The organisers of Kilmoon Barndance are hosting a Christmas raffle with some impressive prizes and all funds going to a cancer research charity.

Widley known in south Co. Meath and further afield, the Kilmoon Barndance has become a firm fixture in the summer calendar, and this year marked its twelfth consecutive year.

For farming families and rural communities, it generally proves to be a social highlight of the summer.

Organised by the Fox and Kerins families, the Kilmoon Barndance has raised an extraordinary €965,000 for more than 20 local, national and international causes.

The event is held in memory of a family member who passed away from cancer, and this legacy has driven a strong and ongoing commitment to supporting cancer research.

In particular, the Barndance has backed oesophageal cancer research and the North East Cancer Research and Education Trust (NECRET).

This entity is a cancer charity based in Drogheda, Co. Louth, that supports improved patient cancer care in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital. 

NECRET

NECRET’s work in research driven by Prof. Bryan Hennessy of the Lourdes and Beaumont hospitals, has helped develop an innovative breath-analysis device potentially capable of detecting lung cancer cells at a very early stage.

According to the raffle organisers: "This technology is currently being tested as part of Ireland’s first Lung Health Check screening programme, a public health initiative similar in ambition to the successful BreastCheck programme.

"Unlike invasive procedures such as biopsies, this breath test is quick, painless and low-risk, with the potential to make lung cancer screening far more accessible for thousands of people.

"If rolled out nationally, it could significantly improve survival rates by identifying cancer long before symptoms appear or the disease becomes untreatable - a major step forward for public health, particularly in rural Ireland where access to early screening can be limited."

Continuing its support to this charity, the Kilmoon Barndance, spearheaded by businessman Michael Fox has donated a €4,500 voucher for Doonbeg International Golf Links in Co. Clare as the top prize in the NECRET Golf Fundraiser.

The fundraiser features eight luxury golf resorts, with prizes including green fees, overnight accommodation and dinner, experiences that would appeal to golf lovers across the farming and rural community.

Tickets for the NECRET Golf Fundraiser cost €20 for one, €50 for three, or €100 for seven, with every euro going towards potentially life-saving cancer research.

Tickets sales close on Friday, December 19, at 5:00p.m.