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Phones for Boards

Jack & Jill reports big success with schools campaign as over a quarter of a million old mobiles buy interactive whiteboards for classrooms and home nursing care for sick children nationwide – Top 10 schools announced

The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation is pleased to announce that over 250,000 old mobile phones have been collected on its behalf by school children all over the country since September 2009.  As part of Jack & Jill’s “Phones for Boards campaign” these old mobiles have been exchanged for interactive whiteboards for the classroom with nearly 400 boards installed so far.  The campaign is hugely important in raising the €3 million Jack & Jill requires annually to support its 322 families nationwide with home nursing care for their children with brain damage.  As the Foundation only receives 19% from the State, it has to be very creative and practical about the way it raises funds and the unwanted mobile phone is an environmentally friendly currency for Jack & Jill, with 250 phones buying home nursing care for a sick child for one month.  As the new school term begins, the Jack & Jill Foundation is recruiting for a new schools co-ordinator to build and develop this campaign and to add more names and success stories to the 1,400 schools already involved.  For the past 12 months the campaign has been driven by Catherine Terry from Midleton Co. Cork who took a one year career break from her teaching job at Carrigaline Girls’ National School to take up the challenge with Jack & Jill.  See www.jackandjill.ie for more information.

To date, the top 10 schools for collecting mobile phones on behalf of Jack & Jill are:

1.     St. Colman’s National School in Mullingar Co. Westmeath

2.     Crescent College Comprehensive in Dooradoyle Co. Limerick

3.     St. Fintan’s NS in Sutton Dublin

4.     St. Paul’s Senior Primary School in Walkinstown, Dublin

5.     Scoil Mhuire in Smithsboro Co. Monaghan

6.     Santa Sabina Dominican College in Sutton Dublin

7.     Dunboyne Junior School in Dunboyne Co. Meath

8.     Little Island National School in Co. Cork

9.     Schoil Naisiunta Brighde in Newbridge Co. Kildare

10. Dromclough National School in Listowel Co. Kerry

The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation was set up in 1997 by Jonathan Irwin and his wife MaryAnn O’Brien (MD of Lily O’Brien’s) to help young children in Ireland who are born with or develop brain damage and who suffer severe intellectual and physical developmental delay as a result.  They decided to set up Jack & Jill based on their own experience with their son Jack whose short life showed them the ideal way in which little children can be nursed at home.  From their experience evolved the Jack & Jill model of home nursing and respite care that supports 322 families in Ireland today and has helped over 1,200 children and their families since 1997.  The service includes home visits, advice, information, funding, lobbying and bereavement support.  Jack & Jill requires €3 million per annum to operate this service and, with only 19% coming from the State, the Foundation raises the bulk of its budget through mobile phone recycling and public donations.  See www.jackandjill.ie


Catherine Terry,
Schools Coordinator,
The Jack & Jill Children's Foundation,
Johnstown Manor,
Johnstown,
Naas,
Co Kildare.

Tel: 087-2568475
Email: catherine@jackandjill.ie