Mark Anthony is now an Assistant Shop Manager with Galway Simon – but he also knows what it’s like to be homeless at Christmas… just another day, as he says, when you are cold, hungry and alone.

He is telling his story the underline the concerns that the charity fears over about the number of people experiencing homelessness in the West this winter.

That has led to an urgent appeal ahead of Christmas, asking people to support them to help prevent people across Galway, Mayo and Roscommon from experiencing the trauma of homelessness.

When Mark was 14 he was living in a children’s home – but that ended at 18 and he was on the streets alone. That was 20 years ago now but it’s an experience that never goes away.

“I’ve been out on the streets with only a blanket in December, cold, dark and I’ve never felt more lonely. When you’re on the streets, Christmas is nothing, Christmas is gone. It’s just another day when you are cold, hungry and alone,” he says.

“People become homeless for all kinds of reasons but looking back, I can see how vulnerable I was.

“I remember the night when someone came to tell me there was a place for me at Galway Simon. I’d been homeless for three years. I’d stopped feeling anything but then it came, this tiny spark of hope.

“My life changed in that moment. I was given more than a place to live. I had a home and as I discovered, with a home comes a sense of safety. Finally, you belong and you can rebuild your life from there.

“Thanks to support from Galway Simon, I have a home, a job and a family of my own and I’m doing everything I can to give my children the happiness and security that was missing from my childhood,” he says.

It’s a crisis that shows no sign of abating; at the end of October, there were 617 people in Emergency accommodation in the West of Ireland including 235 children.

Last year Galway Simon Community supported 1,490 individuals, including 415 children to prevent them from becoming homeless, but the charity reports that the number of people seeking help is continuing to increase, and have seen a worrying 29% increase in the number of young adults (18-24) in Emergency Accommodation compared to this time last year.

Karen Golden, CEO of Galway Simon Community says many other people like Mark Anthony, need their support.

“We are aware that the trauma of homelessness can be particularly acute around Christmas and that the impact of homelessness can last a lifetime,” she says.

“The housing crisis is leading to an increase in the number of individuals and families facing the trauma of homelessness and coming to us for help. We believe timely support prevents entry into entrenched homelessness.

“Our Christmas appeal is more important than ever to enable us to continue to prevent people coming to us in crisis from experiencing the trauma of homelessness.

“We are asking the people of Galway, Mayo and Roscommon to please give whatever they can to help keep people in our community in homes and out of Emergency Accommodation, this Christmas,” she adds.

If you believe everyone should have a safe place to call home this Christmas, you can go to www.galwaysimon.ie or call 091 38 18 28 to give a life-changing gift to Galway Simon Community.

Pictured: Mark Anthony…revealing the reality of homelessness.