Attention all spinners! Prozone, bases in Thomond Park Stadium, Limerick are holding their very own CHARITY SPINATHON on June 28th in aid of The Hope Foundation. A charity spinathon is a great away to improve your fitness and raise much needed funds that will go a long way to support HOPE’s many projects with the street and slum children in Kolkata. The spinathon kicks off at on Friday evening between 6pm and 8pm and will include DJ, free refreshments and a raffle for all participants. Admission to the event is €20. Prozone is encouraging all participants to book their place in advance, and anyone interested should contact (086) 9174047 or t.stuart@campus.ie.

Alison Reidy, from Shannon in Co. Clare, plans to complete 10 triathlons in 10 days this June, in a bid to raise money for street and slum children in Kolkata, India.

Alison will attempt to complete a sprint triathlon, comprising of a 750m swim, a 20km cycle, and a 5km run, every day for nine days starting Thursday June 20^th.

These triathlons will take place from the Shannon Swimming and Leisure Centre in Co. Clare. The final triathlon, on day 10, will be double the distance (1500m swim, 40km cycle, 10km run) and will start from in Kilkee, Co Clare.  With this race aptly named ‘Hell of the West’, it is sure to test her fitness to the maximum.

For the duration of the 10 days there will be at least one fellow triathlete accompanying Alison, and for the grand finale she will be competing alongside hundreds of others.

Speaking about why she took on such a big challenge Alison says, “I take part in a lot of triathlons and races throughout the year so doing just one event wasn’t much of a challenge for me. As someone who keeps fairly fit all the time, I felt I had to do something out of the ordinary and I wanted to do something that made me feel like I really earned the money I’d raised.”

Alison will be travelling over to Kolkata this October to help paint some HOPE’s children’s crèches and protection homes, as well as seeing first hand where all her fundraising money is being spent.

To sponsor Alison you can log on to www.mycharity.ie/events/alisonreidy10tris10days.

Join HOPE for ‘The ITRA’s’ – Tag Rugby’s answer to the Oscars and raise lots of funds for street children in Calcutta.

Calling all UCD Tag Rugby Players-  Join HOPE for the first ever ‘ Irish Tag Rugby awards’ taking place in O Shea’s Lounge, Clonskeagh, June 27^th at 9.00pm and help raise lots of funds for street children in Calcutta. This event is in association with the Irish Tag Rugby Association and promises to be a fun filled night with lots of awards to be won!

This is your opportunity to cast your vote and crown your Tag Rugby winners of the year.

So who is the Diva of the team or has the moves like Jagger?  Only you can decide!

Simply fill in your nominations below and join us in O Shea’s Lounge on Thursday 27^th of June at 9pm after the summer league fixtures where your winners will be announced.

Finger food and fantastic raffle prizes also  on offer!

Tickets/Entry Fee €7

All funds on the night will go directly towards The Hope Foundation’s 64 projects working directly with street and slum children in Calcutta. For more information and tickets contact Jayann in our Dublin Office on jayann@hopefoundation.ie or 01-8716930

Dermot O Mahoney, HOPE’s chairman of the board, is to be awarded an honorary doctorate of Law in UCC early next month.

Dermot has been active in the Irish business, educational and voluntary sectors for over 50 years and has been the Chairman of The Hope Foundation for the last 4 years.

He recently returned from a trip to Calcutta to see all of our projects firsthand, an opportunity he says let him witness the great work being done by HOPE but also the continuing great need for HOPE’s services.

The ceremony will take place in UCC on June 7^th, where Dermot will be conferred a degree of Doctor of Laws alongside three other Irish men including Fergal Keane, Graham Norton and Donald W. Molloy.

HOPE would like to take this opportunity to congratulate him on being awarded this prestigious Doctorate, and thank him for all he has done for The Hope Foundation over the past 4 years.

The Bhakti Fest of Hope is a family festival that will bring a kaleidoscope of colour with an eclectic mix of Indian and Irish sounds to the Leitrim and North Roscommon area on Saturday 29th June at a fantastic open air venue on the banks of the river Shannon at Beirne’s of BattleBridge.

