Inspired Magazine

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Lucas Patchett and Nic Marchesi LAUNDRY AND CHATS RESTORING RESPECT FOR THE HOMELESS Two 21-year-old mates have launched a free mobile laundry service to wash clothes for the homeless. In the process they have captured the imagination of the public, not only for washing clothes, but for spending time with people who are down on their luck. Their efforts saw them win the 2016 Young Australian of the Year Award. But they say their biggest success is helping the homeless regain two things they crave most – dignity and respect.
It’s 6.30am as the bright orange van pulls up by a park in inner-city Brisbane, Australia. Two 21-year-old lads bound out. They stride over to the homeless people who’ve slept in the park last night. “How ya going mate?” they ask one man. “Got any clothes you need washed?” Lucas Patchett and Nicholas Marchesi have launched Orange Sky Laundry – a free mobile laundry service – to help people sleeping rough. They welcome people to their van, wash and dry their clothes for free and, while they are waiting, spend the hour chatting with the person who’s down on their luck. This simple formula – cleaning clothes and chatting with the homeless – has proven a winning recipe. Since launching last year with a single van, Orange Sky Laundry now has 10 mobile laundry vans and a mobile shower van for the homeless. They’ve rallied together a team of 622 volunteers who have together washed 215,000 kilograms of clothes and spent 54,000 hours washing and chatting with the homeless. In the process the duo has helped return dignity to the lives of people doing it tough. What drives these two best mates to spend their free time doing laundry and hanging out with people that most prefer to ignore, rushing by with eyes downcast? DESIRE TO HELP As youngsters growing up in privileged homes, Lucas and Nic knew they were lucky. But it wasn’t until they started volunteering with the food vans through their high school that they realised just how fortunate they were. For here they met homeless people face to face and, for the first time, realised they were no different from anyone else, except for a series of misfortunes. So, when they left school, they were keen to continue helping. But without the school organising the logistics, it became more difficult to volunteer. Their solution? Come up with their own plan to help. At first they considered starting their own food van. But there were already lots of food vans doing a good job of feeding Brisbane’s homeless. What else could help these people? “We just thought ‘the first thing we do in the morning is get up and put on a fresh set of clothes – imagine if you didn’t have the option of doing that’,” Lucas says. “So we thought, ‘imagine if we could bring a mobile laundry to these people’.” IDEA IN ACTION They jumped online and started Googling commercial-grade washers and dryers. But the prices were much higher than they anticipated, and the service schedules put them off. The idea stalled. Lucas went travelling overseas, Nic continued to work full-time. But when Lucas returned home with a month to spare before starting university, the idea surfaced once more. “We just thought ‘if it doesn’t happen now it will never happen’,” Lucas recalls. So, again they researched commercial laundry equipment and this time they met with a supplier, Richard Jay from Laundry Matters. Within 45 minutes they’d sold their idea and Richard offered them a free washer and dryer to equip their van. “We couldn’t believe it,” Lucas says. “They were the first people to believe in it.” Bottom Lucas and Nic in the doorway of an Orange Sky Laundry van. Below Kitting out a van with washing machines to wash clothes for the homeless. LUCAS PATCHETT AND NIC MARCHESI 29
Page 1 and 2: ISSUE 2, 2016 $14.95 HEALING ORPHAN
Page 3 and 4: Issue 2, December 2016 FOUNDER/WRIT
Page 5 and 6: 44 48 52 60 66 Cristal Logothetis R
Page 8 and 9: Bottom Research has proven that lov
Page 10 and 11: In Jenny’s words ... Who inspires
Page 12 and 13: Anne Carey
Page 14 and 15: EBOLA - A WORLD PROBLEM Meanwhile,
Page 16 and 17: day at the treatment centre. Or the
Page 18 and 19: If people have purpose and connect
Page 20 and 21: Leif Cocks
Page 22 and 23: Previous page A baby orangutan clin
Page 24 and 25: loggers took to the orangutan with
Page 26 and 27: Give it a crack! LUCAS PATCHETT AND
Page 30 and 31: “Fired up about making a differen
Page 32 and 33: In Lucas and Nic’s words ... Who
Page 34 and 35: Love Bomb Spread the love ... At In
Page 36 and 37: Anja Ringgren Loven
Page 38 and 39: Top Anja cradles Hope in a blanket
Page 40 and 41: Top Victims often need support to o
Page 42 and 43: Have the courage to be kind. ANNE C
Page 44 and 45: Cristal Logothetis
Page 46 and 47: Donations of baby carriers and fund
Page 48 and 49: Ron Finley
Page 50 and 51: In Ron’s words ... What inspires
Page 52 and 53: Carina Hoang Carina Hoang fled Sout
Page 54 and 55: Above Carina has gone searching for
Page 56 and 57: Someone overhead them talking at th
Page 58 and 59: MAGIC LESSONS PODCAST Elizabeth Gil
Page 60 and 61: Alex Cearns
Page 62 and 63: Alex Cearns had recently started vo
Page 64 and 65: transformed. It started ‘high fiv
Page 66 and 67: Maggie Dent - Parenting educator an
Page 68 and 69: Previous page Maggie is all about e
Page 70 and 71: Above Maggie and her husband Steve.
Page 72: www.inspired.org.au

Inspired Magazine

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?