This article is from page 19 of the 2008-03-11 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 19 JPG
CLARE suporters of Fr Shay Cul- len, a priest whose cause is to save children from becoming sex slaves, contributed €1,600 to a church gate collection held in Kildysart for him last week.
A dinner organised by Sean O’Connor of Bia na Dia in Ennis has added €1,900 to the coffers, with Sean rounding that up to €2,000.
Vera Reynolds, anative of Kildysart, and her brother, John Casey, were so touched by the plight of youngsters helped by the PREDA (People’s Re- covery, Empowerment Development Assistance Foundation) headed by Columbine priest and triple Nobel Peace Prize nominee, Fr Shay Cul- len, that they started the fundraising ball rolling for them in Clare last year.
PREDA works to save and heal abused children and women often trafficked into sex slavery through abject poverty.
Some of the children whom the organisation have helped have been abused after being jailed in adult prisons for stealing to feed them- selves. Others have been sold or snatched for brothels.
Fr Shay came to Clare last week to meet people who are supporters of his work and to talk about PREDA’s
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“Everyone was very generous and he met a lot of people after Mass,” said Vera.
“Cahill’s pub were also very gen- erous. They provided tea and coffee and sandwiches,” she said.
This was the second fundraising dinner which John hosted at Bia na Dia and futher events in the pipeline include a poker classic in Kildysart and a concert in Kilkee.
Anyone who would like to donate money to PREDA can do so through an account in the Ulster Bank, En- nis, account number 00626779, sort code 985680, or send cheques made payable to the Columban Fathers to John Casey, 5 Woodview, Claureen, Ennis. Ideas for fundraising can be passed to Vera at 00441442851204 or verareynolds@aol.com
In May, a concert is planned with Fr Shay, a number of the children he has saved and other performers, in- cluding traditional musicians from OE
The West County Hotel, which is the venue for the concert, are spon- soring accommodation for the priest and his choir.
“The work which Fr Shay does is very important. These vulnerable children look to him for help 1n situ- ations where they are being com- pletely exploited, said Vera.