President’s Appeal 2024-2026

Selecting a project is very difficult considering there are so many extreme situations which require support.  For my project., at this point need has been identified within the following support services:

Dublin Central Mission: - Wednesday ‘outreach’ and community support:

DCM have had the added challenge of the closure of their main building which was situated on Lower Abbey Street.  This has necessitated the purchase of a new building which willnot be available for immediate. In the interim DCM are utilising resources within St George and St Thomas Church of Ireland, situated off O’Connell Street covering the costs of light and heat as well as the expense of supplying food etc. The funding for the projects has been impacted by the loss of income previously generated from renting out the premises of Abbey Street to other groups.  

The congregation of Abbey Street are stepping out in faith regarding the Wednesday ‘outreach’ activities which are being reinstated this winter with funding being provided by church congregation and friends.  

The following activities will be provided by DCM and volunteers :

From 12-1pm there will be an ‘Open door’ drop-in called “Warm, room, warm welcome, warm coffee (or tea!)” helping to avoid isolation and loneliness and offer people the opportunity of being able to seek and find company and share conversation.   Between 1.00 – 1.30 a short service of prayer for healing will be held offering prayer support to people who request it. and from     2-4pm. a ‘Drop in’ facility will be available to help anyone with practical issues and assistance to those who may struggle with form-filling due to language, literacy limitations etc. The Presidents Project will be able to support this outreach service which provides support to vulnerable people and those through circumstances find themselves in need.  

North West Methodist Mission –: (Clarendon Shelter | NW Methodist Mission (nwmm.co.uk)

Clarendon Shelter provides accommodation and a place of safety for women and children who find themselves in vulnerable situations and in need of care and support. They can be provided with a place of safety within Clarendon Shelter for up to two years.     During thesetwo years, each person is supported by an assigned support worker/keyworker who assists them to address the issues that have contributed to their homelessness and signpost themto other necessary support services.  Residents are supported in preparing themselves to move back to independent living with the added support of the ‘drop in’ centre for those who have left the accommodation.  

Any financial help will aid this service to provide the necessary support to those who are at risk from their change in circumstances.

East Belfast Mission   - Helping individuals to ‘break out’ of homelessness

Providing services to vulnerable people who are homeless or at risk of homelessnessthrough changes in their personal circumstances or physical, emotional health. 

EBM provides accommodation and support to enable people to break out of homelessness, maintain their independence, building confidence and self-esteem to realise their potentialby providing a range of services to meet individual need. 

An example of this is within the Tenancy Support Service which provides one-to-one support to people who have their own tenancy but are struggling and are at risk of homelessness. This service helps people to deal with any of the issues they face that could lead to homelessness including finances, employment, mental health, addictions, social isolation, life skills, education, and integration into a new community.  A range of direct resources are also available to help people maintain their accommodation. This can include furniture, white goods, repairs, removal services, cleaning services, rent support, clothes and travel to access employment or volunteering. We can also provide IT equipment to tackle digital exclusion, or food hampers and toiletries when someone is in a financial crisis.

Donations are gratefully received to support the work of these missions, providing support and care to those in need.

If you wish to make a donation please do so through your Branch Treasurer or if you have any queries please contact Carmel at carmelirwin@hotmail.com