Profile of some members of The Ireland Funds' Advisory Committee

Deirdre Fox >
Jim McMahon >
Ursula Leslie >

 Deirdre Fox

Deirdre Fox is a member of The Ireland Funds' Advisory Committee.

This body of 50 volunteers from all over Ireland assess applications received by The Funds, ensuring that we can take a well-informed view of applications and their potential impact in their areas. I have been involved in youth and community work for almost twenty years. The past ten years have been in the Midlands, covering counties Longford, Westmeath, Roscommon, Laois and Offaly.

I suppose because of my work as a Community and Enterprise Development Officer I have been able to assess applications following a similar template for all groups. However, each group is different so there are other criteria I also adhere to.

A typical example of how I would assess a group would begin by establishing the history of the group; if the group has applied to or have been contacted by any other agency. I can establish this by their application form or by contacting the group directly. If another funding agency is involved, I will contact the person responsible within the agency and explain my interest with them in order to establish the credibility of the group.

In the course of my initial contact with the group I will make an appointment to meet with the applicant on location. Sometimes, if I am familiar with the group, with what they hope to achieve and how The Ireland Funds may be able to assist, I will interview over the telephone.

During my discussion, the actual project, its feasibility, and its impact on the community will be assessed. This occurs whether it is a local community or national organization or issue-based group. For voluntary groups, it can be difficult to be realistic, especially where funding is concerned and the old feeling of "If we apply for $50,000 we may get $25,000!" still exists.

Therefore what is important to establish with the group is what they need at that particular time. A completed application form tells a lot. If the project has clear vision then it is reflected in the form and can be confirmed during discussion one way or the other.

In some cases when a voluntary group sees advertising from The Ireland Funds offering grant aid, they hurriedly get an application together. I have, in the past, advised applicants to withdraw until they are more focused and clear on what they may need funding for. It makes things easier at the assessment stage to be honest with such groups and not give them false hope.

Eventually the final step in the process means that my assessment has been carried out following the guidelines of history, contact, discussion, reality and honesty. Once happy with my assessment, recommendation forms are sent to the Dublin office. I relax and look forward to meeting the wonderful Ireland Funds' supporters at the June Conference. January starts the process again.

Jim McMahon

Jim McMahon has evaluated countless organisations in County Kerry since he joined The Ireland Funds’ Advisory Committee in 2000.

To many, the county of Kerry, in the very South West of Ireland, is famous for its holidays, golf, old traditions, talk, literature, fun and Ryan’s Daughter like landscapes. It is all these, and considerably more. For a previously rural and small-town environment it is also becoming more urbanised, more sophisticated, wealthier and less religious. And these factors bring with them problems of a social and economic nature that are common to other developed countries: rising suicide rates, drug addiction, the marginalisation of some social groups.

The new wealth in Ireland is not so evenly spread. The margins of the bread-slice remain un-buttered.

Repairing the damage to the old traditional neighbourhood ways of life is not so easy. But thankfully, the generosity of old friends and new, both in Ireland and from afar remains undiminished. Our Irish relatives and friends, especially in the USA, seem never to forget their ancestral roots. Very many communities here in Ireland and Kerry have benefited from the goodness of philanthropists and benefactors.

The type of groups and organisations which have benefited are many and varied: youth groups, local development associations, local community halls, local museums and many types of cultural support as well as assistance with literacy groups, the disabled, etc.

When I was young in Kerry there was great joy, relief, and fun from the arrival of the “parcel from America”. Comics, clothes, chewing gum and the dollars enclosed kept families going in rough times. Nowadays, the parcel (such as it is) is of a wider, more community conscious nature, but the benefits are to be seen throughout the county and throughout the country, both North and South.

Those of us who are associated with The Ireland Funds never cease to admire the generosity we receive.

Ursula Leslie

Ursula Leslie has been a long-standing member of The Ireland Funds’ Advisory Committee. She served on the Board from 1997 – 2003 and has served on the Assessment Panel since its inception in December 1998.

The Ireland Fund’s generosity to Kerry has resulted in remarkable progress in diverse areas — education, theater and community development – throughout the county.

In Tralee, a course in Adult Literacy at the Diocesan Centre has made an immense difference to the lives of people who slipped through the education system, without being able to read or write. Several of them have gone on to further education and others to gainful employment.

Muckross House is a nineteenth Century mansion in 56,000 acres and was gifted to the nation in the 1930s by the Vincent Family. It is an integral part of the tourist attractions in Kerry. The Fund’s support with seed money has facilitated the building, in its environs, of what amounts to a folk village to show the habitations and lifestyles of people in the past. Farmhouses, labourers’ cottages and a blacksmith’s forge were brought from different areas of the county and re-erected close to Muckross House. A working farm project has recreated the Irish rural life of the 1930’s prior to electrification. Here visitors can see and experience the homes and lifestyles of both wealthy and poor farmers, and watch farming being carried out the traditional way, using horses in the fields for tilling, harvesting and so on. Traditional cooking also takes place in some of the houses here and visitors can chat with the people of the house as well as with the farmers as they go about their daily work. The whole development has become one of the greatest tourist attractions, not only in the county, but also in the country. A much-appreciated spin off of the development has been the creation of many opportunities for work in the area.

A similar tourist attraction and one that encourages interaction from visitors, is a project called – A Day in the Bog. Seed money from The Funds has enabled the community to build an interpretive centre in a local bog in a spacious olde world thatched cottage. The purpose is an educational one – to promote an understanding of the history and development of bogs. At the centre one can learn about how blanket bogs are formed and the rare flora and fauna which inhabit them, see how turf was cut long ago, visit the craft corner, wander around the gardens or take the children to see the pets corner and vintage machinery. Visitors can relax over a cup of tea in front of a huge open fire or just simply enjoy the beauty of the picturesque surroundings. Traditional music sessions are provided at night, as well as “Poor Man’s Banquet”, a traditional evening meal. It has proved to be an immensely popular attraction for both locals and tourists and the schools appreciate its educational value to the children.

In the area of theatre and the arts, the conversion of St John’s Church in Listowel into a Theatre and Arts Centre has been a major attraction for the performing arts in Kerry. St. John’s Church was the Church of Ireland where the ancestors of Kerry Packer of Australia, the Hewsens, worshipped and indeed the main stained glass window is dedicated to George Hewsen. The Ireland Funds adopted it as a flagship project with very generous funding. The Arts Centre is now also supported by the Arts Council in Ireland and attracts performers of international reputation whose talents would never have been enjoyed in Kerry otherwise. The people of Kerry are enthusiastic supporters of the Centre and are very appreciative of the generosity of the Ireland Funds and their foresight in recognizing the potential of the enterprise.

The Ireland Funds have also seed-funded several smaller projects that are up and running throughout the county. All they need is the kick-start and they are away, their own natural creativity and enthusiasm taking each project further.