THE SLEEPBUS has been in operation in Hervey Bay since early 2023. It provides a safe and comfortable sleep for the homeless three nights a week.
Thanks to a generous $100,000 donation from Community Bank Hervey Bay, part of Bendigo Bank, the sleepbus initiative has transformed the lives of hundreds of individuals facing homelessness—those who often struggle to find what many of us take for granted.
This funding has enabled the construction of the sleepbus vehicle, which offers a safe and temporary overnight accommodation solution, providing our community’s most vulnerable individuals with an immediate and cost-effective option for shelter.
The value of a comfortable night sleep can never be underestimated.
Sleepbus has eight secure, climate controlled sleep pods with a lockable door and toilet. Each pod can also be doubled into bunks, enabling up to 16 pods.
Everyone is looked after with overnight volunteer caretakers and CCTV surveillance, with under bus storage for belongings, and pets are welcome to stay also.
This operation does not happen without contribution from local volunteers.
Nat ‘slumberjack’ Genoni, Services Coordinator for sleepbus said, “the service relies on volunteers and someone’s night sleep is determined by their support.”
“Some of the busiest nights we have experienced from supporting regions across Australia has been in Hervey Bay”.
“We have diehard core volunteers that makes this happen but we always need more, we don’t want to burn out these wonderful people”.
“The Caretaker role in particular needs recruitment as we currently rely on a few volunteers for the 12 hour shift.”
“The caretakers are protected in a safe environment and we train all volunteers prior to commencing their roles.”
Drivers are also challenging to find as they require a MR Licence with previous experience.
If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, that would be awesome! They really need your help.
Check out all the roles and videos on their volunteer page and you can sign up and get onboard! www.sleepbus.org/volunteer
