Leadership bursary on course to make waves
A NEW access to education bursary, the Mary Fitzgerald Award, which seeks to recognise community leadership in North Wexford has been busy since getting off the ground earlier this summer and some volunteers recently took part in a sponsored walk for the cause.
‘The Mary Fitzgerald Trust was proud and delighted with the volunteers from the Gorey community on their sponsorship walk up Tara Hill. The walk has raised funds for an award which will provide a single educational bursary to a young leader in the town,’ said Chairperson of the award, David Monaghan.
‘The response we have received for our young community organisation so far has been immense, from businesses providing sponsorship, to local residents committing time to promote access to education in our town. The people of North Wexford have resoundingly said that education should be an opportunity open to all, and not for a select few.
Following from its launch, the Mary Fitzgerald Award has been working closely with Gorey Community School and Gorey Youth Reach to provide a €1,000 educational bursary.
The applications for the award are open to all students studying any variation of the Leaving Certificate or taking a QQI Level 5, and are living in of the Gorey Kilmuckridge Municipal District.
The individual selected for the award, which will be announced in May 2020, will go on to work with the organisation throughout the academic year.
The organisation hopes to see the winner working closely with youth groups and schools to encourage others to consider their own further education options.
The organisation would like to say a special thank you to Gorey Print, Altura Credit Union and Hackett Fireplaces for providing sizeable donations.
The award itself is named after Wexford native, Mary Fitzgerald, who was a feminist activist who fought for workers’ rights in South Africa.
To find out more, you can search Mary Fitzgerald Award on Facebook and if you are interested in donating to the cause yourself, search ‘Mary Fitzgerald Award’ on GoFundMe.com.