The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)

Eddy brings more Hope to the Maya

DINGLE MAN INSTRUMENT­AL IN NEW CLINIC FOR GUATEMALAN POOR

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UNBORN child mortality rates among one of the poorest peoples of Central America are set to plummet thanks to the work of an extraordin­ary Kerry charity.

Hope Guatemala founder, Dingle man Eddy Dieckmann, announced that the relatively small charity will be building a special clinic for the impoverish­ed Maya of Guatemala - Casa de Salud.

It’s being establishe­d in particular to care for pregnant Mayan women in an area with an alarming unborn child mortality rate. The minority are treated appallingl­y in the country, living in dire conditions and plagued by disease and violence.

With no State health system as such, midwifery services are provided by volunteers who struggle to care for the population amid a challengin­g terrain and health concerns.

But Dingle man Eddy and his friends in the charity in Kerry andClarean­dbeyondare­helping the Maya to fight their cruel circumstan­ces. Another of the charity’s tireless champions in Kerry is Hope director and Listowel native Sean McGillicud­dy.

The actor, who appeared in Game of Thrones, is now urging as many as can to attend the charity’s AGM taking place in the Horseshoe Bar in Listowel this Friday, March 9 at 6pm; and to signal support for Hope by attending a concert in St John’s, Listowel, on Thursday, March 8, at 8pm in which the students of Tarbert Comprehens­ive are holding a variety concert entirely for the charity.

“It’s great to see children and young people getting interested in and active with our cause particular­ly since our ethos is children for children,” Sean told The Kerryman.

He said the developmen­ts come as Hope prepares to establish the maternity clinic in San Pedro/Guatemala. “On his recent trip, Eddy Dieckmann brought the good news that a house of health can be built thanks to a donation by a German family trust. The need could not be clearer:

“At the moment there is no sufficient health facility in the community and pregnant women have often to walk up to 60 km through the mountains to the next hospital to get advice or treatment. This often results in them lo sing their unborn children.”

 ??  ?? Dingle man Eddy Dieckmann meets a young friend during his recent trip to Guatemala with Hope.
Dingle man Eddy Dieckmann meets a young friend during his recent trip to Guatemala with Hope.

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