A Chatham-Kent homeless outreach program is getting a big funding boost thanks to a group of local men.
The group 100 Men Who Care Chatham-Kent recently made a $10,000 donation to R.O.C.K. Missions.
100 Men Who Care Chatham-Kent was formed in the summer of 2018. According to Co-Organizer Dane Appleton, the group gets together every four months and each of the 100 members donates $100 to a local charity.
"We have our members nominate locate charities that they think are deserving," he explained. "Based on how many nominations we have, we draw three of them at the meeting. The three members who nominated the charities that were drawn, they'll make a five-minute pitch from the heart about why the organization needs the funds."
Appleton said the group has raised over $100,000 to date. He said this time around, R.O.C.K. Missions were nominated by a member who has worked with the organization in the past.
"He had written about that and some of the things that R.O.C.K. Missions do and some of the needs they have," said Appleton. "The guys really saw the need there and wanted to help them out."
According to its website, R.O.C.K. Missions is an outreach program that works with individuals who are dealing with homelessness and helps connect them to vital community services.
Appleton said at the group's next meeting, a representative from the charity will be in attendance to talk about how the funds were allocated.
"[ R.O.C.K. Missions] were thrilled," said Appleton. "The need for R.O.C.K. Missions and the community they help, to help out with homelessness, they're always going to need help. They're very passionate about what they do and any help they can get from the community...they're going to be very receptive."
Appleton added that the group is always looking for new people to join 100 Men Who Care Chatham-Kent. He said anyone interested in learning more about their mission can email menwhocareck@gmail.com or visit the group's website.
"The more members we have the more money we can donate to local charities," he explained. "That's really our mission, to get out as much help as we can."