Councillors to host hospice fundraiser
ELECTED MEMBERS TO HOLD GALA DINNER IN PARKVIEW ON APRIL 7
WICKLOW’S County Councillors are to host a fundraising event in April which they hope will push them past their fundraising target of €100,000 for Wicklow Hospice Foundation.
The elected members are already halfway to reaching their target, having pledged €10,000 each from the funds of the five municipal districts of Bray, Arklow, Greystones, Wicklow and Baltinglass.
Last Thursday, January 26, they announced plans for the gala dinner on April 7 in the Parkview Hotel, Newtownmountkennedy. The night will include a charity auction and feature guest entertainment. A special committee – representing all 32 councilors as well as the hospice foundation – has been established to oversee the event. Tickets, priced at €50, are due to go on sale in the coming weeks.
‘ This is an excellent cause for the elected members to be involved in – a project that will benefit the entire of County Wicklow,’ said Cllr Pat Fitzgerald, the cathaoirleach of Wicklow County Council. ‘I would like to express my sincere appreciation to the five Municipal Districts who have pledged €10,000 from their discretionary fund and to congratulate the committee for the work so far. I look forward to attending the event in April, and wish the Wicklow Hospice and the elected members every success in this fundraising effort.’
The Wicklow Hospice Foundation has already raised €3.5 million for the facility, through years of tireless fundraising by the people of Co Wicklow. The group is ready to start building but needs another €1m in order to place the building contract.
The site for the hospice at Magheramore has been donated by the Columban Sisters; the building plans have been prepared and full planning permission has been received. The 15-bed facility – which will be operated by Our Lady’s Hospice, Harold’s Cross – will be the hub of palliative care services for the county. The Department of Health/HSE will meet the annual running costs of €3m.
Bryan Doyle, Chief Executive of Wicklow County Council, has commended the elected members for their support for the hospice and said he is looking forward to seeing the facility built and operational in the near future.
The Chairman of Wicklow Hospice Foundation, Sean Dorgan, has thanked the councillors for their efforts to help the foundation reach its €1m target.
‘We are extremely indebted to the elected representatives of Wicklow County Council for this major initiative which will raise significant funds, propelling us forward on the path to commencing the build of the long-awaited Hospice facility,’ said Mr Dorgan.
‘Our elected representatives are leading the charge in ensuring that the Wicklow Hospice becomes a reality in the near future.
‘ The entire Wicklow community has been behind this project from the very beginning. Despite all of the challenges over the years, so much has been achieved and with this incredible boost in fundraising, the €1 million target to the build is now very much within reach,’ he said.