North Westmeath Hospice BBQ raises funds for palliative care team

As is the case with other hospice fundraisers, the money raised at the North Westmeath Hospice BBQ at Kerrigan’s in Mullingar on Friday evening will stay in this area.

Speaking to the Westmeath Examiner at the event, Margaret Claffey, chairperson of the North Westmeath Hospice Fundraising Committee, said the purpose of the event was “to raise funds to support the palliative care team, who we all know give an excellent service to terminally ill patients in the north Westmeath area”.

“I just want to stress that all monies raised tonight stay local, in the north Westmeath area.”

Margaret said that the barbecue “could not take place if we didn’t get the support and help from businesses here in the town, the local shops, who gave lovely spot prizes.

“We also thank Brendan Kerrigan Snr and Justin Kerrigan for the use of their premises to hold the BBQ, and Natalie Kerrigan Green and her friend Tara Manning, for cooking and doing the BBQ and feeding us all here tonight.”

Bewley’s Big Coffee Morning Social

Separately, the actor Domhnall Gleeson is helping to publicise this year’s hospice coffee mornings. The Hollywood star is supporting Bewley’s Big Coffee Morning Social for Hospice, a fundraising drive which has generated €43.2 million since 1992.

He joined hospice hosts and volunteers at Bewley’s café on Grafton Street on August 2, and asked everyone in Ireland to host or support this year’s event on September 21.

Gleeson’s grandparents, his father Brendan’s parents, spent their final days in St Francis Hospice in Dublin. “My grandma (Pat) was only there for a few weeks and that was my first experience of being around a hospice,” said the Harry Potter and Star Wars actor.

“I was incredibly close to her and I was struck by the atmosphere of care and kindness. She had a rough journey before she got there – and all of a sudden, that difficult road seemed less punishing to travel.”

He recalled thinking she seemed as ‘safe and cared for’ as possible. “It was such a relief,” he said.

“In terms of my granddad (Francis), we had been looking after him for a long time, probably about a year, and didn’t think he was going to last that long in hospice, but he was there for months. The care was extraordinary, but he had a new lease of life, it (hospice care) gives the body the care it needs, and makes them feel special.”

He told how Francis constantly joked with staff who, he said, see beyond the illness or life-limiting condition. “There’s a focus on creating a connection and patients are not just a problem to be solved on the way to the next problem along the corridor. Each person’s journey is different, and each one matters to the people working there.

“I don’t know how they do it; there is an incredible giving of oneself.

“So I am asking everyone in north Westmeath, on September 21, or whenever suits them, to organise, support or donate to a coffee morning, wherever it might be held.”

Now in its 31st year, organisers hope to raise €2million in 2023, returning the countrywide fundraiser to pre-Covid levels and bringing the total raised since its inception beyond the €45million mark.

Together for Hospice, The National Hospice Movement, represents 26 Hospice and specialist palliative home care providers supporting patients and their families.

Funds raised locally stay local and go back into each hospice service, helping to pay for medical and general staff, palliative care beds, home care visits, specialist equipment and new hospice builds.

Margaret Claffey said: “We are delighted Bewley’s Big Coffee Morning Social for Hospice, which is one of Ireland’s longest and most loved fundraisers, is now entering its fourth decade of raising funds in support of Hospice in-patient and community services around Ireland.

“It is a chance to celebrate our many coffee morning hosts across the county, who are an incredible testament to the dedication and committed nature of Hospice supporters in local communities. This ongoing support is invaluable and funds vital services and quality initiatives enhancing care for patients living with a life limiting illness.”

If you can’t host or attend a coffee morning, you can make a donation at hospicecoffeemorning.ie/donate or call 0818 995 996.