“I CAN FEEL THE LOVE”
Massive support for Jer Spillane fundraiser
€28,000 has been raised so far in a massive community response to a fundraiser for Kildorrery man, Jer Spillane, who suffers from Motor Neurone Disease.
1,300 people donated to a ‘Sponsored Silence’ held online last Sunday evening, according to fundraising committee member Eamonn McCarthy.
In total 1,600 people have donated so far to a GoFundMe page set up by Mr McCarthy and fellow committee member Siobhan O’Donnell. An ambitious target of €30,000 was set for the page, but it’s likely that more than this amount will be raised.
Mr Spillane is blown away by the level of support shown in the fundraising efforts, Mr McCarthy said.
“It’s a progressive disease, but he’s in good form and he’s such a positive lad,” Mr McCarthy said. “I spoke to him over the phone this week and he said, ‘I can feel the love in the amount of support I’m seeing.’”
Mr Spillane, a father-of-two who was born in Kildorrery but now lives in Kilbehenny, was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease in November 2019. Mr Spillane’s condition has progressed throughout the past year of lockdowns, and he now uses an electric wheelchair donated by the Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association (IMNDA).
The Spillane’s car cannot accommodate this wheelchair, so funds raised by the local community will provide a specialised vehicle which will allow Mr Spillane to attend medical appoinments and enjoy time with his family.
The response to the fundraiser has been “fantastic, really successful,” Mr McCarthy told TheAvondhu.
As well as the online fundraising page, bucket collections are underway in The Favourite in Mitchelstown, as well as in both Thornhill’s Pharmacy and the post office in Kildorrery. There are just two days left to donate via the bucket collection, which ends at close of business on Saturday.
The online GoFundMe donation page will still be accepting donations until March 17th - 50% of the proceeds of the fundraiser will go towards Mr Spillane’s needs, and the remaining 50% will be donated to the IMNDA.
The GoFundMe page is at: https:// ie. gofundme. com/f/je r-spillane-and-imnda