Community

Pilgrim's Europe Awards Over £60,000 to Community Organizations

Pilgrim's Europe has donated more than £60,000 to 15 community organizations across the UK for projects aimed at supporting and enriching the lives of those in need.

These awards mark the first tranche of groups to benefit from the £1 million fund Pilgrim's Europe established to support community groups local to its operations across Europe.

One group to benefit from the Pilgrim's Europe Community Support Fund in Northern Ireland is the Blackwater Community Barge organization in Dungannon, which helps make the Blackwater River accessible to those who are disabled and less abled. The group aims to support wellbeing and boost mental health, focusing on the calming elements of water, and teach about nature and the local landscape.

Brian MacAuley, Secretary from the Blackwater Community Barge said, “With support from Pilgrim's Europe and through fundraising activity, we will be able to purchase a new purpose-built wheelchair accessible boat. With this, we can reach even more members of the community who may not have been able to enjoy riverside and water activities previously and will benefit from seeing the local area in a new way.

“While we have not been able to take users out over the lockdown period, the Blackwater Community Barge group has been busy carrying out conservation work on the river, getting it ready for when the barge arrives. We are incredibly grateful to have secured funding from Moy Park's Community Support Fund and look forward to supporting the physical and mental wellbeing of those in our community further through this project.”

Another group to benefit from the Pilgrim's Europe Community Support Fund in England is emergency response charity, LIVES in Grantham. Pilgrim's Europe donated £12,850 for a defibrillator replacement program. A LIVES responder carries their own defibrillator, so that they are ready for any medical emergency they are called to, and when minutes matter in a cardiac arrest, the LIVES responder and their defibrillators make a difference.

Zoe Dean, Community Partnerships Manager at LIVES said, “We are thrilled to have been awarded support from the Pilgrim's Europe Community Support Fund. The defibrillator replacement program is a costly task, but the benefits will be extensive. The new defibrillators will allow the data recorded to be uploaded to the patient's records and will allow the hospitals to make a more informed decision on patient care. The new equipment will also allow us to evaluate our CPR activity and drive future training. This project will fund 10 defibrillators in the Grantham area and we are extremely excited to be working with Pilgrim's Europe on this project."

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