Welcome Home

Welcome Home is a registered charity, CHY 10705, which has been raising funds for Fr. Peter McVerry since 1990 to support his work with young homeless people in Dublin. The charity raises money through a number of organised events throughout the year.

The Welcome Home Wexford Cycle was started in 1990, is the longest-running and biggest fundraising event organised by the charity. The Wexford Cycle takes place every September. The Welcome Home Golf Classic started in 1992 and is the second biggest event organised by the charity. Both events are hugely popular and attract a regular core of supporters, both corporate and individual.

The Wexford Cycle has increased hugely in popularity over the last five years with an average of 380 cyclists taking part each year. Cyclists raise sponsorship money in support of Welcome Home. The Golf Classic in May is always a great day of golf and a great social occasion with 40 teams participating and two hundred people attending the evening festivities.

Two other events were added to the Welcome Home calendar in 2008 - the Welcome Home Lunch and Welcome Home Midsummer Walk. The Midsummer Walk takes place in June while the Welcome Home Lunch takes place every second year in March.

Information and dates regarding all our events are contained on our website, www.welcomehome.ie.

The charity also receives numerous donations, both individual and corporate, and many of them online via our website.

The continuing success of Welcome Home fundraising is testimony to the work and reputation of Fr. Peter McVerry. Peter's operations are now known as the Peter McVerry Trust and services provided by the Trust include six residential hostels for young homeless people in Dublin, one drugs detox centre and two aftercare houses. The Trust provides 25% of the detox beds in Ireland.

The Trust also provides twenty apartments for those looking to re-integrate into society where they will receive ongoing support from key workers in the Trust towards their goal of living independently in the community.

There is also an informal drop-in centre, which is also Fr. Peter McVerry's office, which is open during the day where young homeless people can go to avail of cooking, laundry and washing facilities, use the telephone and meet others in a relaxed environment.

The fundraising activities of Welcome Home are hugely important to the provision of services by the Peter McVerry Trust to young homeless people in Dublin. According to Peter McVerry these services would not be in existence today had it not been for the financial support from Welcome Home, particularly in the early years.

Other than donations, all fundraising by Welcome Home is done through our events.

You can register your interest in any of our events by e-mailing info@welcomehome.ie

BARRETSTOWN:

Barretstown is a specially-designed camp that provides Therapeutic Recreation programmes for children with serious illnesses, and their families.

We were founded by Hollywood actor Paul Newman in 1994 and modelled on his renowned Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in Connecticut, USA. Excellent, unobtrusive medical supervision helps children with cancer and other diseases forget illness, learn to have fun and rebuild their confidence and self-esteem. Our programmes take place at Barretstown Castle in the beautiful foothills of Ireland's Wicklow Mountains.

We serve children affected by serious illnesses - primarily cancer and serious blood diseases - from Ireland, Britain and throughout Europe, and their families. Children and families don't pay a cent to come to Barretstown. All their travel costs, accommodation, food, medical care and activities are provided free of charge.
• In 17 years almost 21,000 children and family members have come to Barretstown to take part in our residential programme.

• Our programme is a fun, activity based process of challenge, success, reflection and discovery - backed by the medical world - which helps children affected by serious illness regain their confidence and self-esteem

• Children from 7 to 17 are encouraged to step outside their comfort zone and take on challenges such as performing on stage, climbing a 40ft tower, fishing, horse riding, face painting, archery, canoeing, photography, music, pottery or cooking).

• Through their successes they gain a new-found confidence and skills to deal with the challenges of their everyday lives.

Hospitals take care of the physical effects of serious illness; Barretstown helps to heal the emotional scars.

For more information go to: www.barretstown.org / like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/barretstown or follow us on Twitter @barretstown1

BRAY LAKERS:

Bray Lakers is a Sport, Social and Recreation club for children and adults with special needs in Wicklow and South Dublin and have been in operation since 1989. Their current membership is 397, 134 volunteers and 12 staff members (funded through HSE & Pobal). Membership in the Club is constantly growing - on average 25% per calendar year. Bray Lakers is a registered Charity who is supported by eight high profile Patrons including Leinster & Ireland No 8 Rugby star Jamie Heaslip.

Bray Lakers' mission is to provide people with a diagnosis of an intellectual disability the opportunity to improve physical fitness and increase co-ordination through year-round participation in a wide range of sporting, social and recreational activities. They aim to aid and enhance members' social skills through interaction with their peers as well as the wider community.

In the initial stages Bray Lakers was know as a Special Olympic Club, sport being their original reason for starting. However, this evolved greatly over the years and as a result Bray Lakers, are no longer specifically a Special Olympic Club. Bray Lakers is a now a Sport and Recreation Service for people with disabilities and is a unique service on the Island of Ireland. Bray Lakers are affiliated to Special Olympics Ireland and successfully compete at Area, Regional, National and International Special Olympic Games.

Bray Lakers offers members a wide selection of sport, social and recreation activities including soccer, basketball, tag rugby, bowling, drama, pottery, cookery etc. Bray Lakers also hold an annual Summer Camp, monthly disco and family respite breaks both in Ireland and abroad. They operate 6 days per week with most days being 12 hours long full of classes and activities all of which are designed in assisting and supporting their members to reach their full potential.

