A dedicated volunteer with a Limerick homeless charity has said there has been a steady increase in new faces using the service during the cold snap – but all clients seemed to be in “good spirits”.
On Friday, Department of Housing figures showed that for the first time since records began, the number of people who have been accessing emergency accommodation has hit over 15,000. There are currently over 2,000 families homeless in Ireland, in which there are 4,658 children.
Down in the Rebel County, the population of homeless adults rose to 589 – up 17 from last month’s figures.
As many worry about the impacts Ireland’s cold snap will have on those sleeping rough, one group doing amazing work to help is the Novas – a dedicated homelessness charity in Limerick City. Their year-round service is run entirely by a volunteer team and receives no state funding, leaving it fully dependent on donations and fundraising.
The charity offers a range of services, including temporary and long-term supported accommodation and social housing for those in need. They also offer support for families at risk of being homeless as well as respite care for those struggling with addiction.
The Irish Mirror spoke to one of Novas’ volunteers Lizzy, who started with the charity in August of last year, about her work with the charity and what a night on the frontline helping those in need entails.
Lizzy starts her night volunteering by collecting the outreach van at the grounds of Brother Russell Home, Limerick’s oldest homeless services: “I usually drive because we’ve got a shortage of drivers,” the dedicated volunteer told the Irish Mirror.
She usually gets the van at around 6:15pm in the evening before heading to the Greenhills Hotel to pick up hot meals from their kitchen.
“It’s incredible that they donate 365 days a year. It’s great. I noticed they seem to try and have a bit extra over Christmas as well. So that was good,” she continued.
“Then back across town to the parking spot on William Street for seven o’clock to meet the other volunteers.
“I noticed, I didn’t personally bring anything now, but I think other volunteers and maybe other staff from Novas, every time I worked over Christmas, there was a box of Roses or Celebrations in the van, and we’d leave that out in the counter for people to take.
“There were a lot of extra clothes donations.
“I do at least once a week, and I think I did two nights in the week before Christmas.
“But there was a lot of new faces, faces I hadn’t seen before, and I have noticed a steady increase since I started in August.
“Whether that’s because of coming into the cold season or what, but, a lot of new faces and a lot of the new faces were older people.
“Maybe it’s partly a social thing to get out of the house or wherever they are, to meet people.
“But it was great that Mary organised a big lunch, and I was asking some of the guys, had they gone? And they said it was wonderful.
“They had live music, and it was the Sunday before Christmas, and they got a full Christmas dinner, and they all got vouchers for Penneys and hats and stuff. It was excellent that they did that for them.
“I was kind of worried. I was like, ‘Oh, this is going to be so grim over Christmas’, but our crowd are generally in good spirits most of the time. I think they’re just so grateful to be there and getting the food and getting what they need.”
Lizzy explained that if people wanted to help during this cold snap, they could purchase sleeping bags or socks to donate.
“If they can donate money directly to Novas,” Lizzy shared.
“But there’s also a lot of pressure on Novas’ staff. We didn’t anticipate how bad this cold snap was going to be so if people wanted to go and buy half a dozen sleeping bags and take them off to Brother Russell House to be put in the van, that’d be great.
“Because the lads, there’s a few who were living in tents down by the canal, and if they get wet, if their stuff gets wet, there’s no hope of drying it in this weather. So they’ll all be looking for fresh bedding and socks. They always want socks!”
She added: “I did a bit of fundraising back in November, and I went to Penneys and bought 150 quids worth of socks and gloves and handed them out of the bed.
“That’s really so basic, but to be able to put on a fresh, warm pair of socks makes everyone happy.”
The State announced today they are working to make additional emergency beds available for the homeless community in the coming days.
Keith Leonard, National Director of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management, said:
“We are going to see difficult travel conditions for much of the country in the coming days. Driving conditions will be hazardous, even where roads are gritted – so I urge people to slow down, drive with caution, be aware of other road users and allow extra time for your journey….
“With regard to rough sleepers during this wintry spell, the Department is communicating with Regional Leads in relation to their Cold Weather Initiatives and has advised them of the expected conditions.
Cold Weather Initiatives operate across all local authorities to provide additional emergency beds for rough sleepers where needed – ensuring that additional temporary beds can be brought into use across a range of existing services and facilities, for singles and couples who need them during periods of cold weather.
“Finally, I would urge all members of the public to take extra care with all activities and to check out the Met Éireann and Be Winter Ready websites for further updates and advice.”