By Liz Puranam
Some of the country's most successful business and community leaders are preparing to spend the night as vagrants.
The Big Sleep Out has been organised by the Methodist Mission's LifeWise programme to raise both money and awareness about the homeless.
Marc Ellis has had a good week, financially. His Kiwi juice brand Charlie's has been bought by a Japanese company for $129 million, but he’s one of the people roughing it tonight.
“I did a number of months working at the city mission and I really, you know, respect the people who have fallen on hard times and have to go there, so every little bit counts,” he says.
Ellis is one of 76 business and community leaders who are taking part in the sleep out.
They've raised money by having friends sponsor them for sleeping outdoors at the Auckland University of Technology.
But Ellis plans to sneak off tonight for an even more real experience.
“I think I might head off under a bridge somewhere and try and get a bit more authentic. Last year, we did it in a car park and I thought that was a little bit removed from reality. Hopefully a few of the guys I made coffee for will show me a place or two,” he says.
He isn't alone in wanting the whole experience.
This might be a novelty for the participants, but it's a daily reality for the 100 homeless people in Auckland's CBD.
“I hope that they will go away with greater understanding and feel as though they can make more than just a financial contribution to it, that they're really aiding the effort to solve the problem in other ways,” says LifeWise’s John McCarthy.
Both LifeWise and the Auckland City Mission say the number of homeless people might not have increased, but demand for services like food parcels from those who are struggling to make ends meet has.
The 76 people roughing it tonight have so far raised $92,000 for LifeWise, and all of that money will go directly into services to help Auckland's homeless.
3 News