In 2007 Bray Lakers leased a small warehouse in Bray in which to operate their service. They spent €60,000 refurbishing this premises which resulted in them being in a position to develop their service to the level and high standard it is today. However, Bray Lakers have now outgrown this small building and with membership numbers ever increasing, they undertook an innovative project to solve this problem.

In 2010 following a year long intensive campaign, Wicklow County Council very generously allocated them a site in Bray on which to build a permanent Centre. Upon completion this will be the first purpose built Sport and Recreation Centre specifically for people with disabilities in Ireland. Bray Lakers have finalised the design of this building and are currently in the pre-planning stages.

Funding for this building will be met through grants, donations and fundraising events - particularly their 'Buy a Brick' campaign on www.braylakers.ie

Action Breast Cancer

In Ireland, the latest data from the National Cancer Registry shows that 2,766 cases of breast cancer were diagnosed in 2009 and women have a 1 in 9 chance of developing breast cancer during the course of their lives.

Action Breast Cancer, a programme of the Irish Cancer Society, is Ireland's leading provider of breast cancer information and support. Each the programme reaches over 30,000 women who are concerned about breast health and breast cancer. The Irish Cancer Society strives to ensure that everyone affected by breast cancer receives the highest standards of treatment, support and care, and to improve the quality of life of people living with breast cancer. The Society relies entirely on voluntary contributions from the public to fund our programmes of care, education and research.

Action Breast Cancer's services are free, confidential and accessible and include: National Cancer Freefone Helpline 1800 200 700, Information, Health Promotion, Reach to Recovery programme, Research, Advocacy, Night Nursing services and Financial assistance for those experiencing difficulties as a result of their cancer diagnosis.

At the heart of the Irish Cancer Society's Information Service is the National Cancer Freefone Helpline which is staffed by specialist cancer nurses who offer information, support and appropriate referral for women who are concerned about breast health, women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer, their families and carers as well as health care professionals.

In 2010, the Irish Cancer Society's National Cancer Helpline (Freefone 1800 200 700) responded to approximately 21,000 calls from women and men across Ireland.

Approximately 5,000 of these calls were from women and men affected by breast cancer. The service provided by our specialist helpline nurses has proved to be vital, especially during this difficult time for breast cancer services in Ireland.

Additionally, in order to meet the need for clear, concise information for women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer, the Irish Cancer Society's Cancer Information Service produces a wide range of patient education materials which are continually being developed and updated. This includes a series of factsheets on every aspect of a breast cancer diagnosis including treatment, the different aspects of living with the disease, and the issues which are unique to younger women living with breast cancer.

For a free information pack, or to discuss your concerns with a specialist nurse, avail of the services of the National Cancer Freefone Helpline or email helpline@irishcancer.ie

ST. JOHN AMBULANCE:

The St. John Ambulance Brigade of Ireland has been at the forefront of providing first aid training and services for over 100 years.

As far back as 1880, First Aid certificates were presented in the Lecture Hall of the Royal Dublin Society, now the seat of Dáil Eireann, by the St John Ambulance Association. In those days, ladies and gentlemen were trained separately for reasons of decorum!

The uniformed Brigade was formed in the Guinness Brewery in 1903 to provide First Aid training in the workplace (at a time when Health and Safety legislation was decidedly more lax than it is now!). Within a couple of years, the first open division had been formed with the aim of having regularly-trained members provide First Aid cover at public events. The aptly-named "City of Dublin" division still meets weekly and, as a city-centre division, members come from many backgrounds.

Members of St John have provided assistance at major events in recent Irish history, such as the Easter Rising, the Civil War, the 1932 Eucharistic Congress, the North Strand bombing, the Belfast Blitz, the Tolka floodings and the 1974 Dublin bombings.

They also assist at local public events such as parish fetes, concerts and local sporting events, including many road races, such as the Dublin, Cork and Kildare Marathons. Our members also cover events at major national venues, such as Croke Park, Páirc Uí Chaoimh, the RDS showground and Aviva Stadium.

St John Ambulance (Foxrock Division) have provided ambulance and first aid cover to both players and spectators at Leinster games in the RDS and Donnybrook for the past 10 years.

As an approved organisation for the implementation of PHECC (Pre Hospital Emergency Care Council) 3rd Edition CPGs at EMT, paramedic and advanced paramedic levels, St John work with event organisers, statutory agencies and other organisations to provide first aid cover at public gatherings of all shapes and sizes.

We have a dedicated team of instructors who provide first aid training to members of the public, in schools and in corporate premises. We also provide public first aid courses and occupational first aid courses at our premises in Dublin, Cork and Limerick. Where appropriate, our courses are externally accredited by Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC), Pre Hospital Emergency Care Council (PHECC), and other bodies. We provide a full range of internal courses to our members, up to and including Emergency Medical Technician (EMT).

St John now has twenty local divisions in Ireland including new ones in Cork, Kildare, Louth and Meath. There are over 400 voluntary members in the entire Brigade, and 450 cadets between the ages of 11 and 17. New members of all ages are always welcome to join the Brigade; no First Aid experience is required, as it is provided on a modular training basis, along with Caring and Manual Handling skills.

Our members are all unpaid volunteers dedicated to a simple vision - that everyone should have immediate access to first aid, no matter where they are or what they are doing at the time of injury or unexpected illness. Basic first aid can make, and has made, the difference between a life lost and a life saved.

You too can have that vision and make that difference.

For more information please visit www.stjohn.ie