Homelessness in the spotlight at CEO SleepOut
SANDTON - The 702 Sun International CEO SleepOut kicked off on Gwen Lane in Sandton at 6pm on the chilly evening of 18 June.
As the country’s CEO’s unpacked their beds, made up of cardboard boxes and thin blankets, the atmosphere was filled with excitement and anticipation of the evening that lay ahead. The evening aimed to raise awareness for homelessness and funds for the beneficiary, Girls and Boys Town. By around 8pm, the CEOs had raised R24 million, with CEOs topping each others’ contributions.
#CEOSleepOutZA Primedia Broadcasting CEO @TerryVolkwyn telling @brucebusiness R24m raised pic.twitter.com/K4IKZhDH8B
— AlastairTeelingSmith (@AlastairTS) June 18, 2015
CEO of Girls and Boys Town Lee Loynes expressed her excitement at seeing the commitment of the CEOs.
Michael Chipkin of the South African Council for Architectural Professionals said he looked forward to a novel experience on the streets.
Duncan Lewis of Pack ‘n Stack said he felt it was tragic that people had to sleep on the streets every night and believed on the most part, these conditions could be eradicated.
Despite the chill in the air, Gawie Marais of BDO South Africa said, “We heard it would be -1 degrees Celsius, but the conditions look favourable.” Meanwhile the company’s Bonita de Wet said she woke up at 3am on 18 June and said it was freezing and so she hoped temperatures would not drop too severely over the course of the night.
Many of the CEOs expressed how they believed it was a great initiative and were glad that South Africa had followed in the footsteps of Australia in hosting the sleepout.
As the CEOs networked by the light of bonfires which kept them warm during the cold evening, some companies took the initiative to hand out coffee, sleeping bags and chairs made out of cardboard to make the night on the street more comfortable. PJ Powers was expected to get the CEOs’ vocal chords warmed up with campfire songs too.
Read more about the 702 Sun International CEO SleepOut here:
CEO SleepOut helps the homeless
Twitter was abuzz on the evening as companies supported the CEOs. The City’s Executive Mayor Parks Tau and Gauteng Premier David Makhura were also spotted braving the winter chill to support the sleepout.
Rallying around our @MillionThrills CEO Graeme Stephens to brave the cold for a good cause #CEOSleepOutZA pic.twitter.com/dAwF4vWmDM
— Sun International (@MillionThrills) June 18, 2015
The @MillionThrills ambassador, Riaan Manser taking the challenge a bit further #CEOSleepOutZA pic.twitter.com/Y5XznfYvsX
— Sun International (@MillionThrills) June 18, 2015
#CEOSleepOutZA @GautengProvince Premier, David Makhura dressed in SA colours with @Radio702's @PheladiG. pic.twitter.com/g3i8m9rBZk
— Lead SA (@lead_sa) June 18, 2015
[#CEOSLEEPOUTZA] Guess who'll be cooking the soup tonight? Super Chef @ReubenRiffel,catch up: https://t.co/BsFZ8qPmuE pic.twitter.com/y0tbYHRvaz
— 702 (@Radio702) June 18, 2015
#MayorTau and his senior officials decided to take part in this year’s event to highlight homelessness in Johannesburg…#CEOSleepOutZA^TK
— City of Joburg (@CityofJoburgZA) June 18, 2015
#MayorTau chooses a thin blanket and Cardboard box to gain first-hand experience of homelessness in the city tonight at #CEOSleepOutZA^TK
— City of Joburg (@CityofJoburgZA) June 18, 2015
To follow updates from the evening or to comment on the initiative, Tweet @Sandton_News