The fun day and night will boast craft stalls, art, kids activities, Bollywood dancing, live music, fire dancers, Indian cinema, delicious food, full bar, camping, Bhangra DJ, chill out tent, a bouncy castle, marquees and a wonderful food demonstration by award winning chef, Shamzuri Hanifa, of the Cottage Restaurant, Jamestown.

Tickets are a €20 donation and accompanied children go FREE! Tickets can be purchased in Carrick-on-Shannon at Vittos Italian Restaurant (Bridge street), Leitrim Physiotherapy Centre (Leitrim Rd), The Larder (Market Yard) and the Makeover Studio (Bridge street) and also on the day at the ticket desk.

If you have any questions please log on to the event website or do not hesitate in contacting the organisers: Tara 086 152 68 33, John 086 812 75 36 or Margaret 087 065 7864.

All funds raised will be going to The Hope Foundation’s projects in Kolkata.

HOPE’s annual Dublin luncheon takes place tomorrow, Friday May 24th, at the Four Seasons Hotel Dublin. The event is one of the most presigious fundraising events of the year and is organized by HOPE trustee Mairead Sorenson of Butlers Chocolates.

This year, in addition to the sumptous 3 course meal, raffle and charity auction, there is a special treat in store for guests as HOPE’s Indian director, Geeta, will be attending on the day to talk  about the amazing work being done on the ground  in HOPE’s 60 projects in Kolkata.

All proceeds of the Dublin Lunch are in aid of the HOPE Girl’s Home in Kolkata (Calcutta),  Panditya Place. This is a safe, loving home for 60 girls at a time, as well as those who are in boarding school and consider Panditya Place their home.

Supporters can be very proud of how you have fundamentally changed the lives of hundreds of girls and we really value and appreciate your support over the years.

All of us here in HOPE would like to thank all our supporters who came along to our  ‘Gathering for Geeta’ event last Saturday, to welcome HOPE’s Indian director to Ireland.

The event, at The Copplestone Food Company, was a great success and it was great seeing so many old and new HOPE supporters there to welcome Geeta to Ireland.

Geeta Venkadakrishnan, Director of HOPE Kolkata, is the face of HOPE in Kolkata whom so many of you have come to know personally. With over 25 year experience in development, Geeta has supported the development of tens of thousands of children in India.

This was a great opportunity to celebrate her hard work and show our appreciation for all she has done.

Thank you again to all who came along!

Would you like to get fit and healthy while raising money for a good cause?? The Hope Foundation is looking for people to run in a wide range of Marathons and Mini Marathons around Ireland this summer, while raising money for slum and street children in Kolkata in the process.

We have teamed up with the girls from this years ‘Diva Next Door’ competition in a bid to encourage more people to pick up their running shoes and hit the road in aid of HOPE. Keep your eye out for our nationwide poster campaign (as seen above) encouraging people to run for HOPE this summer!

If you would like to get involved you can call Janet in the Cork office (021 4292990) or Jayann in our Dublin office (01-8716930) and we will be happy to send you out HOPE t-shirts and sponsorship cards. The more people who get involved, the bigger difference we can make to the lives of those less fortunate.

Join us this summer and BE THE CHANGE you want to see in the world!

Some of this year’s top marathons and races include:

The Dublin Flora Womens Mini Marathon on 3rd June.

The Cork City Marathon on June 3rd.

The Rock ‘n’ Roll Dublin Half Marathon on 5th  August.

The Cork Women’s Mini Marathon on 15th September.

The Dublin Marathon on Monday 28th October.

However, Volunteers who visited the HOPE hospital over the last few months will have witnessed the slow but progressive improvements in his health. In February he was positively responding to treatment and now after 3 months of care in the HOPE hospital, Ganesh is well on the road to making a full recovery.

He is now sitting up in his bed, loves colouring and will even play catch with you using a water balloon or soft toy. Soon, we pray, he will be able to enjoy his childhood like all other children his age.

Thanks to everyone for keeping him in your thoughts and prayers, and we promise to keep you updated on his recovery.