By Isle of Wight Observer
A 24-hour sleep-out on the Ryde pavements has helped earned thousands of pounds for the homeless. The sleep out, from noon last Friday (March 21), took place outside The Veterans pub on The Esplanade, and Veterans Hub on the High Street.
The fund-raiser was the idea of army veteran, Dale Hiller, who founded the hub and helps run the pub.
He said: “We had four people outside the hub and another half-dozen of us outside The Veterans. In total, we raised around £5,000, which will all go to helping our homeless veterans and offer other veterans respite holidays on the Island.”
Dale, who dressed as a Falklands penguin, said the 24 hours was an interesting experience, especially when it started to rain later in the evening.
He added: “During the day, we had a lot of people coming up to us and asking about why we were on the street, so that passed away the time.
“We had our sleeping bags and put down some cardboard on the street, and then, when the rain came, we had to cover ourselves with tarpaulin, so it actually gave us a closer insight into what the homeless have to face. In the end we only got a couple of hours sleep, but it was well worth making the effort.”
Isle of Wight Observer