This article is from page 68 of the 2008-10-28 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 68 JPG
ALL roads lead to north Clare at the beginning of the New Year, for the seventh Annual Sponsored Burren Walk, which takes place on Sunday, AVE ha ae
All proceeds for the popular an- nual event, which begins and ends at O’Donoghues Pub in Fanore, go to the Clare branch of The Alzheimer’s Society of Ireland, who provide ex- tensive support to the sufferers and families of the estimated 980 cases affected with the disease in the coun- ty at present.
The event is organised by volun- teers, who first devised the idea in 2002 to aid the rapidly increasing
running costs of the Ennis-based branch.
“We thought of doing a fundraiser for the Clare branch and we decided on walking in the Burren as it is a breathtaking, inspirational place that is one of the main walking sites of Europe, not alone Clare,” explains Jerry Howard, one of the organisers of the walk.
“When you do things like this, they may be tough to organise but at the same time, you are pushing an open door with everybody because alzhe- imer’s and dementia has relevance to most houses and when you ask peo- ple to help you or get involved, they are very generous.
“All the money raised is sent to
the Clare branch. They provide two levels of care through day care and home care and it’s brilliant because normally, money raised goes on ad- ministration costs but they have the administration already set up at their office so everything we raise goes directly into the support of that day care or home care. I can genuinely say of all the things I have ever sup- ported or worked with, they are a re- ally, really great organisation.”
With alzheimer’s having an aston- ishing estimated growth of 9,000 per cent worldwide since 1979, Howard paid tribute to the ongoing voluntary work done by the Alzheimer’s Soci- ety in Ennis.
“People are living longer and it’s
becoming more of an issue. Years ago, there was only one person in a family working and there was one person left at home to mind a parent but now it’s a bigger issue because everybody is working.
“They are doing a great service with scarce resources because an aw- ful lot of the work they do in Ennis is all voluntary and they really are the unsung heroes.”
To get involved in the Burren Walk or find out more about alzheimer’s or the society’s services, contact the Clare branch of the Alzheimer’s So- ciety of Ireland at 065 6868621 or 065 6845835. Alternatively, call into the local office situated at Unit 17, Clonroad Business Park, Ennis.