Two Sharks will face their fears and dive with sharks of a different kind in aiming to raise funds in support of Stepping Stone House and to raise awareness around youth homelessness.
Known for their bravery and fearlessness on the field, Ronaldo Mulitalo and Blayke Brailey will put that to the test away from the playing arena when they take on the daunting challenge on April 28 at the SEA LIFE Sydney Aquarium.
In announcing the initiative on Youth Homelessness Matters Day, a national day that was conceived in 1990 to raise awareness and public discussion about child and youth homelessness, Mulitalo was happy to take the plunge in support of a worthy cause and to share the water with sharks likely less friendly than those he associates with on a daily basis.
“The only way we would agree to do a shark dive is for a good cause, and this is certainly a very worthy one,” said Mulitalo, an ambassador for Stepping Stone House.
“Our goal is to raise $20,000 for Stepping Stone House to help accommodate and care for young Australians who find themselves experiencing or are at-risk of homelessness, in giving them a greater chance to succeed in life,” he added.
Not known to many, are figures that reveal 40,000 young people aged 15–24 years presented alone to a homelessness service in 2021–22. The leading causes of youth homelessness are housing crisis, family violence, family separation and breakdown. Many kids resort to couch-surfing or living temporarily with other households and some are even forced to live rough on the streets.
Over 37% of all Australians experiencing homelessness are under the age of 25, adding up to over 45,000 children and young people unable to live at home. The majority of these young people were in need of short or long-term accommodation and most were turned away due to a lack of capacity.
Mulitalo has been a long-time advocate for Stepping Stone House, regularly lending his profile, time and assistance to an organisation who are doing their bit to address the issue in an attempt to ease the burden, with their mission to end youth homelessness.
“Homelessness in general is a cause that I feel very passionately about, as does Blakye, and this is why we are participating in the 2023 Face Your Fear event. Please make a donation, with any support provided to have an impact on a young person's life,” Mulitalo urged.
The fundraising target is $20,000, with all monies raised to support Stepping Stone House. To make a donation, go to the following link - CLICK HERE
