The CEO Sleepout engages Chief Executives and business leaders to raise awareness and funds, through sponsorship, for the St Vincent de Paul Society to support people experiencing homelessness. It is estimated there are in excess of 100,000 people who are homeless Australia wide, with a quarter of them under the age of 18. Yet we are one of the most affluent countries in the world. In my own community, there are some 3,500 people homeless, including young people sleeping rough every night. I feel a moral obligation to help them. To that end, I have participated in the “CEO Sleepout”, in the middle of Canberra’s winter. This year the Sleepout will be held on Thursday night 19 June. Night time temperatures can be expected to be -3o to -5oC! As part of the sleepout in the open, I will be issued with 3 sheets of cardboard and allowed to use a sleeping bag – but nothing more! I found the previous two "sleepouts" to be an extraordinary experience - including rain at 2.30am in my first sleepout, and record low temperatures last year. Both experiences gave me a real taste for what it was like to sleep rough! My particular passion is to support homeless youth. Last year, I raised $7,553, and I aim to better it this year, with the support of friends. Every dollar donated will go to the homeless, through the St Vincent de Paul Society.