The Night That Rocked Me
Chris Vagg
Solutions Architect Founder at Pass it on Clothing & Co. CSR + Community Specialist
Deep in that sea of people from last night’s Pass it on Clothing & Co's outreach service in Martin Place is a story that rocked me.
As we were setting up I was approached by a volunteer from another organisation and introduced to a woman.
She’d arrived in Sydney that afternoon with nothing.
Sydney Homeless Connect had advised her to go to Martin Place to receive crisis help to get through the night, before she started the process of organising housing and a fresh start today.
She’d fled a DV situation whereby her partner had threatened to cut her throat.
It was that immediate and critical she’d had to flee interstate.
She was after clean clothes to change into, her entire life’s possessions were right now simply the clothes on her back.
These are the real and grave stories we and other outreach services face each and every day at the front line of homelessness.
This woman’s resilience in adversity was incredible and her bravery is no different to that displayed by those in the military in perilous combat situations.
She took what she could carry from our clothing racks and I gave her directions to get to her morning appointment in Surry Hills.
I stood in awe of her strength and the gratitude she displayed as she thanked me for helping her and told me she was off to get a shower with our mates Orange Sky Australia.
These are the stories of life for people we come across day after day in this space.
Personally, I've never felt like we'd made a greater contribution as an organisation to a life than in that moment.
We wish her well and pray she succeeds in that long journey in front of her to get stability and happiness back into her life.
As individuals in society it’s our role to do whatever we can to help each other, and I hope this story makes people appreciate that homelessness has many faces and causes, often beyond people’s control.
Next time you see someone doing it tough, I encourage you to help if you can, because you never know the circumstance that got them there.