Sponsored walk raises over €28,000 for community hospital in Limerick town
A SPONSORED walk last June has raised a whopping €28,320 for Friends of St Ita’s, pushing the voluntary organisation over the €4m line in its fundraising efforts over the past two decades.
It was a massive achievement, particularly given the difficult backdrop of Covid-19 restrictions, Fergus Scanlan, chairman of Friends of St Ita’s acknowledged when they handed over the cheque to St Ita’s Community Hospital, Newcastle West.
“This far, far exceeds our greatest expectations when we decided to run this fundraiser,” he said and it was all down to “our wonderful supporters” who undertook the 5km virtual walk in early June.
But hidden within that overall figure of €28, 320, he revealed, lies one singular achievement by the secretary of Friends of St Ita’s who brought in €2,356 on her own. The business and corporate had contributed a massive €13,828 to the total, he added.
Pointing out that, over the years, the Friends’ total fund-raising had exceeded €4m, Mr Scanlon stressed that supporting the great work done in St Ita’s has always been at the heart of their work. The Friends are constantly looking at ways to make life better for those who use the hospital’s facilities, Mr Scanlan stressed.
“It goes without saying, the Friends are extremely proud of our record in this regard and we are absolutely thrilled to have played such a central role and to have been an integral part of this good news story which at the end of the day is all about the quality of life, care and wellbeing of our greatly cherished residents and patients and for the brilliant staff who look after them so well and so lovingly,” he said.
The work of Friends of St Ita’s can be seen on Facebook or on www.friendsofstitas.ie.