MD of Google Ireland, Ronan Harris, joined Bobby Kerr on this morning's Down to Business to discuss a initiative which both he and Bobby Kerr are very passionate about: Focus Ireland’s ‘Shine a Light’ Campaign.
The pair will be taking part in Focus Ireland's Business Leader Sleepout which takes place on October 16th in Christ Church Cathedral in Dublin and in Munster in Cork’s historic city Gaol.
Ronan explained that Focus is seeing a steep increase in the number of families looking for help - around 50 a month - and "that's showing no signs of slowing down or peaking."
He says there's a 'multitude' of reasons for the increase, from spiraling rents to increased pressure from banks.
Business leaders raise €5,000 to contribute to Focus Ireland's work and participate in a series of critical issue think-tanks on the night, before they swap their 'executive chairs' for sleeping bags and offer solidarity to those who have no place to call home and who live in unstable, unsuitable and insecure accommodation.
The charity is urging more of Ireland’s top business men and women to come together and sign-up for the event.
Ronan told Bobby they have ambitious targets, and hope to have well over 100 CEOs on the night. They are also encouraging businesses to hold events with their staff to raise awareness of the issue of homelessness.
Speaking about the Sleepout, Ronan explained "it's a sign of solidarity," adding that they know they cannot replicate the feelings of those who are homeless. "We want to show we do care, and we want to raise awareness of this, we want to raise some much needed funds.
"Organisations like Focus have been seeing their funding cut over the last number of years from Government, and they're relying more and more on charitable donations to be able to provide the services that are in growing demand," he told Bobby.
Focus Ireland says it needs the support of the Irish business community now more than ever - the sleepout is part of a wider campaign to 'shine a light' on the issue of homelessness.
The 2015 appeal comes as the number of families becoming homeless has nearly doubled since last year and one in four of those in emergency accommodation is a child.
If you missed it, you can listen back to the interview with Ronan Harris about the campaign below:
Make sure to follow Focus Ireland on Twitter for more information about the campaign:
Big thanks to @RonanHarris for joining @bobbykerr on @NewstalkFM talking about #ShineALight - http://t.co/2c62cbUStM pic.twitter.com/dx2bup9JIV
— Focus Ireland (@FocusIreland) July 25, 2015
Newstalk is proud to have been announced as the official media partner for Shine A Light Night.
Editor-in-Chief, Garrett Harte, says he is delighted that the station can support this unique event, "this is a real opportunity for corporate Ireland to make an impact on homelessness in Ireland."
"We have been supporting Shine A Light Night since its inception in 2012 and we are delighted to be Focus Ireland’s Media Partner for this year’s event. We hope our listeners will get behind this great initiative."
