ESB fund boost for Fettercairn centre
Jennifer Garton
THE Fettercairn Community Centre received a generous donation from the ESB this week, reports Jennifer Garton.
The donation was given by Tony Merriman from ESB Energy for Generations Fund and was received by Shay L’Estrange, manager, and Mary Keegan, the estate manager for the centre.
The funding has involved pulling together all strands of society, the ESB, Dublin Bus, South Dublin County Council, Education Training Board as well as a myriad of donations from the local business sector.
In efforts to reinvigorate interaction between the centre and the community, the donation will be used to fund the social needs of the area, and will include sports, leisure, education, and mental health.
The issue of mental health is believed to be crucial because of the high rate of suicides among young men.
Some of the programmes for young people include an after-school homework club that caters for 20 children on a daily basis, which needs a coordinator to be appointed. A soccer acadamy, taekwondo lessons and a group specifically for girls between 10-12 have recently been introduced.
The centre also runs programmes for adults such as beginners’ computer courses. The community centre has also been in the process of creating more men’s sheds in the area, which are there for all men, regardless of age, ability or background.
The sheds are an organisation aimed at promoting the wellbeing of men through developing new and old skills and sharing them with others.
The centre would also love to hear suggestions for new groups and ideas from the community.
To contact them, call 01 4527011, or drop into the centre at opening times.
