Each summer the Society of St Vincent De Paul tries to assist families and individuals in getting a break, be it for a day or a week. The Cork SVP runs a number of schemes that give people the opportunity to take a holiday.
Ever since Ringabella Holiday Home closed in 1997, the Conference of Blessed Contarto Ferrini has continued to provide holidays for children from Cork City and County in a holiday camp run by the Dominican Fathers in Knockadoon, near Ballymacoda in East Cork.
Since moving to Knockadoon the numbers have increased from 60 children in 1999 to 114 children this year. Along with 23 leaders the children enjoyed action packed days. Activities include swimming, crab fishing, arts & crafts, sports etc. Each day is not complete without a late night disco. One day the children enjoyed bouncy castles, "bouncy" slides and "bouncy" obstacle courses.
The SVP offers a special service to the people of Cork, that we call “a day out in the Summer”. This scheme provides over 5,000 people in Cork City and County to a day trip to Fota Wildlife Park during the month of July. The SVP provides the entry ticket, a meal voucher and a trip on the Fota tour train. The Society also provides train tickets to Fota for families and individuals who require them. Last year over 5,400 people availed of this scheme, for which the SVP paid over €40,000. SVP home visitation teams throughout the Region offer this day-out to those they feel would benefit most from it.
Many of the people who go on this outing do not go on a regular summer holiday and regard this is as their big day out for the whole year. Some have never been outside the city before. The Society of St.Vincent De Paul receives many “thank yous” after the event.