This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to win your own home in Cork and support a really good cause while you do it. Enable Ireland’s Win a House Cork fundraiser supports its vital disability services for children. Enable Ireland is offering one lucky person the chance to win a three-bedroom house with a fitted kitchen and garden in Astra Construction’s Janeville development in Carrigaline, Co Cork valued at €350,000.
Tickets are available for €100 from winahousecork.ie, with the draw date confirmed for Friday, June 14th, 2024.
The winner will also receive a €5,000 voucher sponsored by Right Price Tiles and Wood Flooring and a €5,000 voucher sponsored by EZ Living Interiors, bringing the total prize value to an incredible €360,000.
Meet the Clarke family
The Clarke family from Newcestown, Co Cork, is one of many that have received the vital supports provided by Enable Ireland. Therese Clarke’s son, Adam (7), was born with triplegic cerebral palsy, which affects both his legs and his upper right side. Since birth Adam has attended services in Enable Ireland’s Lavanagh Centre in Cork.
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Therese recalls the challenges Adam faced after his birth: “He was in the neonatal unit for 15 days and I was there all day, every day. He was tube fed the first few days and he was on antibiotics. Then I decided to breastfeed Adam. I said, ‘let’s do this’, and he thrived from the start.”
After leaving the hospital Adam was referred to the Enable Ireland team in Cork. “The physiotherapist, the occupational therapist, the psychologist and the paediatrician, were all at the initial meeting with us,” she says. “It was all very inclusive, with Adam being the main man. The key was to get into early intervention and Enable Ireland was the best. That’s where Adam needed to be. We can never thank them enough.”
Adam benefited greatly from the early interventions services provided by Enable Ireland, including occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, hydrotherapy, paediatrician advice, psychology orthopaedic and an excellent preschool on site.
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Adam’s journey with Enable Ireland
Adam continues to receive therapeutic support from the Enable Ireland team in the Lavanagh centre. With each new stage of childhood the team work with Adam and his family to provide the right supports at the right time. Adam’s resilience and hard work over the years ensured that key personal and physical development milestones were met.
“Adam just kept reaching those milestones and ticking the boxes, all against the norm,” Therese says with pride. “Adam has made huge gains attending Enable Ireland, improving personally and he is progressing in every way.”
Adam uses a wheelchair and a walker for mobility. The Enable Ireland team ensured Adam’s walker was optimum for his needs and enabled his independence. Therese explains the importance of mobility aids for children like Adam and how they can enable key milestones to be achieved, like walking into school independently for the first time. “Adjustments were made to his Kaye walker, to the seat and the belt. The positioning of the weight of the seat helped him hugely. In 2020, he walked into school for the first time! Adam also took part in The Echo Virtual Women’s Mini Marathon, raising €15,000 for Enable Ireland in the process,” says Therese.
Learning to be independent
Enable Ireland’s approach focuses on empowering children like Adam to be as independent as they can and partnering with the family to meet each child’s individual needs. For children and their families, their support is there from the very start. They work closely with parents to ensure all aspects of a child’s physical, educational and social development are covered.
“The staff in Enable Ireland taught Adam that he could do things himself, which is even more important. He has learnt that he ‘can too’- just differently. He knows that he has a place in the world, like everyone else.
“The whole team has been incredible. For Adam, I don’t think he would be anywhere near where he is now without them. Every child is different of course, but it’s done wonders for him.”
Win a House
“We are delighted to help support and raise awareness of this exciting fundraiser; ‘Win a House’,” says Therese.
“The goal of the campaign is to complete the funding of the children’s centre in Cork, benefiting children for generations to come. The funds will help maintain and expand the services for over 1,800 children.”
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About the cause
Enable Ireland provides services for over 13,000 children and adults with disabilities and their families from over 40 centres and in 15 counties around Ireland. They provide essential clinical, therapy, respite, residential, PA/family support, community support and day services.
Gillian Darrer, Enable Ireland director of services Cork, Kerry and Kilkenny says, “We believe that a disability should not mean that a child doesn’t get the same chance in life we all want for our children. With the right support, every child should have access to education, to sport, to building friendships, to participating in the community.”
“The services we provide from our centre in Curraheen are essential to the children who rely on them. Completing the funding for this centre means we can continue to support services for the next generation of children.”
Buying a ticket for the campaign will give other children like Adam the opportunity to thrive. Enable Ireland’s Children’s Service centre in Curraheen includes assessment and treatment facilities, a hydrotherapy pool, meeting rooms, preschool supports, an accessible playground and family facilities.
Also on the site is Lavanagh House, a children’s respite house where children with disabilities can develop their independence skills while giving their families a break.
Enable Ireland is only part-funded by the State. Every year, they need to raise more than €2 million in additional income to go towards meeting the costs of delivering their vital services. By supporting Enable Ireland you are helping to continue to meet the needs of the children and their families relying on their services.
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About the house
Janeville is a new development by Astra Construction of luxury A-rated houses, located on the Cork side of Carrigaline, close to the Shannon Park roundabout. This location is the most sought after in Carrigaline and indeed Cork, due to the proximity to the city centre, Mahon Point, Ringaskiddy and surrounding major employment areas, all just a short drive away.
The house includes a fitted kitchen (appliances not included), generous electrical specification, fully painted with a generous choice of Dulux colours, oak internal doors with contemporary chrome handles, contemporary sanitary ware supplied and fitted in all bathrooms, air to water heat pump, Ber A2 rating, 10-year homebond structural warranty with each unit, double cobble lock driveways, spacious patio to the rear and landscaped open green areas.
Tickets are priced at €100 and can be purchased on winahousecork.ie, by calling the fundraising team on 087 790 5029 or e-mailing hello@winahousecork.ie. With tickets sales capped at 10,000 the odds are better than many other equivalent draws. The draw will take place on Friday, June 14th