A trustee of a local homeless charity is embarking on his toughest fundraising challenge yet – sleeping rough for 12 nights in Jersey’s 12 parishes over 12 months.
Over the course of 2023, Tim Ringsdore (pictured), who joined the Sanctuary Board in last November, will spend one night each month sleeping outside one of the 12 parish halls with only a sleeping bag for cover.
After walking every road in Jersey in 2022 to raise money for two other local charities, Tim set himself his latest challenge to raise awareness of the island’s growing homelessness problem. He explained: “Spending 12 nights on my own sleeping rough will be tough, but it’s nothing compared to what so many have to endure night after night. By sleeping out in every parish and literally presenting the problem on our doorstep, my hope is that we start to address homelessness as a community.
“Sanctuary Trust’s annual Sleep Out has successfully started the conversation and last year achieved a record-breaking fundraising total and turnout; hopefully this challenge will see islanders dig deep once again.”
Frank Walker OBE, Chair of Sanctuary Trust, added: “This is a huge commitment from Tim to raise awareness and funds for Sanctuary Trust. It’s going to be physically and mentally gruelling, particularly in the colder months; one night is uncomfortable so I commend him for doing 12. His challenge is yet another example of the extremely dedicated trustees we have on the Sanctuary Board, who always go the extra mile to support the charity.”
Tim’s 12 parish sleep out will start on Friday 27th January at St Brelade’s Parish Hall – Sanctuary Trust’s home parish. His final sleep out in December will be in his own home parish of St Saviour.
While Tim will undertake each of the 12 sleep outs on his own, members of the public will be welcome to attend and support at designated times. Each parish event will either offer evening or breakfast activities, educational initiatives and entertainment for supporters.
