A London, Ont., non-profit is on a mission to ensure the city’s homeless population feel as warm as possible once the harsh winter months hit.
519Pursuit has launched its third 519Pledge with an aim of collecting 55,000 pairs of socks by mid-November.
“In 2018, we had a lofty goal of 100,000 pairs of socks to be donated in three years, and our community has helped us collect 45,000 pairs already,” said 519Pursuit co-founder Allison DeBlaire. “So we strongly believe that we can do it this year.”
DeBlaire and her best friend Amber Irvine have supported London’s homeless population for years.
“It started just as Amber and I doing our best, when we could, wherever,” said DeBlaire. “We would always throw backpacks into our cars because we knew (wherever) we go, we would likely see our friends that were facing homelessness. We were able to drop off care packages, check on them, and see how their day is going.”
Realizing what a difference she and Irvine were making, the two friends co-founded the non-profit in 2018 in hopes of bringing more positivity to London’s homeless population.
519Pursuit has grown “amazingly” over the past two and a half years, according to DeBlaire, “from just Amber and me to more than 40 active volunteers.”
“From Monday to Friday, we have an outreach team that collects 50 lunches from the RBC Place (that) are donated by the food bank.”
Currently, the group’s main goal is to hit their target for this year’s 519Pledge campaign, which began in 2018 with a goal of collecting 519 pairs of socks in six weeks. DeBlaire says more than 12,000 pairs of socks were collected.
“The idea of this is to start the conversation around homelessness. Most of us don’t even consider how much a pair of new socks can change (someone),” said the co-founder.
“Just your ability to walk, to get up, to move, to feel comfortable and to feel warm.”
Those who wish to donate can visit 519Pursuit’s website.
Another campaign that 519Pursuit is helping with involves making sure no Londoner goes hungry this Thanksgiving.
They’re partnering with the London Food Bank for its 32nd annual Thanksgiving food drive.
“In between now and Christmas is when people really start thinking about the food bank and having food drives,” said Jane Roy, the co-executive director of the London Food Bank.
The Thanksgiving Food Drive will run from Oct. 2-12.
Food donations will be accepted at participating grocery stores and the food bank warehouse.
As part of this partnership, the food bank is also encouraging people to donate new socks for the 519Pledge campaign.
“When it comes to basic needs, we have been really fortunate, and what we have been trying to do is make sure we support other agencies as well,” Roy said.
-With files from 980 CFPL’s Andrew Graham and Sawyer Bogdan
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