Back on 2 December, The Celtic Star highlighted the incredible work being carried out by former Celtic player and manager Lou Macari. His Homeless charity the Macari Foundation is carrying out some incredible work, sadly more necessary than ever during the current pandemic.
Covid-19 has brought a lot of extra challenges for those facing homelessness across the UK, and those supporting them through it –such as The Macari Foundation.
READ IT HERE…Lou Macari’s Homeless Project really is Something Special
On one hand this dreadful pandemic has added to an already incredibly dangerous predicament to be in, while on the other the usual places a homeless individual may be able to ‘bed-down’ in have come under government social distancing restrictions and had to close for long periods at a time.
Many hostels and shelters use every inch of space to get as many people in from the cold on any given night and with options reducing yet homelessness increasing, funding is more vital than ever.
Please don’t assume the Government can or will offer support to those who are street homeless even during a pandemic – that is not the case. The vast majority of work in these areas is carried out by the voluntary and charity sectors.
As such Mary, the widow of Tommy Docherty a former Celt himself and manager of Lou Macari during his time with Manchester United , whose death on Hogmanay, aged 92, elicited tributes from across the globe for this mercurial personality, has asked that donations for The Doc’s funeral should go to The Macari Foundation.
Just spoken to The Doc’s widow Mary and she says she wants donations for his funeral to go to the Macari Centre for the homeless, a wonderful gesture in memory of a wonderful man, thank you Mary #MUFC
— Lou Macari (@LouMacari10) January 9, 2021
It really is a most deserving cause and is an incredibly generous gesture from Tommy’s wife. As such if you were considering any donation or indeed if supporters groups – or the club itself – is considering the same, the Macari Foundation could now, more than ever, benefit from every penny they can get.
Lou Macari has been involved in homelessness in the Stoke area since 2016 and he’s clearly invested in finding solutions to a long-standing problem. In his most recent project Lou has been able to give each homeless guest their own pod within a warehouse, giving them their own space and dignity and a level of independence, many won’t have had for a long, long time.
Homelessness can be a difficult cycle to break free from. Mental health, risk of violence and financial difficulties, as well as issues around addiction and isolation often play a part. Having a roof over your head in a hostel is always better than having to sleep rough, but if you want to break the cycle, get access to benefits, housing advice, social services support, help to get back into employment and break the cycle of addiction, it can be nigh on impossible if you wake every day and your all-encompassing thought is simply about where you can sleep before darkness and the shivering cold and incumbent danger of the night descends.
Listen to This…Macari: Docherty could make any player laugh
That is what makes Lou Macari’s warehouse and independent pods so ingenious. Old school hostel accommodation can shelter but it limits how the individual can be supported. The new accommodation supplied by the Macari Foundation also means that the necessary support can also visit the warehouse, while the individuals can attend appointments, stay engaged with services, even start work or voluntary placements. Things we’d all take for granted but provide real challenges for those experiencing homelessness.
David Potter’s Tommy Docherty Tribute…Tommy Docherty RIP
Yet all of this needs funding. So, if you were considering a donation to Tommy Docherty’s funeral or even if you are simply looking for a really worthwhile cause to contribute too, please consider the Macari Foundation. If every City and Town had such a place what a difference it could make to people’s lives.
Everyone – and I mean everyone – is only two or three unfortunate events from being faced with homelessness. If you were faced with such a predicament you would hope, there would be somewhere you could turn.
Without the likes of the Macari Foundation there would be little choice for anyone bar the dangers of sleeping on the streets. If you can please do, consider giving to the Macari Foundation or your local homeless charities. Not only is it cold out there, it has never been so dangerous to be street homeless than it is tonight.
Niall J
Matt Corr’s Tribute to Tommy Docherty…Tommy Docherty: Sad End to a Terrible Year as The Doc Passed Away
Just spoken to The Doc’s widow Mary and she says she wants donations for his funeral to go to the Macari Centre for the homeless, a wonderful gesture in memory of a wonderful man, thank you Mary #MUFC
— Lou Macari (@LouMacari10) January 9, 2021
