The Fr Peter McVerry Trust is planning to help provide housing
services in Limerick City. The Trust, set up by the Jesuit priest, Fr Peter McVerry, to support young homeless people in Dublin is due to officially unveil its plans for Limerick in mid-December.
Speaking this week to the Limerick Leader newspaper, the chief executive of the charity, Pat Doyle, said: “For the past year Peter McVerry Trust has been working closely with the local authority to move ahead with plans to deliver housing services in the region. Given the profile and needs of the people of Limerick we believe Peter McVerry Trust’s expertise will help create positive outcomes for those in homelessness at the moment.”
He added: “Now we are in a position where we hope that our housing services will be operational before Christmas and we can help people leave homelessness for good.”
Speaking about the new housing units, he said that “The new units will be operated by our Housing with Supports Service who have a wealth of experience in providing housing and wraparound supports in Dublin, Kildare and Laois. Our goal is to ensure that the people who move into the new units can sustain their tenancies and begin a journey to reintegrate into society and their communities.”
Mr Doyle, who has been CEO of the Trust since 2005, also appealed to business owners and individuals to support the charity’s annual Christmas fundraising appeal.
He said that “At this time of year there is an even greater need for homeless services. The donations we receive from businesses and individuals are the difference between being able to respond or not to the needs of people in homelessness. This year Peter McVerry Trust needs to raise more fundraising income than ever before in order to ensure we meet the need that exists.”
Fr Peter McVerry has been working with Dublin’s young homeless people for more than 30 years. In 1974 he moved to Summerhill, in Dublin’s north inner city, where he witnessed first hand the problems of homelessness and deprivation.
He opened a small hostel in 1979 to provide accommodation for homeless boys between the ages of 12 and 16. Four years later, he founded The Arrupe Society, a charity set up to provide housing and support for young homeless people and to respond to the growing numbers experiencing homelessness in Dublin.
In 2005 a new Board of Directors and CEO were appointed to help develop services in response to the growing needs of young homeless people.
It was at this time that the name of the charity changed from The Arrupe Society to Peter McVerry Trust.
Donations can be made at www.pmvtrust.ie or by calling (01)8230776.