Students to brave the cold, spend a night on the streets to raise awareness for affordable housing

Toronto post-secondary students to participate in 24-hour 'Haunted Home-A-Thon' to raise awareness of local housing crisis

TORONTO, Oct. 25, 2012 /CNW/ - University and college students from across the GTA will abandon the comforts of home in support of Habitat for Humanity Toronto (www.torontohabitat.ca)  on Friday, October 26 at 7:00 am to publicly face substandard housing conditions, demonstrating the need for decent, affordable housing for all Toronto families.

The Habitat Toronto Campus Coalition (www.torontohabitat.ca/campus-coalition), a collective of local post-secondary students, will descend on Ryerson University campus this week to build and camp for 24 hours in a shanty town of plywood cabins. The students aim to raise awareness of substandard housing and fundraise for Habitat for Humanity Toronto's year-round affordable homebuilding efforts throughout the city. In the midst of the Halloween season, this year's Home-a-Thon, the fourth since 2009, will bear a "Haunted" theme, exposing the many horrors faced by families living in inadequate housing.

"With one in five Toronto households living in substandard housing, this issue affects not only low-income families, but the growth and prosperity of our city overall," says Neil Hetherington, Habitat for Humanity Toronto CEO. "Seeing student activists target this issue by mounting a creative public demonstration sends a very powerful message. As the next generation of leaders, we depend on our city's youth to educate and inspire their peers to advocate for affordable housing."

The Haunted Home-A-Thon will kick off on this Friday at 7:00 am with the construction of the cabins. The Habitat Toronto Campus Coalition invites all to visit the event, enjoy live entertainment, catch a night-time horror movie screening, and learn about the affordable housing crisis in Toronto.

When:	Friday, October 26, 2012, at 7:00 am to Saturday, October 27, 2012, at 7:00 am.
Where:	Ryerson University at Gould Street and Victoria Street, Toronto, Ontario
Who:	Habitat Toronto Campus Coalition Neil Hetherington and a Habitat Toronto Homeowner will address attendees at 2:00 pm.

***Media are invited to attend and interviews will be available***
Please visit www.torontohabitat.ca for more information on Habitat for Humanity Toronto.

 

SOURCE: Habitat for Humanity Toronto

or for interviews, please contact:
Joanna M. Dwyer, Marketing & Stakeholder Relations
Habitat for Humanity Toronto
Phone: [phone] ext. 259
Mobile: [phone]
Email: [email protected]

Enloe Wilson, Faith and Community Relations Coordinator
Habitat for Humanity Toronto
Phone: [phone] ext. 242
Email: [email protected]

On behalf of the Habitat Toronto Campus Coalition:
Sabnam Islam, Chairperson
Habitat Toronto Campus Coalition
905-212-4000 x8069
Email: [email protected]