Tag Archives: Paula Walsh

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Tralee Woman Raises Close To €1,500 For Ataxia In Skydive and Fundraising Campaign

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Pictured is Paula Walsh after completing her tandem skydive for Ataxia Ireland on Saturday in Longford.

A TRALEE woman completed her charity skydive this past weekend at the Aerodrome in Longford as she aimed to raise both much needed funds and awareness of the debilitating disease Ataxia.

Connolly Park native, Paula Walsh, has been effortlessly striving to raise the profile of the disease in recent years and months after she lost her sister Eileen to the condition back in October 2013 (see previous story here).

Paula had already raised over €900 already for Ataxia Ireland before this when she held a fundraising ‘coffee and cake’morning in the House restaurant a few weeks ago.

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This was to only be the tip of her efforts however, with one eye always being stuck on the dreaded date of the dive, August 22, which was to be the main fundraising part of the campaign.

This turned out to be a great success in the end with Paula raising an approximate total of just under €1,500 for the charity along with succeeding in raising the profile of the disease ten fold.

“It [the skydive] was amazing, it was absolutely fantastic,” she said when speaking to TraleeToday.ie this week.

“I was absolutely terrified. The team of instructors at the Aerodrome though, they were just brilliant. As soon as I spoke to them, I felt like I was in safe hands. It was one of the most amazing experiences I’ve ever had,” she continued.

“The fact that I did it for Ataxia made it even better again, it all raised awareness. There was 41 people who did the Skydive for Ataxia, but 14 of those people were actually in wheelchairs, they suffered with Ataxia. To see the courage by them, it was just amazing. Ataxia Ireland is just a fantastic organisation with an amazing group of people,” she finished.

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PHOTOS: Ataxia Fundraising Coffee Morning Goes Down A Treat

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(click to enlarge photo) Karen Fitzgibbon, Paula Walsh, Mia Leen, Eleanor Fitzgerald, Gillian Wharton, Mary Harris and Rizwan Khan at the Ataxia coffee morning in House Restaurant on Wednesday. Photo by Fergus Dennehy.

THERE was a great turnout yesterday morning as House cafe hosted another great fundraising coffee morning, this time for the very rare condition that is Ataxia.

The morning was the brainchild of Tralee woman Paula Walsh, who having experienced the pain and suffering of Ataxia first hand in her family, decided that something needed to be done to raise awareness (see previous story here).

The coffee morning managed to raise over €900, all of which will be donated to the Ataxia Ireland Charity.

This is not the end of Paula’s fundraising efforts however as she prepares for her Skydive4Charity on August 22 in Longford.

Anyone looking to help Paula head over to her skydiving sponsorship page HERE.

Just insert the name ‘Paula Walsh Ataxia Ireland’ into the ‘Name of Person (fundraiser)’: section and donate the amount you wish, with any donation at all being welcomed.

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Ruth Bailey and Doireann Barrett at the Ataxia coffee morning in House Restaurant on Wednesday. Photo by Fergus Dennehy.
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Tralee Woman Paula To Take A Skydive To Raise Awareness Of Rare Condition

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Paula Walsh
Paula Walsh will be helping to raise money for Ataxia Ireland over the next few weeks.

ONE Tralee woman is going all out to help raise awareness of an illness, which has personally affected her own life, but which is not very well known amongst the general public.

Paula Walsh, originally from the Connolly Park area, will be holding a coffee and cake morning from 10.30am-12.30pm on Wednesday August 12 in the ‘House’ restaurant with all the money raised from the morning being donated towards Ataxia Ireland (click here for more information).

As if this act of generosity wasn’t enough, Paula will then be taking part in a charity skydive event in Longford on August 22 in association with Skydive 4 Charity, with the money raised again going towards Ataxia Ireland.

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“It [Ataxia] is personal to me. The coffee morning is to help raise funds for it, but more to raise awareness of it. For me, that’s paramount, that’s my main objective – to raise the profile of Ataxia,” said Paula when speaking to TraleeToday.ie on Thursday.

It is a genetic and progressive disorder of the central nervous system that usually affects children between 6-16 years of age, but which can sometimes strike older than this. Symptoms include clumsiness, difficulties with balance, lack of co-ordination and, in time, a slurring of speech.

The condition can lead to extreme difficulty in performing the normal simple activities of living, with most sufferers confined to a wheelchair by their late teens and early twenties.

“My sister Eileen had M.S and she died in October 2013. She would have also had Ataxia because of her M.S. I have a friend who suffers from it too and he would have been diagnosed when he was ten years of age,” she continued.

“I’d always wanted to do a skydive as well, but because I studied social care, something I’ve always been passionate about is helping others. I knew that I would be doing some good for others by raising awareness and raising some much needed funds for those affected by it and their families,” she said.

Anyone looking to help Paula raise money and awareness for Ataxia can do so by either heading down to the coffee and cake morning in ‘House’ next Wednesday morning, or by heading over to her skydiving sponsorship page HERE and making a donation.

Just insert the name ‘Paula Walsh Ataxia Ireland’ into the ‘Name of Person (fundraiser)’: section and donate the amount you wish, with any donation at all being welcomed.