By Emilie Ng

Sleeping conditions fell to a chilling seven degrees when Christine and Andrew Lapalapa lay their heads down on their Catholic parish’s car park.

The Catholic married couple joined 40 young people to sleep outside St Maximilian Kolbe church, Marsden, with just a sheet of cardboard and a sleeping bag.

With security guards and warm soup on hand, youth group members aged 18-20, teachers from St Francis College, Crestmead, Marsden’s parish priest, Fr Sunil Paul Nagothu SVD, and the Lapalapa’s stepped into the shoes of Logan’s homeless for one night.

Mrs Lapalapa, who is the youth coordinator for the Marsden parish, said she and her husband had given blankets and food to a number of homeless people in Marsden.

This was the first time they had slept outside to raise money for homeless and other Logan residents in need.

“Being a mum and finding out that there are homeless children under 12 was a wake up call,” Mrs Lapalapa said.

“I only slept for 10 minutes, but it’s made me appreciate what I’ve got.”

Money raised at the sleepout will be given to the St Vincent de Paul Society to distribute to refugees, homeless and other disadvantaged people living in Logan.

“We hope we can raise more than $2000 for the St Vincent de Paul Society,” Mrs Lapalapa said.

Fr Sunil said young people needed to see a world without technology, music and even fun.

“(The sleepout) allowed (young people) to gain some experience of what it is like to be a homeless person living in the Logan area with no housing and few comforts,” he said.

Young people who braved the cold Logan winter night showed they were “serious about the side of faith” that asked them to “reach out to the poor and needy”, Fr Sunil said.

“There is a different side, and I saw the commitment from the young people during the sleepout,” he said.

“They are willing to sacrifice their time and talents to help the poor.”

This story was first published in The Catholic Leader, and is reproduced with permission.