Business Community Donates €4,000 to Wexford MarineWatch
Wexford Chamber selected Wexford MarineWatch as their chosen charity at the recent hugely successful Wexford Business Awards Gala Ceremony and were today (30/06/2016) delighted to present a cheque for €4,000 to this very worthy charity. A total of €3,748 was raised by the business community from the proceeds of a raffle draw held at the Awards Ceremony on Friday 27th May in Clayton Whites Hotel. These funds were rounded up to €4,000 by Wexford Chamber.
Wexford MarineWatch is a voluntary organisation which provides Suicide Prevention Patrols along Wexford Quays, Estuary & Harbour.
Chairman Frank Flanagan in thanking all the people who contributed said, “The money will go directly to assist in saving lives in Wexford. This donation allows us to purchase a Thermal Imaging, night vision, infrared camera which will prove invaluable to our volunteers as they carry out their duties in Wexford Harbour. It will be a tremendous assistance to us as an organisation”.
“Wexford MarineWatch was established in 2012 and has become an integral part of the Wexford community. Our volunteers have successfully dealt with 180 incidents in the 3 years since its foundation and 82 lives have been directly saved – either prevented from entering, or recovered from the water in the Harbour”.
“Our 100 volunteers and management board continue to be greatly encouraged by the support that they receive from organisations like Wexford Chamber. It’s this support and encouragement that keeps us going”, concluded Frank.
Wexford Chamber would like to sincerely thank those who donated on the night for their generosity and the following businesses who kindly sponsored prizes for the raffle draw:
Bláithín Ennis, Good Food Ireland,
Kia Ora Mini Farm, Loftus Hall, Mary Barry’s Seafood Bar & Restaurant, Paul Maloney Pottery, The Pettitt’s Group, Wallace’s of Wellingtonbridge, Waterford Airport and Wexford Home Preserves.
Wexford MarineWatch provide the Harbour area with ‘Safety Prevention Patrols’ – operated several nights a week by specially trained Volunteers. These members kindly volunteer their free time on a rota-basis each month, to help prevent loss of life, make people aware of the dangers of the water and provide assistance to someone who may be in difficulty. For more see www.wexfordmarinewatch.com