Cancer fundraiser hits over €13k
THERE’S something special about a night at the dog track and that was certainly the case on Thursday night as it hosted a major fundraiser for the Irish Cancer Society. The event was organised by local man Matt Flynn who was hopeful of raising a good chunk of money for a charity close to his heart.
‘My daughter had cervical cancer two years ago,’ he said. ‘Thankfully, she was one of the lucky ones, particularly in the wake of the latest scandals. Basically, I just wanted to give something back and raise a bit of money and awareness for the cause.’
He certainly succeeded in doing that and nearly 600 people passed through the turnstiles at the track on Thursday night for an evening of family fun and maybe even a little flutter. The atmosphere was electric with the usual pounding of paws on the track as well as plenty of entertainment for the little ones including face-painting and appearances from their favourite Disney characters, courtesy of the Rathnure Panto Group.
As if the entertainment on track wasn’t enough, there was also live music from Pat Quirke and Chris Sludds which really added to the occasion. When all was said and done, Matt was absolutely over the moon to find that the event had raised a grand total of €13,781.
‘The whole evening was absolutely fantastic,’ he said. ‘We were absolutely delighted with the money raised. I’ve done fundraisers like this in the past for different causes, but this is by far the biggest one I’ve done yet. I’d like to thank everyone gave their time and effort to making the event such a success, particularly the committee who worked so hard. I’d also like to thank everyone who came along on the night and helped out in any way.’
Following a hugely successful evening, a cheque for the full amount was gratefully received by Emma Hayden of the Irish Cancer Society.