Why not make that donation a regular amount? By giving €10 euro a month, you could help to support regular family group meetings, counselling sessions for children, or an art workshop at one of our residential programmes.

• A legacy in your lifetime. Would you like to make a gift that will act as a legacy that you can see grow, flourish and develop? You could donate shares, property or a sum of money. The benefit of giving a sum now is that you can see at first hand what difference your legacy can make to those who need Coolmine at a very difficult time in their life. To find out more, please contact the fundraising office on (01) 825 1100.
• Organise a fundraising event for Coolmine. How about getting together with some friends and organising a fundraising event? The experience might just change your life!! We can provide you with a comprehensive guide with tips and ideas to get you underway, along with the necessary information around health and safety, just to ensure that everything runs smoothly. Download your copy.
• A gift in kind. Are you a graphic designer or printer? Do you own a wholesale food company? Are you a plumber or electrician? You can donate new goods or services to Coolmine that could help us to free-up money that would be used to buy a piece of equipment or pay for a service, and use it within our programmes instead. If you want to discuss giving a gift in kind, please contact our fundraising office on (01) 825 1100 or via email: fundraising@coolminetc.ie
• eBay it. You can nominate Coolmine as your beneficiary charity when you sell items on eBay.

Don’t forget that if your donation is €250 or more and you pay income tax, we can reclaim the tax you have paid on your income, making your donation go further, without any additional cost to you! Download a tax form

Download

• Coolmine’s Fundraising Toolkit
• Tax effective giving form

Download

- Coolmine Fundraising Toolkit

Growing for Growth

Our Growing for Growth horticultural programme is designed to teach clients not only how to grow their own vegetables and fruit, but also to develop key competencies such as teamwork, garden-planning and practical horticulture skills and in doing so to obtain a FETAC level 3 qualification. Through this project help clients build self-esteem and confidence and at the same time they enjoy the products of their work with a plentful supply of fresh hrebs and vegetables. We have recently contructed a Poly Tunnel with the help of local company Symanted and the Community Foundation of Ireland. This allows us to further extend the growing season and to continue delivering the important FETAC certified course in horticulture throughout the year.

Team building activity programme

Beating substance addiction is one of the hardest things anyone can do in life. Your mind and body constantly call for the drugs they have been so used to receiving, making every step of recovery a real battle. Our clients fight these battles every day, but work through them with the support of one another and our team of dedicated staff. When you are in primary treatment, either in one of our two residential programmes or in our day programme, you are living in an intense, very structured environment, to help you break the cycle of your addiction…

Music Moves You Workshops

In order to help our clients further, we are constantly developing new projects within our residential programmes that offer clients the opportunity to develop life skills to prepare them for life after their time with Coolmine. Our ‘Music Moves You’ workshop has been designed to provide a creative avenue for clients to help express feelings and emotions that they may find hard to initially put into words. Through this project, we help clients build self-esteem and confidence as they learn to play instruments and explore their feelings through music. Clients of both residentials recently staged a wonderful Night at the Theatre as a result of this programme. In March 2009 they also performed in front of Christy Moore at the annual graduation ceremony. This performance was made possible through a series of workshops delivered by the National Chamber Choir and is a real example of the the benefits of collaboration.

Mother & Child programme

We know from client feedback that the facilities provided for children to live on-site with their mother, has been a huge milestone for Coolmine offering counselling and child welfare initiatives for children of primary school age. One of the barriers to women with children coming into the programme had always been their worry about breaking their emotional attachment with their children; this new programme will prevent that from happening and results in more mothers seeking out our help. Of course the funding of such projects always puts a further strain on the finances of Coolmine so we are constantly seeking corporaters to help us sustain and improve such initiatives.

During a typical weekend the clients pull together to take on team challenges, such as raft or tent building.

In addition, abseiling, kayaking, sailing and rock climbing also provide individual physical tests and opportunities to learn new skills and boost self-confidence.

In our experience these weekends are invaluable supports to our therapeutic programmes. The break really motivates clients and refocuses them on their addiction treatment. It also lets clients get to know one another in a new context, enriching the potential for peer-to-peer support that is such a key element of the Coolmine approach.

Funding required €3,000 per weekend for 14 placements

There is something deeply satisfying about growing your own food. If you have never had the opportunity to plant a garden or grow your own vegetables, then harvesting your first crop of tomatoes, potatoes or runner beans can be a tremendously rewarding and empowering experience.

Research shows that similar projects have many therapeutic advantages for people in addiction treatment, contributing significantly to their overall recovery. Many people who abuse drugs or alcohol experience high levels of stress and anxiety, they struggle to relax and unwind. We hope that by participating in our Growing for Growth programme, our clients will learn a new way to relax, through the physical and mental exercise of gardening.

