Sister Clare Bernadette Knowles (pictured), Mother General of the Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Littlehampton, took on the very courageous challenge of being thrown out of an aeroplane, in order to raise money for a cause dear to her heart: helping homeless people to find shelter and to be fed, and more profoundly, to be able to get off the streets together. The charity which Sister Clare did this jump for, Worthing Churches Homeless Projects, receive no government help.  They receive some money from the local council, but it is such a small amount, that the charity are heavily reliant on donations from the local community just to keep vital services running, WITHOUT expanding to make the real difference which the charity are so desperate to be able to do, to actually get the homeless population of Worthing properly housed, and supported with that!  Their dreams for the future is to not only stay open, but to be able to further expand their services. Currently, the charity is able to provide shelter for 52 people every night, and in addition help another 20-30 people a day with a meal and somewhere to get a bath or shower.  They also run a breakfast club, a rehab centre for those with drug and alcohol issues, a hostel, and a service for those threatened with homelessness.

But even just their everyday running costs to keep the organisation open is very expensive, and the expansion ideas will cost a lot more, which is why Sister Clare got herself thrown out of a plane on 20th May, and I have actively been promoting the cause on her behalf.  Sister Clare needs to raise as much money as she possibly can for this extremely worthwhile cause. Contrary to popular belief, only a tiny percentage of the human population have put themselves into that situation. The majority of those sleeping on the streets have ended up in that situation due to devastating life circumstances, such as the breakdown of relationships, redundancies, and the benefit cap. 

 ALL donations, no matter how small, will be very gratefully appreciated by Sister Clare, and, of course, the charity itself, Worthing Churches Homeless Projects.  Please support us, and help those who are having to face the danger of sleeping outside, and those who are facing the threat of having to do so.  It could EVEN happen to YOU, and it ALMOST happened to me.  (I had a High Court Bailiff in my rented room.  I was one of just 0.1% of people IN that situation who, rather than being made homeless IMMEDIATELY, got a stay of execution from the High Court, thanks to an amazing solicitor from Shelter being at the end of the phone, at the time that I needed him).  Please NEVER THINK that homelessness is "something that happens to other people and not to people like me".  It can happen to literally ANYONE.  It is NOT something we should ignore, or forget about.