Nenagh firm's charitable donation
SYS Group’s support for St Joseph’s Foundation
Financial planning experts SYS Group was delighted to present a cheque to the value of €1,000 to St Joseph’s Foundation (SJF) at its Equine Assisted Therapy Centre in Liskennett.
In late 2022, Nenagh based SYS Group submitted an application to the Aviva Broker Community Fund on behalf of SJF to acquire funding for the organisation that relies heavily on donations. SJF provides a range of services and support for 1,300 children and 400 adults with autism and intellectual disabilities in the North Cork and South Limerick regions. The funds of €1,000 will be used at the organisation’s equine assisted therapy centre in Liskennett, Co Limerick. In 2023, the centre will facilitate 13,000 sessions of equine therapy for individuals, families and schools.
SJF is highly regarded by SYS Group, who have seen first-hand what the organisation does. Financial planner with SYS Group David O’Connor’s daughter Becky is a service user at St Josephs.
David said: “Our daughter Becky has been using the services at St Joseph’s for years. When she turned 18, she became a user of Oakview day care services, Kilmallock, which is connected to SJF. For us and for Becky, the impact has been immense. If this facility wasn’t in place, we would have had no choice but to become full-time carers for Becky.”
Fundraising co-ordinator at St Joseph’s, Susan Nolan, added: “We have 27 horses/ponies who provide equine therapy sessions to children and adults with autism and/or an intellectual disability at Liskennett. We rely heavily on charitable donations such as these and it will be put to good use at our equine centre.”
Equine therapy at Liskennett is open to any child/adult with a diagnosis of autism or an intellectual disability; they do not have to be attached to the foundation. Next in the pipeline for SJF is to continue work on the facilities at its newest equine centre in Kanturk, Co Cork.
Aviva’s Senan Histon said: “At Aviva, we are ever conscious of the importance of supporting the communities in which we operate, where our people work and where our customers live. Through the Aviva Broker Community Fund, we are delighted to support St Joseph’s Foundation and the fantastic supports and services they provide.”