HOMELESSNESS can sneak up on anyone at anytime, says Melville’s Debbie Jeisman.
Back in 2022, Jeisman was leading a pleasant middle-class existence when events conspired to leave her without a permanent home for 12 months.
• Feed your Soul holding a sausage sizzle to raise money for the homeless.
“It can happen in the blink of an eye, despite people thinking it will never happen to me,” she says.
Jeisman was fortunate she had a full-time job and friends and family to lean on, but for others it feels like there is no hope.
“I was one of the lucky ones – I had some light at the end of the tunnel,” she says.
“So that’s why I decided to start helping homeless people who were in a far worse position than me.”
The following year, Jeisman held a one-off dinner dance to raise money for a local homeless food service.
Encouraged by the success of the event, she went on to form the not-for-profit Feed your Soul in July 2024.
The organisation aims to raise awareness of homelessness and raise funds for WA services that support the homeless.
It’s early days, but Feed your Soul has already held fund-raising sausage sizzles at Bunnings Belmont and are planning to hold more at Bunnings Melville on North Lake Road.
They’re also holding a dinner dance in South Perth on May 3. The semi-formal event includes a talk from a guest speaker who has been working with a homeless service for the past 15 years.
There will also be a DJ playing a wide selection of music, silent auction, raffle, buffet dinner, free drink on arrival, and door prize. Feed your soul are planning to hold another dinner dance in October (venue TBD).
Jeisman says similar events target the corporate market, but she’s hoping that people from all walks of life will come along.
“I know people are doing it tough right now, but it’s an opportunity to make a difference while having a fantastic night out,” she says.
Jeisman says to alleviate homelessness there needs to be more affordable housing.
“When I was homeless back in 2022, people thought I could just get a rental,” she says.
“But it was during the rental crisis and there were queues of 50 or more people waiting to see a property. Plus the prices were through the roof.
“Having more affordable housing is part of the bigger picture of addressing homelessness.”
She also says her organisation is aiming to educate individuals on how to avoid making bad decisions that can lead to homelessness further down the line.
Feed Your Soul’s dinner dance is at the John McGrath Pavilion in South Perth at 6pm on Saturday May 3. Tix at trybooking.com/events/landing/1376220.
by STEPHEN POLLOCK