Question: How much does it cost you to share your lunch with some of the poorest people on the planet?
Answer: Absolutely nothing!
Regular readers of NewsFour may be familiar with the charitable work of the Anchorage Project at 10A York Road in Ringsend beside the Eastlink Toll Bridge. 2013 will see the launch of a new initiative for their Fair Play Café, this initiative is being called “Share Your Lunch”.
For several years now the Anchorage Project has raised funds through its Fair Play Café, playschool and adjoining garden centre for communities in need. One year the funding is sent to charitable projects in Africa, another year to Asia, then to Latin America, and after that to Eastern Europe. Finally, a special year is chosen where funding is sent to charitable organisations at home here in Ireland. This five-year cycle is now entering its third phase and the focus for 2013 is going to be Africa. The recession has not affected the donations which have steadily increased. In the first year €5,000 was raised, last year €20,000 was achieved. The flags of all the countries who have received aid from the Anchorage Project hang in the café.
Manager Joe Donnelly says the ethos of this new initiative is contained within the three humble words; ‘Share Your Lunch’. There is a powerful force and energy behind this modest expression and it follows three simple steps:
1. You buy your lunch in the Fair Play Cafe. The proceeds from the cost of your lunch will go to help rescue and rehabilitate child soldiers in Africa.
2. Each customer who wants to participate will receive a reward card where their purchases are recorded. For every euro spent in the Fair Play Café, 1 point will be put on their reward card.
3. In November 2013 the café will set up a Facebook page where customers will be able to get information on three different organisations working to help rescue and rehabilitate child soldiers in Uganda, the Congo and Southern Sudan. Each customer can then use their accumulated reward points to vote for the project they think should receive the funds raised in 2013. Then in 2014 the process will start all over again with the funds going to an Irish charity working to help children who are terminally ill.
The idea behind Share Your Lunch is that the customer in essence can become a stakeholder in this initiative and feel empowered by sharing their lunch with some of the poorest communities on the planet.
Several years ago some local companies such as Yahoo, KPMG, Deloitte, Diageo etc. volunteered during the Fair Play Café’s construction phase. This was done as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility; their commitment to helping the communities around them.
In response to requests from several local companies, the Fair Play Café will be introducing a delivery service so everyone can Share Their Lunch.
Mobile: 0860612127
Email: jdonnely@indigo.ie
Facebook: Fair-Play Cafe
By Tracy O’Brien
