Kinnegad and Coralstown support for Mullingar man's work in Africa

On the morning of St Stephen’s Day, the GAA pitch at Kinnegad was busy as families gathered to walk or run a kilometre in order to support a community in Africa which is having its life transformed thanks to the inspirational drive of Mullingar photographer, John McCauley.

“It’s the second year we organised it,” says Joe O’Keeffe, chairman of Coralstown Kinnegad GAA, explaining that it is a joint effort between the GAA club and the Coralstown Kinnegad Athletic Club headed up by Matt Glennon.

John McCauley, through his charity Tanzanian Heavenly Homes, has for more than a decade now been raising funds in this country to help the residents of a small district in Tanzania who are in desperate need: he started by upgrading the local orphanage and providing the funds for the orphans to have second and third level education.

He has since moved on to providing housing for some of the poorest of the elderly people in that area.

Every cent raised goes directly to the aid of its intended recipients, and not on travel costs, salaries of charity staff or administration,- which, explains Joe, is why the community in Coralstown and Kinnegad chose to support John’s work.

“John is always out with us, taking photographs with the GAA and everything like that, and we have a great rapport with John, and we appreciate all the work he does – and it goes directly to Tanzania, because he goes over himself.

“He brings a lot of local young people over and shows them what the real world is about, you know what I mean. They help him out for a month every year, and we know exactly that the money is not taken out for the paperwork and all that, it goes directly to the cause – anyone who goes with him has to pay their way over. Every shilling that’s raised goes exactly to John’s cause, to the people who need it.”

Joe says there is one word to describe John and that is “amazing”.

“And you can see it when he comes back what it takes out of him: he’s absolutely mentally and physically drained. It takes an awful lot out of him. I really admire what he does.”

A story John shared with the event organisers last year really brought home to Joe how crucial his work is: “He told me last year that he bought a bed for a woman and her two or three kids and they all got into the bed, they stayed all day in the bed because they hadn’t had one before: they were lying on the ground all the time. If that doesn’t grab at the heartstrings! We take a bed for granted, even in poor times.”

Getting involved in events such as the St Stephen’s Day charity event is, Joe believes, a valuable part of the contribution the GAA make to community life. Families from all walks of life, including many newcomers and migrants to Kinnegad, are part of the organisation, and Joe has witnessed at first hand the way they have helped some young people from difficult backgrounds or with mental health challenges move forward.

“I think it’s great for kids, and it’s great for their mental well-being. You hear so much about mental well-being and I think the GAA doesn’t get the credit it deserves for mental wellbeing for kids. It’s amazing the way they get in with the GAA, and then the way they grow up. It brings them on.”