Mammoth €80,000 raised at St Fiacc’s ‘I'm a Celeb’ fundraiser

CONTESTANTS faced down snakes, rats and eating disgusting things at an I’m a Celebrity themed fundraiser for St Fiacc’s FC on 18 April.

“I was relieved to be in the audience,” said club treasurer Donna Byrne.

The 22 contestants who took part in the fundraiser in the Talbot Hotel “were very good in fairness,” she said. Some of them struggled going through “vigorous trials, like the real show” but it was Fletcher Keating, one of the coaches with the club, who emerged from the testing experience as the winner.

“It was unbelievable – the feedback from attendees was brilliant. A lot of people didn’t know what to expect, but they had a great time,” Donna said of the 350 or so attendees.

Through sponsorship of the contestants, adverts in the booklet, a raffle and auction, the club made over €80,000 on the night, which “exceeded expectations,” she said.

Roughly €25,000 of the proceeds were spent on running the professionally-organised event, but the remaining €55,000 will go directly to a much-needed pitch for the football club in Graiguecullen. They currently rely on the generosity of schools, renting out pitches when required. However, they received a Sports Capital grant for a new pitch and are hopeful that an application for LEADER funding will be successful, meaning they can begin the project within the year.

The club hopes to run another smaller fundraiser next year and Donna expressed her thanks to “everyone who supported the fundraiser in any way,” be it sponsors or attendees.