ANTRIM GAELS KICK OFF CHRISTMAS WITH £8,000 DONATION TO ST VINCENT DE PAUL

Antrim GAA kicked off St Vincent de Paul’s Christmas fundraising appeal with a traditional music evening raising £8,307.38 from an original target of £5,000. In previous years their Christmas #SaffronAid Appeal has been supported by clubs across the county providing St Vincent de Paul with 5,000 shoeboxes but, due to the pandemic, the traditional form of donating gifts for Christmas is not possible this year.

The event was hosted live on the county’s Facebook page with music from Sean McCorry and family, an ingenious way of fundraising for St Vincent de Paul while making sure that children across the county enjoy the magic of Christmas.

Sean Kelly, County PRO, said: “We are thrilled to have been able to kick off St Vincent de Paul’s annual Christmas fundraising appeal by smashing our £5,000 target and raising more than £8,000 with donations from across the county. We are so glad that the charity isn’t losing out on our support because we have been unable to collect our traditional #SaffronAid shoeboxes.”

Mary Waide, Regional President of St Vincent de Paul, said: “We are absolutely overwhelmed by the generosity of the people who donated online while enjoying a great night’s entertainment with Antrim GAA’s unique online fundraiser. For families faced with impossible choices this Christmas, this donation will go a long way to offering some hope during what will be for many, a very different kind of Christmas.”

If you would like to make a donation to St Vincent de Paul this Christmas, please phone tel 028 9075 0161 or donate.