Homeless charity founder will jump out of a plane to raise funds for a new day care centre in Leeds

Becky Joyce, of Homeless Street Angels, has signed up to leap out of a plane, despite having a fear of heights, to try and raise as much money as she can to open Abi House, in memory of her sister Abi who died in 2017 at the age of 39.

The jump will take place on March 12 - a particularly poignant day for Becky, and her twin sister and fellow Homeless Street Angels founder Shelley, as it was also Abi’s birthday.

Becky said: “I am petrified, I hate heights but I’m pushing myself and it makes it all the more special that I’m doing it on my sister’s birthday.”

She said the sky dive will take her as “close to heaven as I can” and raise vital funds for Abi House, the next step and goal for their charity.

The centre would provide mental health support, drug and alcohol counselling and life skills workshops for the city’s homeless, building on the already incredible work of Homeless Street Angels since its formation in 2015.

The charity provides outreach on the streets of Leeds and Headingley every week, handing out over 100 hot and cold meals, clean clothes and toiletries and also provide ongoing support to those they have managed to rehouse.

During the pandemic, the team also opened a food bank after being contacted by struggling families and now also distributes food parcels once a week to those in need.

Becky said the charity now has an office and also a food bank set up in Chapel Allerton, with “everything going in the right direction”.

She has now urged supporters to get behind her daredevil plane jump and help her reach her target of £5,000.

“I just wanted to do something spectacular in memory of Abi and I’m now £90 away from £3,000.”

To sponsor Becky, who is also doing the skydive with her friend Helen Williams-Taylor, visit https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/beckyjoyce2.

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