Teams of four at 120 per team. T-box sponsorship €100.

For time sheets please contact Ollie O’Loughlin on 0872666729.

A big thank you to everyone who contributed to making this a reality.

We really can make a difference.

A fantastic night of music and song took place at Purcells Lounge Bar, Ruan on Sunday night, April 1st. Brenndan Begley and Caoimhin O’Raghallaigh entertained the crowd with wild and wonderful music from West Kerry.

Later Chris Drowney, a superb musician, took to the stage with singer, Kate Purcell. The highlight of the evening was the magnificent rendering of “Peaceful Corcomroe” by Kate and Chris.

The organisers would like to thank everyone who supported this event.

Proceeds to Missionvale Classroom Extension and supplying the school with equipment.

This event takes place to help support the charity Missionvale Ireland.
The musical event headlined by Brendan Begley & Family, Caoimhin O’
Raghallaigh, Kate Purcell, Chris Droney and Friends.

All funds raised will go directly to the charity who supports the amazing work of Sr Ethel Normoyle. Funds raised from previous events have gone towards recent completion of a school extension in January 2012. Ethel has dedicated the structures and the work to the people of Ireland and Clare.

She may be only one person but the changes she has made to thousands of lives is astounding. She has done this with the support of her local people.

Please come and help us achieve so much more. Your small donation can make a huge difference.

Great night of music and song assured. Please come along. Admission €10.00

Please click on link below for more pictures:

Missionvale Primary School

“I am only one person and I am scared of that monster. It is literally eating us up here” Ethel

Statistics in 2010 show that 30.2 million people in South Africa were estimated to have aids. The monster that is aids is killing a generation and ruining so many lives. Children are left without parents, mothers die with the knowledge their will be no one to look after their children when they are gone. Innocent children are being born with a disease that can kill them before the reach adulthood. It is a disease that is wiping out millions of people.

A generation is dying from this disease leaving the children and the aged behind. This generation is dying because of lack of education; they do not understand this monster that is killing them and those around them. The stigma surrounding aids clouds any enlightenment as to what the disease is and how it is contracted. People live in a society that is ignorant as to what causes the devastation surrounding them.

The answer is to educate the young, open their eyes to what is happening around them, remove the ignorance, and teach them so they can teach their mothers, fathers and siblings.

This January two groups of Irish Volunteers travelled to Missionvale to build an extension to the school that exists on the grounds of the care centre. Previous to this, the school only had the resources to teach up to the Irish equivalent of third class. Now, with this extension, children can attend Missionvale Primary school right up to sixth class and continue onto secondary school. This is a huge leap for Ethel and the Missionvale community.

“I would put all my faith and trust in that school over there. That out of if will come the doctors, the visionaries” Ethel

In the interview he talks about the people he met, the stigma surrounding aids and of course Ethel and what the school extension means to her.

(Click on link below to listen to interview)

pod-v-13021216m00smooneysouthafrica-pid0-960984

The day began with the final work to the school building being completed. The volunteers worked tirelessly to finish their duties through the torrential downpours. Missionvale in the rain and Missionvale in the sun are polar worlds apart. The rain began on Wednesday and rained continuously for three days. Flooding and mud covered the centre but even more distressing was the conditions of the shacks.

A prayer service and presentation marked the end of our stay at Missionvale. Ethel presented the volunteers with a gift and individually thanked every person for coming.

It had been a wonderful and rewarding week in Missionvale.

Slán go Foill Missionvale.

In addition to providing physiotherapy services to the locals of Missionvale (and  Irish volunteers!), Bernadette has also provided some manual handling training to the caregivers that provide services the locals in their homes.

Having spent the first three days of her time in Missionvale in the Centre that Sr. Normoyle has developed, Bernadette was taken on a walking tour of the township of Missionvale this morning.

Bernadette’s report:

Missionvale is situated on the edge of Port Elizebeth in an area that has totally inadequate soil drainage.  As we are currently experiencing our 3rd consecutive day of rain in Missionvale we spent two hours walking the muddy and flooded tracks through the township where locals live in shacks that are constructed of old galvanise, chipboard, a few pieces of wood and cardboard.

When we entered the first shack, we kept the hoods of our rain jackets up, as the rain dripped heavily through the holes in the galvanised roofs, wetting and further destroying the entire contents of the locals homes.  We were welcomed into a home by a twelve year old girl who was looking after her 38 year old mother and her one year old sister.  The mother was HIV positive and had recently become blind and bedbound as a result of contracting meningitis due to deficiencies in her immune system.  As there was no food left in the shack, the 12 year old girl was getting ready to strap the baby to her back and walk through the mud to Sr. Ethel’s centre in order to get food for the family.  This 12 year old girl was missing school on a regular basis in order to provide essential care for her mother and sister.  The lack of education that then ensues makes it impossible to break out of the cycle of poverty.

“While the cost of education may be great, the cost of ignorance is far greater”.

The difficult part for any parent, was looking at this beatiful one year old ”bonnie” baby (thanks to the care provided by Sr. Normoyle’s Centre), and try to imagine what the future holds for this child given the current situation in Missionvale township of HIV, AIDS, abuse, hunger, lack of education, unemployment and appauling living conditions.

Sr. Normoyle has accomplished so much here but her work needs to go on in order to provide a future for this bonnie baby….. and so many many more like her.

If you feel that you have anything to offer to Missionvale, please see our “How to Help” page.