Mastering the craft of a successful fundraiser!
THERE were plenty of stocking-filler ideas ahead of Christmas at the Riverside Park Hotel recently as Enniscorthy Lions Club and Enniscorthy Hockey Club joined forces to host a huge Food, Wine and Craft Fair at The Riverside Park Hotel.
While there was a noticeable absence last year, the Lions Club has hosted an annual craft fair on and off for the past ten years as a significant fundraiser in the local community and this year they were delighted to bring the Hockey Club on board as beneficiaries.
‘With the Lions Club, our goal is to serve the needy, but also help other local organisations that do good work in the local community,’ said Lions Club President Eric Barron. ‘ The Hockey Club here are doing great work and enjoying great success and with the success of our International Hockey team this year, we decided it was the right time to link in with the local club. I’d like to congratulate them. Their people came out and made the event a huge success and I hope the club continues to prosper in future.’
On the night, there were all manner of things on sale from mouth-watering food, wonderful wines and all manner of fantastic locally made crafts.
‘We had around 50 exhibitors on the night,’ Mr Barron said. ‘Of these, around 90% were local. That’s the whole idea - to help showcase indigenous industries. People really got behind it and it was a great success.’
All funds raised from the night will be split between the Hockey Club and the Lions Club, who will help needy people in the locality at what can be a difficult time of year. While the money raised is still being tallied, Mr Barron says he expects that it will be a ‘substantial figure’ for both causes.