most vulnerable. We are going to reach out to these charities in the coming weeks, so they are aware of our movement. These charities support trying to combat the issue of homelessness by means of providing food parcels, furniture and support funding emergency accommodation which is going to be crucial in the upcoming months.
Thanks again for all your support!
Connor Robey
First of all I would like to say a massive thank you for all the support and kind responses that Derek and I have received over the last few days. I cannot stop smiling and it has really being truly overwhelming for us both, it’s something I could not possibly express enough gratitude for. Ashley Alexander whose idea it was to come up with this fundraiser, has tirelessly worked to try and promote this cause over the last few weeks and he feels this is the perfect opportunity to make a difference. Going back to the initial shared post on my Facebook page of myself giving away the trainers, we realised that so many other people’s personal experiences with Derek mirror ours. This convinced us, that we can use this moment as a community to do even more for this very nice and pleasant individual. This GoFundMe page has been setup to see if we could all go one step further for Derek and raise enough money to enable him to put down a deposit and try to get a roof over his head for this winter, the most difficult period of the year for the homeless. Ashley has been working hard over the last few weeks behind the scenes contacting local authorities to see how we can assist this man in regards to gaining an accommodation.
I have seen Derek regularly on the streets for the last 2-3 years in our town of Ipswich and through it all he has always had a smile on his face despite his perilous situation. During this time, I have always wondered to myself, what I could do, if anything to help him get out of his situation. It would mean more than the world to me, if we can work together and achieve this target to allow him to get a fresh start in his life. Every time I see him, he makes me and everyone else feel good about themselves by way of his compliments and positivity ,which I, and others genuinely appreciate and this was the motivation of my gesture towards him the other day. We know we cannot help everyone in the world but if we could start by just helping this one, it would make everything that has happened in the last few days all worth it!!!
I want to clarify our intentions in raising the funds for Derek and how we are planning to use it. We are getting in contact with Derek's support worker and the local authorities so we can provide clear updates and transparency to all our donor's with regards to where exactly their money is going and we will provide receipts of every penny that gets spent. We will initially support Derek with engaging with the local authority and relevant agencies so he can get the best outcome possible. Once he has been allocated an accommodation, the donations will go towards his deposit and ensure that his months upfront rent is paid. Remaining funds will then go towards providing him with things like bed sheets and furniture – if needed. If we go over our target for Derek, we will donate the remaining donations to regional charities such as FIND (Families in Need), Emmaus, Ipswich Locality Homelessness Project (ILHP) who all do a brilliant job in providing support to those who are most vulnerable. We are going to reach out to these charities in the coming weeks, so they are aware of our movement. These charities support trying to combat the issue of homelessness by means of providing food parcels, furniture and support funding emergency accommodation which is going to be crucial in the upcoming months.
Thanks again for all your support!
Connor Robey
Organizer
Connor Knight-Robey
Organizer
