Over €170k raised by One for Ireland campaign for youth homelessness charities
Campaign which asked people to add €1 to their bills in shops all over Ireland, raised over €170,000 for youth homelessness charities over the course of just one day
Print13 December 2016
Charities working on the frontline to combat the issue of youth homelessness were recently presented with cheques totalling €172,633 by the One for Ireland campaign. The organisation’s ambassador, golfing hero Shane Lowry, presented the cheques to eight charities around the country at an event in the Clayton Hotel, Burlington Road.
The campaign asked people to add €1 to their bills in shops all over Ireland on 29 April last. Retailers such as Spar, Eurospar, Londis, Mace, XL, Applegreen, Fresh, Starbucks and many independent stores throughout the country participated. Money was also donated online, via text and through ticket sales to the ‘Rock Against Homelessness’ concert in the Olympia Theatre.
The campaign divided the country into eight regions and distributed the funds to the project in each region that has the greatest impact on youth homelessness. These were St Vincent De Paul (Midlands), Focus Ireland (Midwest) Galway Simon Community (Northwest), Dublin Simon Community (Dublin North), Barnardos (Dublin Central), Peter McVerry (Dublin South), Focus Ireland Waterford (Southeast) and Novas Initiatives (South).
This is the first time these charities have ever come together under one umbrella fundraising campaign, and support from the Irish Youth Foundation ensured that 100% of the money donated was granted to the charities.
The campaign, run in conjunction with the Irish Youth Foundation (www.iyf.ie) was developed by a group of recent Trinity College graduates to create a way of giving that was accessible, user-friendly and open to everyone, in order to address the current homelessness crisis. Spearheaded by a passionate team of young volunteers who are united in their desire to help the over 2,000 children and young people living in emergency accommodation in Ireland, the initiative was launched by Shane Lowry in April.
The presentation was attended by representatives of the participating retailers including Willie O’Byrne, managing director of BWG Foods, representing Spar, Eurospar, Londis, Mace and XL.
“Youth homelessness is a very grave issue and it is wonderful to see students care so much and implement such a clever campaign in order to stem this problem,” O’Byrne said. “Our stores are at the heart of communities around Ireland and it’s nice to see that the proceeds will be shared with different groups across the country to help these local communities.”
Director of One for Ireland, Conor Clancy added: “As young Irish people we want to help build a better Ireland and that’s what One for Ireland is all about. It’s about coming together as a community and empowering people to make a difference in their local areas.”
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