The Long, Long Night Of Hope

The Long, Long Night of Hope

As real estate and rental pricing in the Lower Mainland skyrocket, people on minimum wage or pensions are desperate for affordable housing. Thousands are homeless. They couch-surf between friends' homes, they pitch tents in the forest, they take refuge in their vehicles, they live on the streets. But the homeless are not hopeless.  The light of hope and of love needs to shine even brighter for them, and that is where The Long, Long Night of Hope comes in.

Participants of The Long, Long Night of Hope raise funds using social media like Twitter and Facebook, reaching out to friends, family, and co-workers to help them reach their individual goals. Then, for one very cold, very long night in February, participants will briefly experience the feeling of homelessness. They will bundle up the blankets and sleep in their cars, or they will hunker down in a sleeping back and camp out in the church pews.  Just like hundreds of people - people just like you and me - do every night of the year. 

The inaugural Long, Long Night of Hope 2017 involved 7 participants who managed to raise over $10,000, with donations coming from around the world.  This is the power of social media, and this is the "hope" in The Long, Long Night of Hope.  Those funds went directly to Lookout Emergency Society Shelter of North Vancouver, to help provide food and shelter for the homeless population on the North Shore.  The second annual fundraiser will launch soon, culminating in The Long, Long Night of Hope 2018 on Saturday, February 24, 2018. Everyone is welcome to participate - you don't have to be a church-goer, you just have to care. And if you can't participate, please support those who do. 

The homeless are not hopeless: be the hope.  Take part in The Long, Long Night of Hope.