Longford organisations to benefit from €68,500 court poor box grants

Covid-19 has had an impact on the Court Poor Box grants, which are usually distributed by Judge Seamus Hughes in the weeks leading up to Christmas.

Last year saw local organisations and community groups avail of a total of €75,000. That figure has dropped significantly this year to €68,500.

The majority of the funding in the Court Poor Box comes from contributions paid by persons who have been prosecuted for possession of small amounts of illicit drugs such as cannabis.

The majority of such prosecutions arised from Garda operations carried out during annual music festivals. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, those festivals were cancelled this year, secerely impacting the funding available from the Court Poor Box.

Longford Women’s Link, which accompanies a large number of women to court every year has received a total of €20,000, similar to last year’s allocation, and the largest donation from the court this year.

LEAP C/O Foróíge received a total of €10,000 last year. That has dropped somewhat this year but the organisation will still receive €7,500.

Other large donations this year include €5,000 for County Longford Social Services; €4,000 to Longford Tidy Towns; €3,500 for Lus a Gréine Family Resource Centre; €3,000 for Ballymahon Family Resource Centre; €2,500 for St Christopher’s Services Ltd; €2,000 each for Mullinalaghta Community Centre, St Bernard’s NS, Abbeylara, Melview Football Club, the EDI Centre, the Longford Town Suburb s Project, the Society of St Vincent De Paul, and Edgeworthstown District Development Association Ltd.

Meanwhile, the Dementia Choir, the Attic Youth Café, and Lanesboro Social Services will each receive €1,500; Killoe Celtic Soccer Club, Scoil Mhuire Newtownforbes, Killoe Newtownforbes Community Project and the Lanesboro Tourism Co-Operative Society Lts will receive €1,000; and €500 will go to the Annaly Park Residents Association.

Since the appointment of Judge Seamus Hughes as presiding Judge in counties Longford and Westmeath, in excess of €2.25 million has been made available through the court poor box to worthy organisations and causes in both counties.