Pictured: Margaret Toner, Project Co-ordinator at Letterkenny CDP. North West Newspix
Five local organisations from Donegal were announced as County Winners in the National Lottery Good Causes Awards 2023.
The awards aim to honour, showcase and celebrate the inspiring work being carried out nationwide by thousands of projects, clubs and individuals who have received support from Good Causes funding.
The five County Winners of the National Lottery Good Causes Awards from Donegal are being recognised as part of the following categories:
Arts & Culture: Inishowen Traditional Music Project
Community: Letterkenny Community Development Project
Health & Wellbeing: Spraoi agus Spórt
Heritage: Donegal Railway Heritage Museum
Sport: Raphoe Community Sports
The initiatives being recognised at the awards include Inishowen Traditional Music Project, which preserves and promotes Irish traditional music in the Inishowen peninsula; Donegal Railway Heritage Museum which aims to keep the history and heritage of the County Donegal Railways alive through the running of the Museum, and the rescuing, restoration and showcasing of unique rolling stock and traction; and Spraoí agus Spórt, an award-winning social enterprise which provides services and activities for young people and adults that are inclusive of disability and/or autism in Donegal.
Local or national, large or small, the awards will recognise initiatives across a broad list of categories: Sport, Health & Wellbeing, Arts & Culture, Heritage, Community, Youth, and Irish Language. This year’s event will take place on Saturday, 21st October 2023 in Killashee House Hotel, Naas, Co. Kildare.
The 133 County Winners will now compete for a place in the National Finals judging phase next month, after which the National Finalists will be announced.
The total prize fund available on the night of the Good Causes Awards ceremony is €100,000, whereby 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. A special category, ‘Hero of the Year’, will be announced on the awards night in recognition of outstanding work and the recipient will receive a prize of €5,000. In addition, each of the National Finalists announced in June will receive a cheque for €1,000.
In total more than €6 billion has been raised for Good Causes since the National Lottery was established 34 years ago. In 2021 alone, €304 million was raised for local Good Causes in communities across Ireland.
