Cork Safety Alert

SPAR gives €10,000 Boost to The Food Fund

Gold Medallist and SPAR brand ambassador Kellie Harrington with, from left, Eva Corbett, Corey McCarthy, and Amy O’Riordan of The Food Fund during the SPAR 60th Community Fund Winners Event at The Avon in The Burgage, Blessington, Wicklow. Image: Seb Daly/Sportsfile

SPAR and Olympic gold medallist Kellie Harrington recently announced that The Food Fund are to benefit from a €10,000 presentation from local community retailer SPAR, after they were announced as one of the winners of SPAR’s nationwide Community Fund initiative.

The Food Fund, which is a social enterprise designed by five secondary school students in Terence MacSwiney College to reduce food waste in local schools, redistribute food to Penny Dinners and raise awareness of food needs in the community are one of six beneficiaries of the SPAR 60th Community Fund initiative, with five other organisations spread across Connacht, Munster and Leinster also receiving €10,000 in funding.

This campaign builds on SPAR’s established Community Fund initiative, which was first launched in December 2021. Ireland’s leading convenience retailer has now made a direct investment of €80,000 to deserving community projects across the country, something that is indicative of SPAR’s ongoing commitment of giving back to local communities and their customers.

More than 1,100 groups from around the country applied for the third wave of funding provided by the SPAR Community Fund and a club representative from those six groups who were successful recently enjoyed a meet and greet session with SPAR Ambassador and Olympic Champion Kellie Harrington when they engaged in fun activities together and explained more about their community work.

The Food Fund, for example, has helped provide more than 9,000 hot meals and 7,000 sandwiches to Cork Penny Dinners since they initiated The Food Fund in October 2021 and SPAR is proud to make a difference with the funding of €10,000. The money will be used by the Food Fund to further develop an App that will allow other schools to track and upload their data on left over school meals so that they can also be collected and donated to a charity rather than being dumped and ending up in landfill creating unnecessary quantities of waste.

Irish Olympian and SPAR Brand Ambassador Kellie Harrington said:

“The SPAR 60th Community Fund is a fantastic initiative that makes a real difference to the lives of people who are in need of a little support. I am delighted to once again be involved in boosting funds to clubs, groups and programmes across Ireland who are bringing that sense of community and pride to where they live. This is a great way of giving back in a meaningful way and seeing vital community work both acknowledged and rewarded.”

Colin Donnelly, SPAR Sales Director, commented:

“For 60 years SPAR retailers have been proud to serve local communities around the country and the SPAR 60th Community Fund allows us to continue our ongoing work of rewarding and acknowledging the communities SPAR retailers are embedded in. It was great to meet representatives of The Food Fund and hear about the terrific work they are doing and how the SPAR 60thCommunity Fund will be able to support their work in a very meaningful way.”

To find out more about the SPAR 60th Community Fund and other SPAR initiatives taking place this year marking SPAR’s 60 years in Ireland, visit SPAR’s social media channels and watch the winner’s videos on SPAR’s YouTube page.

@SPARIreland on Twitter

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