Inspirational Joanne to speak at spirit of community awards
JOANNE O’RIORDAN WILL TAKE PART IN AWARDS WHICH WILL BE HELD IN DUBLIN ON MARCH 22 AT THE AVIVA
MOTIVATIONAL speaker Joanne O’Riordan has been announced as the keynote speaker at the 2018 Pramerica Spirit of Community Awards which is taking place at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, March 22.
Joanne is one of only seven people in the world living with a rare physical disability known as Total Amelia. She was born without all four limbs and while there is no medical explanation as to why this happened, Joanne and her family never allowed it to hold her back.
Joanne has addressed the United Nation’s International Telecommunications Conference in New York, worked with Apple to develop technology for people with disabilities and now travels the world telling her unique story and tackling the stigma around physical disabilities.
“The awards are a great opportunity to encourage young people to get involved in volunteering and I am really looking forward to meeting this year’s finalists,” said Joanne. “The work that they do in their local community is vitally important and it’s wonderful to see them getting recognized for the invaluable contribution they make in their hometowns.”
The Pramerica Spirit of Community Awards is the only all-Ireland youth initiative of its kind and the awards event will recognise 20 Irish teenagers for their outstanding commitment and dedication to volunteering in their local communities.
The 2018 finalists are involved with a variety of organisations, including St Vincent De Paul, Cycle Against Suicide and Concern Worldwide. The programme is run in partnership with The National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals, The General Teaching Council for Northern Ireland, with support from organisations such as Volunteer Now, Volunteer Ireland and Scouting Ireland.
The post-primary students will be presented with €500 and an engraved silver medallion at the awards ceremony and this year the top two Junior Honourees will also receive an additional €500 for their chosen charity for the first time.
At the event, two of the 20 students will be named All-Ireland Youth Volunteers of the Year, receiving €1,000, a gold medallion, a crystal trophy for their school and an all-expenses paid trip to the United States in late April to participate in The Prudential Spirit of Community Awards ceremony.