Students hope to collect €100,000 on fast

Sixth year students from Dublin's Belvedere College began their annual "sleep-out" in aid of the homeless at the GPO portico …

Sixth year students from Dublin's Belvedere College began their annual "sleep-out" in aid of the homeless at the GPO portico in O'Connell Street last night. Patsy McGarry, Religious Affairs Correspondent, reports.

The college authorities believe it is safer there than the traditional site at the portico of the Bank of Ireland in College Green.

However, the students will be collecting from passers-by at both porticos throughout today, again tonight and tomorrow.

The sleep-out will take place again tonight at the GPO portico, where there are cameras and a Garda presence is maintained around the clock.

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The three-day event began yesterday,with most of the students fasting for the first 24 hours.

Speaking at the GPO last night Darren Hughes, who hopes to study physiotherapy next year, said they believed there was also less likelihood of the students being

harassed at the GPO portico by late night revellers emerging from clubs, compared with the area around College Green.

And it was not so much that they would be in any danger at the southside portico, as that their teachers felt they would be safer at the northside one, he said.

Last night there were piles of styrofoam mattress, blankets and sleeping bags, in both porticos, but he explained the southside collectors would move north to sleep, later on.

Gavin Coughlan, who hopes to study architecture next year, said they collected €10,000 yesterday and aimed to equal last year's €100,000 over the three days, and two nights.

The money will go to three homeless charities, Focus Ireland, the Arrupe Society, and Los Angeles, the latter two being agencies which cater for homeless children.