Working alongside a horticultural expert, participants will have the opportunity to learn about growing their own vegetables, from planning the garden environment to working with a team to make that plan a reality. Once the garden has been established, a year round schedule will be developed to ensure that the programme is self-sustaining. Clients will have direct ownership of the project, in line with Coolmine’s community philosophy, and all future plans for the garden will be decided by the gardening group. This group work will contribute to the wider therapeutic programme by strengthening peer relationships within the residential houses, where all participants will share the pleasures and satisfaction of working on a project that yields tangible, and tasty, results.

Funding required €10,000 per annum

The project

The music workshops will be run over a period of 30 sessions per year; 10 sessions per semester. Through the support and teaching of a professional music tutor, clients will have the opportunity to learn to play a musical instrument and in turn develop their confidence with expressing their feelings and emotions through the medium of music. For group pieces, clients will learn to support one another in a team environment so that goals of the workshop can be reached. Each semester clients will have the opportunity to put on a performance or attend a professional concert. This series of workshops has been created to inspire participants to gain confidence and self-esteem, which is often so damaged through their addiction.

We hope that the workshops will enable participants to develop key life skills that will stand them in good stead once they have graduated from Coolmine. Research shows that people who recover from their addiction that have interests and hobbies outside of work often start to cope with life far more easily than those who struggle to fill their leisure time with activities.

Funding Required €7,500

We know from client feedback that if there were facilities provided for children to live on-site with their mother, the mothers would be better supported as their children’s personal development could be strengthened through specialist counselling and child welfare initiatives for children of primary school age. One of the barriers to women with children coming into the programme at present is their worry about breaking their emotional attachment with their children; this new initiative would prevent that from happening and results in more mothers seeking out our help.

As part of this development, a crèche for 15 children will be provided from 9:00am to 5:00pm for pre-school aged children. During these hours, mothers with children in the crèche will be able to focus on treating their addiction by taking part in the residential programme, which consists of group sessions, one-to-one counselling with staff, and peer-to-peer support. Children of primary school age will attend a local school and take part in after school classes to help them develop a range of life skills as well as a good education.

After hours, mothers will look after their own children with support from staff, through the development of new mother and child accommodation on-site. Parenting skills classes will also be provided for those who need support, working with other organisations such as the child welfare service. Working with Social Services we will also be facilitating one-to-one counselling for children who have been affected by their mother’s addiction, to ensure that they can enjoy a better childhood and better life. Research shows that working with children who have been affected by their parent’s substance misuse helps to break a cycle of addiction. We want these children to grow up with a positive and bright future, rather than follow in their parent’s footsteps.

Funding required €13,550

Log cabin crèche / playroom for men’s residential programme €50,000-€60,000

During the last 12 months, Coolmine has been working to expand its services so that more people can get the vital support they need to beat their addiction to drugs and alcohol. As part of this programme of expansion, we have made plans to strengthen the work we do with the families of our clients.

Currently, at our men’s residential programme, children can visit their father in the mid-week and during the weekend. When the weather is poor, these visits take pace within the main house in our group rooms which can get a little cramped and do not provide a dedicated space for fathers to spend time with their children. We would like to remedy this situation by developing a purpose built log cabin within the grounds of Coolmine Lodge which will be used just for visiting children during visiting times and by clients for group sessions at other times.

The log cabin will be fitted out with a kitchenette, toilets and shower facilities to provide good facilities for children visiting. The cabin will be equipped with furniture and toys for children to use during their visit. The idea of the cabin is to provide a ‘home from home’ for visiting families; somewhere where they feel relaxed and confident so that they can enjoy their visit. Our family support workers will also utilise the cabin for three way meetings with clients and their family and one-to-one sessions.

Coolmine Creche

To support women with children up to pre-school age, we are developing a crèche at our women’s residential programme. The aim of the crèche is to enable women who want to beat their addiction to drugs or alcohol to seek help, without having to leave their children with the extended family or in care. We are looking for funding to develop one of our buildings on site and fit it out with the necessary equipment to cater for up to 15 children.

And we could do this for so many more people, if only we had the cash…this is where you come in. By giving a donation – either as an individual or as a company – you will give us the resources to help more people to beat the nightmare that is addiction.

You can make this happen, you can help change people’s lives, you can save lives.

The way to give…

There are a variety of ways in which you can help Coolmine through making a donation. Explore the list below to see what option best suits your situation and interests. If you have your own idea on how you can support Coolmine, please do not hesitate to contact our fundraising office on 01 679 4822 or via email: fundraising@coolminetc.ie

See how to support us yourself or see how your company could support us too