Good Will screenings raise thousands for charity

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?¬23,000 was raised through special charity screenings of Good Will Hunting in Omniplex cinemas across the country last week.

RTÃ? 2fm, in conjunction with Omniplex Cinemas, hosted the 26 simultaneous screenings across Ireland of the 1997 Robin Williams’ classic.

Dan Healy, Head of RTÃ? 2fm, said they had been overwhelmed by the public’s incredible response to the screenings of Good Will Hunting.

“To raise such a huge amount of money for these charities is testament to how many people were touched by Robin Williams’ work, but it also reflects the number of people that have been affected by the issues that these charities deal with on a day-to-day basis,” he said.

“It is great to see so much goodwill from people across the country.

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Mark Anderson, Director of Omniplex Cinemas, added:

“We’d like to thank everyone who donated and came out tonight to watch this incredible movie.

“It was a fine tribute to a great man and an excellent way to show your appreciation of the fantastic work undertaken by Pieta House and the PIPS charities.

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Pieta House is a suicide and self-harm crisis centre providing a professional, one-to-one therapeutic service for those who are experiencing suicidal ideation or engaging in self-harm.

The first Pieta House opened in Lucan in 2006 and there are now nine centres throughout Ireland.

Anyone can access the service; it is completely free of charge and a doctor’s referral is not required.

To date, Pieta House has supported more than 12,000 people.

Joan Freeman, founder and CEO, thanked RTÃ? 2fm and Omniplex Cinemas for making the screenings of Good Will Hunting such a success while raising a huge amount of money.

“These much-needed funds will now be used to assist in the running of our centres across the country and support the incredible work undertaken by our community representatives working with people affected by suicide,

? she said.

All funds donated in the Republic of Ireland are going exclusively to Pieta House. All funds donated in Northern Ireland will go to the PIPS network of charities and the Zest charity in Derry.