This article is from page 25 of the 2009-11-03 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 25 JPG
MEMBERS of Clare’s All-Ireland winning under-21 team will lend their support to the Irish Wheelchair Association’s (IWA) annual Angel campaign in Ennis today.
The Mayor of Clare, Cllr Tony Mulcahy (FG) will also be on hand at the official launch, which takes place at 2pm in the Temple Gate Hotel.
The Angel campaign runs through- out November when IWA Angel Pins and Angel Pencils will be sold na- tionwide for €2.
All funds raised will help to fund Services for the 20,000 members throughout Ireland.
Commenting on the launch, Berna- dette O’Rourke, Community Employ- ment Supervisor, IWA, Ennis, said the
funds raised from the Angel cam- paign are “vital” in allowing the [WA to maintain services throughout Clare.
“It’s vital. We receive funding from the HSE and FAS but it does require a lot to keep the service going.
“We have buses going here in Ennis and all over Clare. If you’re picking someone up in west Clare that means bringing them to an outreach centre in Spanish Point. The main thing is is that people are getting out of their homes to socialise.”
She added, “It’s not just the out- reach service we are providing. We are facilitating personal assistants to help people in their homes. These might be people they know, people from their area. There is a whole personal and social side to it. We are providing assisted living services
throughout Clare.”
The Irish Wheelchair Associa- tion was founded in 1960 by a small group of wheelchair users commit- ted to improving the lives of people with physical disabilities in Ireland. Almost 50 years on IWA provides services nationally, including 60 re- Source and outreach centres; assisted living services; motoring advice, as- sessment and tuition; youth services; training and education; respite and holidays; wheelchair sales and rent- al; peer counselling and sport.
The IWA aims to achieve greater independence, freedom and choice for people living with a disability.
Speaking about this year’s cam- paign, CEO Kathleen McLoughlin commented, “Our annual Angel campaign allows us to generate the
funds to provide essential resources and services to many people with disabilities. Our members rely on us for essential services, such as, per- sonal assistants to support them in their daily living.
“In these tight times, with reduced funding sources, we are doing our very best to avoid cutting the serv- ices we provide to our members in their own homes and in the commu- nity. We are asking the general pub- lic to support our essential work by buying these lovely angel pins and pencils.”
The pins are distributed courtesy of DPD Ireland, the national courier service. For further details or to do- nate online, contact the Irish Wheel- chair Association on 065 68 44150 ennis@iwa.ie or angles@1wa.ie