PRESS RELEASE
EMBARGOED: 9PM, Wednesday 13 December 2017
Issued by The Wheel
KERRY COUPLE WIN NATIONAL COMMUNITY HERO AWARD
13 December 2017 - A Couple from Tralee, Co. Kerry, George and Mary Sugrue were this evening awarded the Community Hero of the Year Award at the inaugural Charity Impact Awards in Dublin.
Husband and wife team, George and Mary, have been volunteering with Adi Roche's Chernobyl Children International (CCI) for over 20 years. Through their advocacy and hard work they founded and single-handedly run the Chernobyl Children International Dental Programme. Each year they drive over 3,000kms to provide high standard dental care to children who have been abandoned in institutions. This year, they have expanded their programme with a mobile dental unit which is used to treat terminally ill children on CCI’s Hospice and Palliative Care Programme reaching almost 200 children with life-limiting illnesses.
They have assisted in the delivery of over €105million in humanitarian aid to Belarus and have subsequently travelled with convoys of aid to ensure its safe delivery. 2017 marked their 21st and 19th convoy respectively that they have been involved with for CCI. They are so dedicated that they have even bought an ambulance and built a warehouse in their garden which they fill with aid supplies throughout the year for children left languishing in institutions across Belarus.
They have actively reunited numerous children with their biological families and most recently have started looking for a foster home for a young girl, whose biological family are not a viable option. They have directly saved the lives of many children, reuniting them with families and offering them a brighter future.
The Community Hero Award is a lifetime achievement award honouring a volunteer who has made an extraordinary contribution to a good cause over the course of their lifetime. The award was presented last night at the inaugural Charity Impact Awards at the CHQ building on the banks of the Liffey in Dublin.
The Charity Impact Awards were established by The Wheel, the national association of charities. The aim of the Awards is to celebrate the positive impact being made by charities in every community across Ireland.
Commenting on George and Mary's achievement, Deirdre Garvey, Chief Executive of The Wheel, said, "volunteers like George and Mary remind us of the enormous difference that volunteers can make in communities across Ireland the world when they come together. These Awards are about celebrating the impact that charities and the volunteers that support them can have when they have the public's support."
One hundred and eighteen non-profit organisations and volunteers were nominated for the Awards and over thirty thousand people voted for their favourite nominees. The stories of the nominees are available to read at www.charityimpactawards.ie.
#CharityImpactAwards
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The winners and a spokesperson from The Wheel are available for interview. Contact Gert Ackermann on 086 176 9287.
About The Wheel
The Wheel is Ireland’s national association of community, voluntary and charitable organisations. We are a representative voice and a supportive resource that offers advice, training, influence and advocacy for the sector. With a membership of over 1,300 organisations, we are the largest representative body for the nonprofit sector.
