Oh what a night!
Thank you for joining us last Thursday, 15 September, on the rooftop of the iconic QueensPlaza for a night of food and entertainment to support those who don’t have a safe place to call home. The city of Brisbane definitely looked different from that perspective.
We caught just a peek into what it must be like for our young people in need when we heard from Leanne and Allan from BABI Youth & Family Services. What an inspiration! As you know, the funds we are raising for the SleepOut are for the BABI’s Housing with Dignity Project. This project allows young people to more smoothly transition from their precarious living arrangements into an environment that promotes a sense of homeliness and safety.
We have so far raised over $38,707!
Leanne a former client of BABI Youth & Family Services
Times were always tough for Leanne from a very young age as her parents fought a lot and the tipping point was when she lost her father to suicide. In her later teenage years she found herself struggling with mentally, she withdrew from friendship groups and took an attempt on her life, and was always in and out of hospital due to her mental instability.
This took a toll on her family and she was asked to leave. She began couch surfing and renting motel rooms to get by. BABI helped her turn her life around, they quickly responded to her and moved her into one of their units and provided with assistance for 14 months. BABI helped Leanne to turn her life around. She finished her uni degree, met her current partner and is living in private rental and is doing remarkably well.
Leanne is a passionate advocate for BABI and is very grateful for BABI and Property Industry Foundation partnership. She’s living proof that programs and partnerships like these, truly saves lives – she’s one of them.
“A massive thank you to everybody who has taken the time to be here tonight to support the Property Industry Foundation and BABI who provide invaluable service to the local community. I know I wouldn’t be where I am today if it weren’t for BABI and the services and safety they provided me and I appreciate all the support that these charities provide”
Midnight Rain
Some more highlights included a little bit of music (thank you Matt Karil), dinner (thank you Grill’d) and Top Gun on the big screen. Unfortunately, something woke you up. Must have been the rain. A big shout out to those who braved the very early morning drizzle to make it to breakfast, and thank you to everyone who was there on the night.
The Top Fundraisers
Well done to Michael Dowling for being our no.1 fundraiser, raising $10,607! Thank you to Michael and everyone who sent out emails and asked friends and families for support. We could not do it without you all.
Individuals
- Michael Dowling
- Emilee Nicolai
- Andrew Walton
- Jen Millar
- Madeline White
Teams
- Insert Team Name Here (no this isn’t a typo)
- QueensPlaza Team
- Destination Gold Coast Consortium
- Springmount Services Team
- Bluebird Property
Thank You
We want to thank all the volunteers, our Future Leaders Committee members, and a special thanks to our generous sponsors and event partners for making it such a great night
Thank you all.
“Homelessness is a major issue affecting our youth today. We believe that by supporting our youth it will help grow our nation’s future.” Alisa Buckley, Springmount
- Principal Sponsor: Springmount Services Pty Ltd
- Venue Host: Vicinity Centres and QueensPlaza
- Supporting Sponsor: Destination Gold Coast Consortium
- AV Partner: con-sol Pty Limited
- Security Partner: Constant Security Services and Securecorp
- Event Partner: Grill’d, Hello Booth & Matt Karil
- Photographer: Les Visuals Photo & Film Studio
