Chris Grimes, Cllr Mick Dollard and Jason McKevitt and (inset) Martina and Christy McKenna at the ONE fundraiser on the Market Square, Mullingar last week.

ONE fundraiser in Mullingar

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Chris Grimes, Cllr Mick Dollard and Jason McKevitt and (inset) Martina and Christy McKenna at the ONE fundraiser on the Market Square, Mullingar last week.

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Martina and Christy McKenna at the ONE fundraiser on the Market Square, Mullingar last week.

Published: Thu 6 Aug 2026, 8:00 AM

A fundraiser for the ONE received a good response in Mullingar last week, reinforcing the fact that the town has a strong military history and many veterans live here.

Jason McKevitt, assistant secretary of Mullingar Branch ONE and a former Army Reservist, explained: “It is showcasing that Mullingar is a garrison town, that we were a military town and that there’s veterans still here in the town, notwithstanding that the Defence Force have left the town,” he said, “and we’re here to raise funds, much needed funds, for homeless ex-service personnel.”

Those, Jason said, are people who would have served in the Army, Navy and Air Corps and even Reserve Forces, who may have, between one thing or another, found themselves in hard times. “We know, in Ireland at the moment, with the housing crisis, that there are a lot of people finding it hard to get shelter, so our role here is to go and try and raise money for Brú na Bhfiann in Dublin, our homeless shelter, and also for drop-in centres.

“We have a drop-in centre for veterans who may be lonely, may be living on their own, that may pop in and be with like-minded people – so that’s what we’re doing here today, raising money for that, for homeless ex-service personnel, to make sure they have a roof over their head tonight.”