24/12/2025
On behalf of The Mullan Hope Centre a heartfelt thank you to each & everyone of you for your continued support again in 2025.....€39,400 was raised this year & we are once again overwhelmed, in awe & delighted!!
Due to unforeseen circumstances Storms Darragh & Eowyn causing extensive damage to the tunnels, it wasn’t feasible to repair them, so we had to think outside of the box to maintain our fundraising.
February saw me take on my biggest challenge to date as I set off for Tanzania to climb Kilimanjaro. What made it even more poignant & emotional was my beautiful Mum (Margaret Connaughton) passed away on February 6th, a few days before I left for my trek. But she would have been the first to tell me to go as I had all the training done, & she knew how much it meant to me. Kilimanjaro is the highest mountain in Africa at 5,895 metres (19, 340 feet) & is one of the world’s top seven summits – it’s nearly eight Croagh Patricks! Temperature there
is a pleasant 32 degrees Celsius at the base & a chilling -17 at its peak.
For me, it was a very personal challenge & one very close to my heart. In April 2024, I had the privilege of working with Richard Moore & his Children in Crossfire charity organisation. Tomás should have been celebrating his 18th birthday in April so we organised a 5km fun run/walk in his memory & for Richard’s charity, specifically a project in Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania. The timing was also significant as the trip would conclude one day before I turned fifty. Turning this milestone age was a mixture of emotions for me but what better way to mark it - in honour of my family & raise more funds for this worthy charity. It was tough, it was gruelling, it was challenging but it also was the most amazing experience & something that will stay with me forever, reaching the summit the morning of Sunday 23rd February. My fund-raising goal for Children in Crossfire was €7,000 but due to everyone’s amazing
generosity, the total was €32,500.
August saw us hold our annual charity motorbike run in aid of Blood Bikes Northwest - Ireland. My amazing dad, Mautie Connaughton, 87 years young, tried his hand & enjoyed it. We were again overwhelmed by everyone's generosity & raised €1750 for this amazing charity. This annual event now in its 5th year, is growing year on year & it's great to see!!
Similarly, our Greencastle regatta craft
market raised €400 for Donegal Hospice, another charity close to my heart.
In November we hired St. Eugene's Hall - Moville & held our annual Christmas craft market & our bumper Christmas raffle in aid of Vincents Moville. We were delighted to raise €3250 for them, again all thanks to everyone's generosity.
Our final fundraising event was our Good Will shop we ran for 6 weeks November/December. Once again, myself & the committee would like to thank everyone for the support. Special word of thanks goes to all the volunteers who helped out during our 6 week stent - your experience & advice was key over the 6 weeks to ensure everything ran smoothly. Many thanks to everyone for the donation, purchases or just calling in for a chat, it was great to see such a hive of activity & support. The winner of our hamper was Anna Mc Gonagle, Ard Foyle, Moville.
We wanted to give back to the community so after careful deliberation, we chose 6 groups - Moville GAA Club, Musical Memories, St Eugene's Hall, Movillle Christmas Tree Committee, Moville Tidy Towns & Moville Men's Shed & we were delighted to give out the monies to them last week.
So because of all your continued support, 2025 has proved to be a very successful year for such amazing charities!! It wouldn't be possible without the amazing work of the committee members who always wholeheartedly give 150% to everything we plan. My beloved John Tomás and Amelia would be so proud of each & everyone of you, as am I.
My final words as we enter Christmas Eve, is to wish you all a happy & peaceful Christmas, cherish every moment, hug & kiss your loved ones dearly & never lose hope!!
Nollaig Shona Duit
Geraldine Mullan 🎄
