Ireland’s biggest ever fundraising drive kicked off last Thursday 7th October. Charity 25’s “Just 2 Will Do” campaign aims to raise over €2 million for the 25 participating charities per year. This will be the first time that such a large grouping of Irish Charities has come together for a fundraising campaign.
1 million homes will receive an invitation to participate by signing up to send a €2 text each month. Because of the extraordinary levels of cooperation received from Vodafone, O2, 3 and Meteor, the generosity of Phonovation and the low overheads (including free delivery of invitations by the Leaflet Company Ireland we will be able to pass on a minimum of €1.73 from each text to the charities.
Because Charity 25’s main job is to collect the money and divide it evenly between the participating charities we have been able to keep our costs very low – in the region of 10% of the projected turnover – and pretty much all of that is to print the invitations,” explained Kevin O’Brien, CEO, Charity 25. “On top of that, Phonovation have agreed to gift back to us the VAT on the text messages meaning that 90% of income from text receipts to Charity 25 will go to the charities. None of us will be taking salaries and there are no hidden charges.”
The charities that are participating in Charity 25 are: MS Ireland, The Samaritans, Down Syndrome Ireland, Headway, Myasthenia Gravis Association, The Cystic Fibrosis Association, The Variety Club of Ireland, GROW, The Alzheimer Society of Ireland, Aware, DeafHear.ie, Debra Ireland, Age Action Ireland, St Joseph’s Centre for the Visually Impaired, Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, The Meningitis Trust, The Asthma Society, The Irish Motor Neuron Disease Association, Laura Lynne House - The Children’s Sunshine Home, Special Olympics Ireland, Teen Line Ireland, Irish Autism Action, Muscular Dystrophy Ireland, The National Association of Housing for the Visually Impaired, and The Jack and Jill Foundation.
“Usually, fundraising drives are relying purely on people’s generosity,” pointed out O’Brien,. “And, of course, we hope the Irish people will be generous this time too. But there is another way to look at this – because of the number of charities involved and the range of services they supply, the chances are you or a member of your family will need their help.”
Signing up for the “Just 2 Will Do” campaign is straightforward. Text 2WILLDO and your COUNTY to 57802. So, if you are based in Dublin that would be 2WILLDO Dublin. You will be charged €2 for the text. If you want to find out more about us visit our website. All of our costs are detailed there, as well as the participating charities. As the funds are distributed each quarter the site will be updated with information on what the charities are spending the funds on – so you can see your money at work.
The Dragon's Dens Niall O Farrell and Sarah Newham support Charity 25
For further information please contact: Ger Kenny on 087 2488393
Charity 25 is a registered name of the A & C Foundation. Charity No: CHY 19252