Irish Deaf Youth Association

IDYA present the €10,000 cheque to Build4Life along with Nicholas O'Halloran, his mother and a CF nurse from Cork University Hospital Staff

Last week members of the Irish Deaf Youth Association of Ireland presented the Build4life Kids charity for Cystic Fibrosis with a cheque for €10,000. The cheque was presented at Cork University Hospital last week, and will go towards much needed Isolation Units for paediatric care of CF patients.

The Irish Deaf Youth Association, a registered charity, became aware of Cystic Fibrosis through one of its members Nicholas O'Halloran who has CF. He approached the IDYA to organise some fundraising events some months ago, and although the charity itself was struggling, when they were made aware of the lack of facilities to treat CF, they decided wanted to make a real difference.

This feat of fundraising was only made possible through the great efforts of Nicholas O'Halloran and the all of the IDYA members, both past, present and supporting members. Fundraising was done in the form of head shaves for both men and women, leg and chest waxes and online donations. An IDYA Calendar organised by Carmel Duggan, and featuring the IDYA members was also produced with proceeds to go to Build4life. A fundraising night was then set up to launch the calendar and for spectators to see the waxing and shaving in support of CF. The night was a great success, and along with calendar sales, fundraising had surpassed expectation. This was largely down to the great support given to the IDYA from the Deaf Community in general.

The money raised by the Irish Deaf Youth Association will go towards badly needed Isolation Units for children in Cork University Hospital where Nicholas O'Halloran was treated for CF as a child, in his home town. The IDYA also raised a further €2,396.24 through online sponsorship and donated the proceeds to the Cystic Fibrosis Association of Ireland which has been passed onto the unit in Cork also.

The Irish Deaf Youth Association is a registered charity which caters for the needs of Young Deaf and hard of hearing from all over Ireland. It was set up in 1986 to ensure that Deaf youths were given the same accessibility to services and information as their hearing peers. The IDYA offer a social outlet for young members of the Deaf community to come together and celebrate their culture and language. It gives a sense of identity and helps to combat problems of isolation and social exclusion. If you wish to receive more information about the IDYA or would like to donate to the charity please email: info@irishdeafyouth.com.