MANY years ago, communities battled fires alongside the local firefighters and helped by creating lines of people who passed buckets of water to the seat of the fire. Over the weekend, the firefighters of Ireland brought buckets back into the community – but this time it was to collect vital funds for the families of children from across the country who are receiving cancer treatment in hospital.
The National Retained Firefighters’ Association of Ireland (NRFA) have chosen Aoibheann’s Pink Tie as their long-term charity partner and have been raising funds for the ambitious Lighthouse Project.
The APT Lighthouse Project will provide a vital service to families from every part of Ireland who have a child receiving vital cancer treatment in hospital by offering clean, safe, purpose-built accommodation for the period of their care.
This is the culmination of 10 years of fundraising by the charity, which started after the death of Jimmy Norman’s daughter, Aoibheann. Their efforts have resulted in the purchase of a house – named ‘Aoibheann’s Lighthouse’ – in Drimnagh.
Funds for the project were boosted considerably from the continuing proceeds of ‘Strip and Dip’ – a fantastic fundraising initiative by Deirdre Featherstone, herself a cancer survivor.
NRFA members were out fundraising over the weekend in an effort to have the house ready for the parents of children attending St John’s Ward in Crumlin Hospital. Tradespeople and suppliers from all over Ireland have been their donating time, services and products to the project to get it up and running as soon as possible.
Anthony Kirwan, PRO of the NRFA, commented: “Our firefighters have a caring ethos, a spirit of volunteerism and a need to achieve something real. Most people know somebody who has been touched by fire, much like cancer, so the firefighters of Ireland are here to help with both current and future APT projects like this.
“The firefighters’ message to the people of Ireland is that we are here to help put the fire out on children’s cancer.”
