The Laois Domestic Abuse Service is amongst the thirty-five community groups, sports clubs and organisations from all over Ireland who have been announced as national finalists in the National Lottery Good Causes Awards.
The support service, dedicated to helping women and children subjected to domestic abuse, will contest in the Health & Wellbeing category of this year’s Awards.
The Awards honour the inspiring work and achievements of thousands of projects, clubs and individuals from all over Ireland.
These, with the help of National Lottery Good Causes funding, have had an extraordinary impact on their local communities.
Nearly 30 cent in every €1 spent on National Lottery games goes back to Good Causes all over the country.
LDAS (Laois Domestic Abuse Service) is the only dedicated domestic violence support service in Laois for women and children subjected to domestic abuse and coercive control.
Thanks to funding through the HSE National Lottery scheme, LDAS provides services such as Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy, to help women and children recover from traumatic events in their lives.
It stops difficult memories causing so much distress by helping the brain to reprocess them properly.
Each of the 35 finalists will now receive €1,000 and a hand-crafted trophy and proceed to the grand final in which there are seven categories: Arts & Culture, Community, Health & Wellbeing, Heritage, Irish language, Sport and Youth.
The winners will be announced at the awards ceremony which takes place on Saturday October 1 in the Kilashee House Hotel, Kildare, where each of the seven category winners will receive €10,000 and the overall Good Cause of the Year will take home an additional €25,000.
The 35 National Lottery Good Causes Awards finalists are below. More information on the finalists and the National Lottery Good Causes Awards can be found at: www.lottery.ie/good-causes-awards
Arts & Culture
• Aisling Byrne (Run of the Mill Theatre), Kildare
• Caoilinn Handley, Dublin
• Mother Tongues, Dublin
• The Tyrone Guthrie Centre at Annaghmakerrig, Monaghan
• Waterford High Hopes Choir, Waterford
Community
• Cú Chulainn Bloodbikes, Monaghan
• Irish Red Cross Clare, Clare
• St. Francis Hospice, Dublin
• The Melting Pot Community Society Ltd, Roscommon
• Third Age Foundation CLG T/A Third Age, Meath
Health & Wellbeing
• Ability Equine Assisted Therapy, Meath
• Cian’s Kennels CLG, Longford
• Laois Domestic Abuse Service, Laois
• Strandhill Community Park, Sligo
• Wicklow Rapid Response, Wicklow
Heritage
• Birdwatch Ireland, Wicklow
• Cavan and Leitrim Railway (Dromod), Leitrim
• Irish Peatland Conservation Council (IPCC), Kildare
• Lough Grainey Nature Sanctuary, Clare
• Waterford County Museum – Gallowshill Project, Waterford
Irish Language
• Conradh na Gaeilge, Dublin
• Gaillimh le Gaeilge, Galway
• Muintearas Teoranta, Galway
• Na Gaeil Óga, Dublin
• Raidió na Life, Dublin
Sport
• Clare Local Sports Partnership CLG, Clare
• Dundalk Sub Aqua Search & Rescue, Louth
• Nobber GFC, Meath
• Park Rangers AFC – Female Focus Campaign, Waterford
• Shankill Tennis Club, Dublin
Youth
• Castlegregory Community Golf Course Association, Kerry
• Down Syndrome Limerick Youth Club, Limerick
• Foróige Connect, Mayo
• South Dublin Taekwondo CLG, Dublin
• The Rainbow Club Cork, Cork
SEE ALSO – Laois population goes above 90,000 according to preliminary Census report
