GAA players sleep rough across Ireland to raise funds for the homeless

It was freezing on the streets, but the Solidarity Sleepout warmed the heart as GAA players were among those sleeping rough on the streets.

While many of us were waking up in the comfort and warmth of our beds this morning, hundreds of volunteers across Ireland were coming to the end of a 12-hour stretch on the streets. Over 400 members of the GAA community took part in the Gaelic Voices for Change's Solidarity Sleepout on Saturday night. Gaelic Voices for Change hosted the night to raise funds and awareness for the record numbers of Irish people who find themselves without shelter. As part of the evening, there were sleepouts in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick, Portlaoise, Naas, Carlow and Belfast among others, as well as New York and Boston. So far, over €180,000 has been raised for charities in the north and south of Ireland, with funds going to organisations such as St Vincent de Paul, the Simon Communities, Focus Ireland and the Welcome Organisation in Belfast. You can make a donation by Gaelic Voices for Change's website. Fair play to everyone involved. It was a brilliantly effective way of raising awareness and it's great to hear of the amount of money already raised. https://twitter.com/GaelicVoices4Ch/status/942365834902720513 https://twitter.com/ruairimckiernan/status/942344144462151680 https://twitter.com/Conmort/status/942201654765604864 https://twitter.com/paulcollinstipp/status/942241718472232960 https://twitter.com/GBegs/status/942128939471958017 https://twitter.com/Cork_Simon/status/942132476868222976 https://twitter.com/AnnaGCork/status/942278383752437760 https://twitter.com/AontroimGAA/status/942180119875112960