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Members of St Vincent De Paul promoting the upcoming car draw.
ST Vincent De Paul (SVP) South-West have said they have been inundated with calls for assistance during the month of December as they have confirmed 1,400 people have been contacting them from across Cork and Kerry every week.
Calls to the charity seeking help over the last two weeks have increased by up to 200 a week since November. SVP South-West have said they are worried about meeting the volume of people seeking help this year as they face their most demanding Christmas and winter period in several decades.
However, the Society has also made fresh appeals for people in Cork and Kerry to contact them if they find themselves struggling in the run up to Christmas and the New Year – with those seeking help advised to contact them directly in their respective offices in Kerry (066 7128021) or Cork (021 4270444).
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With the cost-of-living crisis deepening, the charity is reporting that more people than ever are seeking help in the run up to the festive and winter season, with 1,400 calls for help per week (a 30% increase on last year).
SVP South-West have said significant numbers of people in Cork and Kerry are reaching out to them seeking assistance as they struggle to cope with sky-high energy costs, increased prices for fuel and sharp rises in the price of food.
The charity has also revealed that the most significant increase in calls this year is coming from lower-income earners in full-time employment.
Speaking at the launch of the SVP South-West Annual Car Draw, SVP South-West’s Regional Co-ordinator Gerry Garvey said the charity is gearing up for one of the most difficult periods for the South-West region in many years.
A key fundraising drive for SVP South-West across Cork and Kerry is the Annual Car Draw. All funds generated in Kerry as a result of the Car Draw will be directly going towards assisting people in Kerry.
Tickets for the raffle cost €5 each and can be purchased online at the following link: www.galabid.com/SVPcardraw
Alternatively, freepost SVP envelopes can be posted or dropped into the SVP Regional Office at Ozanam House, 2 Tuckey Street, Cork or Unit 2 Monavalley Business Park, Tralee, Co Kerry. The final date for entries will be 12 noon on Friday 6th January 2023.
First prize will be a brand-new Ford Focus, kindly donated by the Kavanagh family’s TOMAR Trust. In addition to this there will be six other cash prizes.
The draw will take on January 11th at CAB Motors, Cork with the Lord Mayor in attendance where the winners will be announced.
Details of the winners will be published on www.SVP.ie on Saturday 14th May and in the Irish Examiner with the event streamed later on social media.
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