The Jack & Jill Mobile Phone Relay

Over the past few years I've been helping to raise awareness for a local Charity called The Jack & Jill Children's foundation and next month I'm involved in a fundraising effort through the collection of old mobile phones as per the attached press release.  The plan is to run with 2 running friends from Galway to Dublin and collect 10,000 old / unused / broken mobile phones along the way.  It might sound like an ambitious target but I'm guessing that there must be thousands more than this figure lying around because most people I mention this to reply saying that they have 2 or 3 at home.  Collection points will be set up in advance with full details available shortly from Jack & Jill.

Please contact Deirdre in Jack & Jill 045894538 for more information or Jonathan Irwin on 087 2558451.

 

Mobile marathon from Galway to Dublin in August in aid of the Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation

39 year old John O’Regan from  Leixlip  will run a Mobile Marathon Relay from Galway to Dublin on 7th, 8th, and 9th August 2009 in aid of the Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation and he’s looking for more relay partners to join in along the way for any distance – long or short.  The target is to collect 10,000 mobile phones along the route and John & his team are asking people of every age to join in by paying an entry fee of 3 old mobile phones at the 10 designated pick up points along the route.   The Jack & Jill Mobile Marathon will take the AA Roadwatch route avoiding motorways, passing through Oranmore, Loughrea, Ballinasloe, Athlone, Mullingar, Athboy, Navan, Dunshaughlin, Dunboyne and then finishing at The Spire in Dublin’s O’Connell Street.  John who works with Irish Rail is well known for planning “unusual” runs for charity  earlier this year he ran the 1576 steps of The Empire State Building in New York.  He also ran a Marathon on each of the seven continents, the North Pole Marathon in April 2004 and many more.

 

People can find out more about the Jack & Jill Mobile Marathon and how they can join in by logging onto jackandjill.ie The Jack & Jill Foundation supports 300 families around the country with children who are born with or who develop brain damage and who suffer severe neurological delay and need intensive home nursing care as a result.

 

Welcoming the new fundraising initiative, Jonathan Irwin, CEO of Jack & Jill said, “We are delighted to see volunteers like John supporting our families who live in every community in Ireland through exciting initiatives like this one.  We have huge admiration for John and his crew and we will have drop off points for mobile phones all along the route and we’ll be following the race in a Jack & Jill van.  I want to remind people that 250 old mobile phones buys home nursing care for a sick child for one month and it doesn’t matter if people run a few paces or a few kilometres – every little helps and this mobile marathon will go a long way to achieving our 2009 target of collecting 500,000 phones.  I want to thank John and his team in advance, to wish them the best of luck and to ask communities along the route to show their support by joining in.”

 

The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation (www.jackandjill.ie) was set up in 1997 by Jonathan Irwin and his wife MaryAnn O’Brien (MD of Lily O’Brien’s) to help young children in Ireland who are born with or develop brain damage and who suffer severe intellectual and physical developmental delay as a result.  They decided to set up Jack & Jill based on their own experience with their son Jack whoseshort life showed them the ideal way in which little children can be nursed at home.  From their experience evolved the Jack & Jill model of home nursing and respite care that supports 302 families in Ireland today and has helped over 1,100 children and their families since 1997.  The service includes home visits, advice, information, funding, lobbying and bereavement support.

 

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For further information:       Jonathan Irwin 087 2558451