Cork City FC and Cork Penny Dinners have launched a Food Appeal ahead of a busy week of fixtures for the Rebel Army.
Football supporters coming along to friendly matches against Watford (Tuesday 24th) and Manchester United XI (Wednesday 25th) as well as the club’s League match against Shelbourne (Friday 27th) are asked to bring one item of non-perishable food to Turner’s Cross in order to help one of Cork’s oldest charities feed the 1,000 people now availing of their meal service in return for a small coin each week.
Cork Penny Dinners has been caring for the citizens of Cork since the 1840s but has seen demand for its meals grow from feeding 120 people a week just a couple of years ago to the seven-days a week service it has become today.
The charity is particularly appealing for the following: washing machine powder, tin foil, cling film, gravy granules, custard powder, coffee, tea, sugar and diluted orange – though any non-perishable food items or vouchers from any supermarket in Cork will also be accepted.
“Our service is run entirely by volunteers,” Florence Harrison of Cork Penny Dinners explained. “We don’t ask questions and we feed anyone that comes to our premises at 4, Little Hanover Street.
“Until now 99.5% of the people coming to us have been men. Now we’re seeing people who were self employed and used to run a businesses in the good times but don’t get a social welfare payment as well as women and children, especially at weekends.”
“Cork Penny Dinners is run entirely on donations from the public and we saw the upcoming games against Watford, Manchester United XI and Shelbourne as the ideal chance to give something back to the county that looks after us so well,” Cork City CEO Tim Murphy added. “We’re asking fans to support this appeal in any way they can.”
Tickets for the games against Watford, Manchester United XI and Shelbourne are available from the Club Shop in Douglas Village Shopping Centre, online from Ticketmaster.ie and will also be available outside the ground on the night as long as the match hasn’t sold out ahead of time.
Non-perishable food items and vouchers will also be accepted at the club shop in Douglas throughout the next week.
