{"id":7367,"date":"2016-01-19T15:55:52","date_gmt":"2016-01-19T15:55:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=7367"},"modified":"2016-01-19T15:55:52","modified_gmt":"2016-01-19T15:55:52","slug":"bellies-full-of-hope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=7367","title":{"rendered":"Bellies full of hope"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Salisbury isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t necessarily a community you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d think is plagued by homelessness but that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s because it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s often invisible. Look beyond the town\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s picturesque veneer and you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll find many people down on their luck just struggling to survive.<\/p>\n

 
\nChristmas can be the hardest time of the year for those sleeping rough \u00e2\u20ac\u201c for at least two days, almost everything is closed. So if you find yourself homeless and without any provisions; if you find yourself ill, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re literally and figuratively left out in the cold.<\/p>\n

 
\nThat\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s why Unite Community member Jessica McCarnun decided to launch a project that would give homeless people in the Salisbury area a safe, warm place to stay on Christmas Day, as well as some of the things many of us take for granted \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Christmas dinner, breakfast on Boxing Day, haircuts, washing facilities and medical assistance.<\/p>\n

 
\nJessica, who assists vulnerable people fighting appeals on injustices such as the Bedroom Tax, came up with the idea when one individual she was supporting was ill and didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have anywhere to go on Christmas Day.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bI thought to myself, what will he and others like him do over Christmas, when everything is closed?\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Jessica said.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThat\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s when we started organising the event,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she explained. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe event was confirmed only 36 hours before Christmas Day, but the response we got from the local community \u00e2\u20ac\u201c from businesses as well as individuals \u00e2\u20ac\u201c was overwhelming.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 
\nCollectively, the project, called the Full Bellies Project, gave out \u00c2\u01413,000 worth of food at the event hosted at St. Gregory\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Church Hall. One local provider donated dozens of turkey crowns worth \u00c2\u014142 each as well as beef joints priced at \u00c2\u014130 each.<\/p>\n

 
\nLifesaving<\/strong><\/em>
\nFor one man, the Full Bellies Project was nothing short of lifesaving.<\/p>\n

 
\nJake Murphy had been homeless off and on for more than a decade. This Christmas was a particularly tough one for Jake \u00e2\u20ac\u201c he had a serious foot infection and was at risk of septicaemia if he did not get treatment soon. And as winter approached, he found himself living in a cemetery in Bishopdown.<\/p>\n

 
\nJessica bumped into him and offered him a leaflet detailing the Full Bellies Christmas event.<\/p>\n

 
\n“As soon as I walked through the door, the welcome was great,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he told the Salisbury Journal<\/em><\/a>. “It was like being part of a family for once. We all sat down and had a meal; it wasn’t a case of us and them. No one looked down their nose at me, or asked why I was there. We played games afterwards and I had the best night’s sleep.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 
\nJake was given basic first aid by Unite industrial member Guy James, a St. James ambulance volunteer who attended the Christmas Day event.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"full<\/a>

Jake Murphy enjoys a Christmas meal, a wash, haircut and a safe place to stay thanks to the Full Bellies Project.<\/p><\/div>\n

 
\nGuy lives in Tolpuddle, and works for an agricultural animal feed company in the Dorset area. Heavily involved in the union, Guy is the branch secretary for the Unite Tolpuddle transport, food and agricultural branch, and has also served as shop steward and health and safety officer.<\/p>\n

 
\nEach year, Guy volunteers at the Tolpuddle Martyrs\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 Festival. And that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s how he first met Jessica, almost two years ago.<\/p>\n

 
\nLike-minded<\/strong><\/em>
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWe immediately hit it off \u00e2\u20ac\u201c we were like-minded people and have kept in touch ever since,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bWhen she told me about the Full Bellies Project, I was immediately interested in being involved.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 
\nGuy helped delivered food and used his first aid skills to help James with his foot and transported him to hospital.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bI arrived on Christmas Eve and stayed \u00e2\u20ac\u201c I thought it was about time that I gave my own time to others in need,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he explained. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe project changed my life. It really put things in perspective. I suffer from many illnesses but volunteering made me realise that my lot is really not so bad \u00e2\u20ac\u201c I have family and friends who will support me; I have a job.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 
\nJessica, Guy and others who\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d volunteered for the Full Bellies Project decided that they could not stop their work after Christmas \u00e2\u20ac\u201c there were still so many people in the community who needed help.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bBecause of the incredible response we got from the community at such short notice, and because we still have so much work to do to help our clients, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve decided to expand the Full Bellies Project from an annual Christmas event to a free support network that operates year round,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Jessica said.<\/p>\n

 
\nThe Full Bellies Project is entirely open access \u00e2\u20ac\u201c unlike many homeless charities, users don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t need referrals. Jessica explained the many ways in which the project is providing assistance to people in Salisbury who\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve fallen through the cracks.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bMost people don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t realise that vulnerable people face so many obstacles in getting the support they need \u00e2\u20ac\u201c such as obtaining identification so that their housing benefit can be processed,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Jessica noted.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWith social services stretched to the bone, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a real need for the sort of mediation with local authorities that Full Bellies provides, from obtaining identification to liaising with hospitals and so on.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 
\nGuy agreed.<\/p>\n

 
\nSupport<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThere is support available for homeless people, but what makes Full Bellies unique is that volunteers actually go out into the community and directly offer help,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bMost services for the homeless expect users to come to them.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 
\nWith the help of volunteers and funding \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Full Bellies is in the process of setting up a Community Interest Company \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Jessica hopes to expand the project, eventually taking it nationwide.<\/p>\n

 
\nGuy was so impressed by the Christmas Day event in Salisbury that he has decided to continue working with Jessica to expand the project.<\/p>\n

 
\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bIf it were up to me, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d quit my job right now and work for the Full Bellies Project full-time,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bThat\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like to do eventually.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 
\nAs for Jake, thanks to the Full Bellies Project, he was able to secure emergency accommodation at Alabare Place, a guest house for Salisbury\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s homeless. Because of his medical condition, they allowed him to stay longer than the usual five days, and have now guaranteed him the next open permanent room.<\/p>\n

 
\nThe Full Bellies Project has also assisted him in coordinating his foot surgery, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s now on his way to a full recovery.<\/p>\n

 
\n“[The Project] saved my life,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Jake told the Salisbury Journal<\/em>. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bSimple as that.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 
\nFor more information on how you can get involved, visit the Full Bellies Project Facebook page<\/a> or its website here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Salisbury isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t necessarily a community you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d think is plagued by homelessness but that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s because it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s often invisible. Look beyond the town\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s picturesque veneer and you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll find many people down on their luck just struggling to survive.   Christmas can be the hardest time of the year for those sleeping rough \u00e2\u20ac\u201c for at least two […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7368,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[17],"tags":[30,232],"wps_subtitle":"Unite members\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 project saves homeless Jake\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s life","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7367"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7367"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7367\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7372,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7367\/revisions\/7372"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7368"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}