This article is from page 23 of the 2007-12-25 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 23 JPG
MARY Kelly has been a stalwart fundraiser for the excellent work be- ing done by Irish missionaries in the poorest countries for more than 25 years.
But while the Tulla woman has raised untold amounts of cash and organised scores of events 1n her role with the Apostolic Society to sup- port the mission work, she has al- ways wondered what it would be like to go on a mission.
Which is why, now that she has re- tired from the society, she has signed up to travel to Port Elizabeth in South Africa to help with the Build- ing Of Hope Project being run by
Lissycasey nun, Sr Ethel Normoyle and more than 160 Clare volunteers. Mary will be travelling with her son Francis and daughter, Lourda Doyle, who is living in Broadford.
To help raise the €3,000 which she needs to cover her flights and ac- commodation and make a donation to the project, Mary is auctioning a Tulla shirt, signed by every member of the victorious Clare Champion- ship team.
‘“T always said I’d love to see what is it all about and so I signed up to go,” ROMY Eee
The jersey was acquired for her by Tulla team manager, Jim McInerney and, Mary says, it is an appropriate item to auction given that her late
husband’s grandfather, John “Lang- er’ Rogers was a well-know Tulla hurler.
Seven in ten people living in tin and cardboard huts in the township at Missionvale have the AIDS vi- rus. Most have little more than the clothes they stand up in and the mis- sion provides a daily food ration for almost 2,000 people.
Sr Ethel and her team of volunteers plan to build a hospice and care cen- tre at Missionvale over a 40 day pe- riod in January and February.
“TH do a bit of baking and cook- ing – anything I can do to be of help,” said Mary.
Mary is keeping mum about what offers she has had up to now for the
jersey, but she is hoping that it will raise a “good bit of money” for the Oren
While most volunteers will spend ten days in South Africa, Mary plans to stay for two weeks and her son will be part of the team whose tough task it is to get the project off the ground by laying more than 500 blocks per person per day.
Anyone who would like to make a bid on the jersey can contact Mary on 065-6835519 or Francis on 087- 9742090.