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Toners raise €55,000 for charity 26.03.08

Story: Inishowen Independent

KIERAN and Maura Toner and more than 70 of their family and friends took part in a swim at Lisfannon last Christmas Day.
Their little daughter Emer had been diagnosed with Neuroblastoma, a rare form of childhood cancer, three months earlier and because of the fantastic care and treatment Emer has received, her parents decided, as a thank you, to raise funds for the Oncology Ward at Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin and Ronald McDonald House
“We hoped to raise €5,000-€10,000, but the response was overwhelming,” Kieran said. “We raised more than €48,000 from the swim alone.”

Pictured presenting a cheque for €12,450 to Letterkenny General Hospital Paediatric Ward are Kieran and Maura Toner with children Colm and Emer. While everyone here was dipping into the icy waters of Lough Swilly, Karol Friel, Maura’s brother, was in South Africa doing the highest bungee jump in the world and raising almost €3,000 for the appeal in the process. More recently, local man John Doherty organised a poker tournament that raised some €4,000.
All told, more than €55,300
was raised. Of that, €21,200 was donated to the Oncology Ward and will go towards research into Neuroblastoma and other childhood cancers. A further €21,668 has been donated to Ronald McDonald House, a 16 bedroom unit that provides accommodation on the grounds of Crumlin hospital for families of seriously ill children.
This has been an invaluable facility to the Toner family and it enables Colm, Emer’s two year old brother, to be with his parents and sister while she is undergoing chemotherapy. The house costs more than €330,000 per annum to run with monies raised by families and friends of those who have used it.
Last week, the Toner family were delighted to present a cheque for €12,450 to the Paediatric Ward at Letterkenny General Hospital, where Emer receives outstanding care while she is not in Crumlin. Amongst other things, this money will be used to employ an artist to paint cartoon murals on the walls of the wards and buy much needed hospital camp beds for the parents who stay overnight with their sick children.
“We want to say a special thank you to the 75 people that took part in the swim and the more than 25 others who helped raise money,” Maura said. “So many people, some of whom we don’t even know, got involved. While the vast bulk of donations came from Donegal and Derry, money also came from all over Ireland and from as far afield as Britain, America and Australia. We are grateful to everyone who helped and supported us in any way over the past six months.” Little Emer’s treatment is continuing and she is responding well.
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