Outpost, a charity that supports young lesbian and gay homeless
people, have just named former Manchester Pride director Jackie
Crozier as their newest ambassador.
Founded in direct response to a young girl who faced remaining in
a homophobic and hostile environments or moving to the streets,
Outpost has since come a long way since it was established in 1995
in the North East of England.
Outpost is a unique organisation in the North East with eight
furnished bedsits, a referral scheme in a city centre location of
Newcastle. However, with twenty five homeless LGBT youths for each
flat vacancy, the organisation is in desperate want of
development.
Jackie Crozier, founder and director of LadyRock Festival, is the
organisation's latest ambassador.
It is hoped that Crozier's wealth of experience in the charity and
fundraising sectors and national recognition in the press, for both
herself as an individual and for her dedicated work to the LGBT
community, can help raise the profile of and develop further what
Outpost does.
Wendy Hodgson, Service Manager at Outpost says: "We are so pleased
and excited that Jackie Crozier has agreed to join The Outpost
Housing Project as a National Ambassador. We know that Jackie has
already made, and continues to make, a huge contribution to the
LGBT community, and it is an honour to have gained her recognition
and support for our work.
"We hope that Jackie will be able to encourage others to support
us, and with her knowledge and success of fundraising, and events
management, we are confident that with Jackie's help, we will be
able to raise awareness of our charity to a more national
basis."
Crozier is currently working with organisations including Oxfam and Alzheimer's Society, and has
held previous posts at charities Marie Curie and Manchester
Pride.
Crozier said: "This is a cause I feel fully committed to and
passionate about. What Outpost does as an organisation is truly
very special. People forget that some young LGBT people don't only
face prejudice but also run the risk of being thrown out of their
own homes. In some cases, individuals are forced to leave due to
fear of their own safety. I could not possibly imagine feeling the
streets would be safer for me than my own home; it's
shocking.
"I am thrilled to bring to Outpost my contacts, experience and
name - in the hope that we can raise awareness of what a fantastic
organisation it is, and develop it into a bigger and more powerful
force to make sure young LGBT people do not have to live on the
streets."
To find out more about Outpost please see:
www.outpostproject.org
Photo by Dawn Kilner.
