A live crib hosted by the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) has raised €12,000 for a special school in Co. Wexford
The live crib made a welcome return to IFA Farm Centre in Enniscorthy last December following a three-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sheds were constructed to house the animals for the day which included two-week-old lambs and their mother; an alpaca; Jacob sheep; and donkeys.
The family day also featured a nativity play, Irish dancing, a gospel choir and indoor stalls.
All proceeds raised from the event went directly to St. Patrick’s Special School in Enniscorthy.
The presentation of the cheque for €12,000 was made to the school principal, Lee Rogers during the Wexford IFA annual general meeting (AGM) last night (Monday, February 27).
IFA
Chair of Wexford IFA, Jer O’Mahony, told Agriland that he was “absolutely blown away” by the reaction of the public to the live crib.
“St. Patrick’s holds a special place in the hearts of people around Enniscorthy and indeed in north Wexford, Carlow and south Wicklow. They do a lot of fantastic work.
“Wherever we went, to all of the agri-businesses within the community, it was pushing an open door. People just put their hand in their pocket, and it was brilliant.
“To everybody who took part, who helped in any way and indeed those who were generous to us. We’d love to take say thank you very, very much,” he said.
The funds raised as a result of the live crib will be used to purchase a new hoist to help pupils with mobility issues to safely access the school’s on-site hydrotherapy pool.
A portion of the money will also be used to help cover some of the cost of school bus transport for the children.
“In the normal course of events, most of the news we have is not great news, and people get fed up listening to farmers talking or ‘moaning’, as they would see it.
“But people really do forget that farmers are the ones that feed everybody in this country, and that every penny a farmer gets goes back into the community. And indeed, for a cause like this, people are so generous.
“You can be generous with money, which is one thing, but being generous with your time is a whole different matter. And it really shows the spirit that is out there to help communities still,” O’Mahony said.
AGM
IFA national president Tim Cullinan was the guest speaker at last night’s Wexford IFA AGM, which was attended by around 160 people.
The meeting saw the election of George Graham to the position of Wexford IFA sheep chair.
Along with farming and representing Ireland 11 times in sheep shearing, Graham is a strong mental health advocate and founded the voluntary group, Awareness Head to Toe.
The meeting also saw Andrea McCann join the Wexford IFA committee as the new forestry chair.