Avery Dennison Foundation donates €9,000 to Longford Meals on Wheels

The Avery Dennison Foundation “Granting Wishes Programme” recently donated €9,000.45 to Longford’s Meals on Wheels.

This gesture continues the foundation's 12-year history of assisting over 400 different organisations across Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the United States.

In 2023, Avery Dennison and the Avery Dennison Foundation contributed more than €4.7 million to Communities worldwide. The focus is on 5 key areas: Education, Sustainability, Women’s Empowerment, Disaster Relief and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.

One of Avery Dennison’s Sustainability goals is to make a positive social impact by enhancing the well-being of the communities in which they operate.

Elaine Keogh, Manager of Longford Meals on Wheels, said “We are extremely grateful to Avery Dennison Medical for choosing our charity as a beneficiary. These funds have helped towards the purchase of a new van which is already out on the road.

“The service is more than just a meal; our friendly drivers are always ready to chat, have a banter, report any problems, or get help where necessary. Sometimes the visit could be the only one that the client has so it is important to spend a little time with them. We always remember their birthdays and bring out a personalised birthday cake and a small cake at Christmas time.      

“At the moment we are delivering over 800 ready cooked/chilled meals per week to the Town and all of County Longford touching on Westmeath, Cavan and Leitrim. The service, with its ongoing production and delivery of meals to our wonderful clients, has been made possible by the hard work and dedication of our staff and volunteers."

The donation also marks another milestone of Avery Dennison Medical’s impact on Longford since the corporation acquired Finesse Medical in 2017, with the company now employing over 300 people in the town. On any given day, hundreds of thousands of people are helped by Avery Dennison Medical’s products. Avery Dennison Medical is on a mission to create even more local jobs, enhance patient outcomes worldwide, and shape the future of the medical manufacturing industry both locally and abroad.

The company foundation’s involvement with Longford Meals on Wheels coincides with Avery Dennison Medical Longford’s new initiative to support local sporting organisations through advertising sponsorships. With the help of Longford Ladies Rugby Football Club, Longford GAA and Longford Town FC, the business aims to promote its values of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the community while also encouraging local young people to explore work opportunities at the Longford site and further enrich Longford’s reputation as a high-quality manufacturing hub.

“Avery Dennison is committed to growth and development of our medical business based in the IDA Business Park in Longford.  The Longford facilities are a collective Centre of Excellence for Commercial, Research, Development & Innovation and manufacturing of medical devices including wound care, ostomy, skin care and negative pressure drapes. We are very proud of the team in Longford and the developing community engagement helping to enable and support us and them in partnership”, said John Gaffney, General Manager. 

He added “We are delighted to support Meals on Wheels.  They offer a vital and important service with strong social entrepreneurial spirit.”