Although our laundry and shower vans are based in the one location, they travel hundreds of kilometres every week to connect with our friends, providing free laundry, warm showers, and genuine, non-judgmental conversation.
The list of things that keep the wheels turning on our vans is pretty long, with the main one – of course – being fuel.
In Darwin we’re incredibly lucky to have Pat from FuelXpress Darwin by our side.
Each week, Darwin’s hybrid shower and laundry van ‘Betsy’ makes stops across Darwin City, Palmerston and Casuarina thanks to support from Pat, who provides us with free fuel as well as a place to park the van when it’s not on shift.
We caught up with Pat to find out a little more about why FuelXpress supports Orange Sky. He recalls first hearing about Orange Sky from a LinkedIn post.
“The post resonated with me because it was putting into practice one of our key values - whatever we do, we must benefit as many people as possible. Orange Sky fulfils this vision and what it stands for.”
Over the past few years, FuelXpress has generously offered their services to Betsy – and they don’t plan on stopping. The business is continuing to expand and increase their capacity to hopefully host more Orange Sky services in various locations.
“Let’s not forget the less fortunate in all this. The homeless are often the loneliest and most troubled. Orange Sky, on behalf of the community, reaches out with compassion and understanding in a disarming non-denominational setting – ‘the first contact’ of connecting them back to the community they came from.”
Any contribution from business owners like Pat can help to offset the cost of running our operation, as demand for Orange Sky services continues to grow. For companies like FuelXpress, it can also be an opportunity to fulfil their ethos of social engagement and give back to the community.
“By contributing to Orange Sky we are also riding with them on their journey providing services to our communities across Australia, from the orange sky of sunrise to the orange sky of a setting evening sun – what a privilege to be associated with such a worthy community service and their team of volunteers.”
The rates of homelessness in the Northern Territory are more than 12 times the national average, and with Pat’s support, we have operated over 500 shifts across Darwin, providing over 2,100 loads of laundry, 1,300 showers and connecting with our friends through 4,400 hours of conversation.
Has Pat inspired you to give back to your community?
