Thank you to everyone for supporting the ESB 5Km Challenge

This year’s challenge raised a staggering €12,420 for ElectricAid!

Congratulations & well done to all who took part in the ESB 5K Challenge 2021, which was held virtually on the weekend of June 18th – 21st. We had a new record number of entrants this year, with over 400 registering to take part from all across the company & throughout Ireland, the UK & even as far afield as Malta!

Colleagues, retirees, their families & friends (including the 4-legged kind!) gathered virtually to take on the 5K challenge in support of ElectricAid, ESB’s social justice & development fund. At €15 per entry [1], €6,210 has been raised with a further €6,210 generously matched by ESB, bringing the total donated to ElectricAid to €12,420!

[1] Entry fee to be deducted from salaries in July 2021.

The Results

The stewards have held their MS Teams enquiry & are happy to announce the top three female & male times:

PlaceFemaleMale
1stTara Ni Reachtagain (19:43)Ger Forde (16:28)
2ndAine Kenny (20:39)David Burke (17:52)
3rdMairead Hogan (20:58)Fionn Griffin (18:03)

Congratulations to these speedy runners, who will each receive a trophy from ESB Athletic Club!

Photos and Photo Prizes

All people who posted photos to Yammer were eligible for spot prizes, generously donated by Health & Wellbeing. The winners were chosen by the ESB Athletic Club Chairman & are listed at the end of this article. Congratulations all!

Spot Prizes

Thanks to Engineering & Major Projects & Generation & Trading who also donated spot prizes to the 5K Challenge. The winners of these spot prizes were chosen at random from registered participants. The winners of the spot prizes are also listed at the end of this article.

The organising committee & ESB Athletic Club would like to thank:

  • Organisational Development for their support with the beautiful t-shirts,
  • Engineering & Major Projects & Generation & Trading for donation of the spot prizes,
  • Health & Wellbeing who donated the picture prizes, &
  • ElectricAid who donated vouchers for the top ranked Athletic Club members.

Finally, a massive thank you to all who took part & supported the ESB 5K Challenge 2021, for lighting up Yammer with your posts & photos & for showing your support for ElectricAid!

Yours in sport,

ESB Athletic Club

Yammer Photo Prize Winners:Spot Prize Winners:  
Angelo Pantelides
Aoife Bradish
Burcu Agdere
Cheryl Carmody
Brendan Allen
David Burke
Helen Cardiff
Jessie Buckley
Joe Laffan
Magesh Palani
Martha Maher
(Dylan Hayes Maher,
Conor Hayes, Michaela Graham)
Lesley Murphy
Gerard Stapleton
Sean Walsh
Stephen Treacy
Karl McMahon
Vijay Melwani
Niamh Griffin  		Shauna Brady (Fitbit)
Valerie O’Hanlon (Voucher)
Niamh Murphy (Voucher)
Hugh McCann (Voucher)
Ciaran Doran (Voucher)
Denise Enright (Voucher)
Bill Shannon (Voucher)
Martin McGahon (Voucher)
Joe Lawlor (Voucher)
Paul Coleman (Voucher)
Mick Finn (Voucher)
Norma Murphy (Voucher)
Aisling Walsh (Voucher)
Ryan Stafford (Voucher)
Paul Hogan (Voucher)
Lenny Walsh (Voucher)
Colm McDonald (Voucher)
John Emerson (Voucher)
Aoife Kelly (Voucher)
Anne Buggie (Voucher)
Tom Browne (Voucher)  

ESB 5K Challenge 2021 – This Weekend! Participant Instructions & Important Information

Welcome to the ESB 5K Challenge 2021!

Sincere thanks from the ESB Athletics Club to all who have registered to take part in the ESB 5K Challenge 2021 this coming weekend (June 18th to 21st)! We have over 400 registered to take part this year – a new record in itself, so a big thank you to all of you for making this year’s event our biggest yet!

Important Information

We have put together brief instructions, rules, terms and conditions for the 5K challenge and ask all participants to please familiarise themselves with these before taking part and, if you have registered others for the event, please familiarise them with these also. In particular, please review the safety guidelines to ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for all involved.

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For participants outside ESB, please log your time using the form below. For participants inside ESB, please visit the Hub.

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We’re keen to capture images of participants and their 5k journey, please forward your photos to electricaid@esb.ie and we’ll add a selection to the post-challenge news article to follow.

Register to Join Us

Seats are limited, so be sure to sign up soon to reserve your spot now!

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“I really enjoyed the lesson. I certainly would recommend this to total beginners and to people like myself who need to consolidate the knowledge that they have attained over time.”
– Beth S.

“The lesson was excellent and well structured. I now have a much better grounding in digital photography, understand the strength and weakness of my camera. It was the best way to flatten out a steep learning curve!”
– Mason D.

Electric Aid supports Disability- Inclusive Programme in Ethiopia

S. Lielbarde – CBM Ireland

CBM Ireland is an Irish charity working alongside people with disabilities in the world’s poorest places to fight poverty and exclusion and transform lives.

In 2018, CBM initiated the Bridge the Gap programme in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. The Bridge the Gap team works with government officials, hospitals, and schools to build communities that welcome and care for everyone equally. CBM believe that if people with disabilities have their voices heard, they can help shape their communities for the better.  

Over the last two years, Electric Aid has generously supported Bridge the Gap, providing a total of €83,058.

Amhara is one of the most populated and most impoverished regions in Ethiopia, with a disability prevalence higher than the countrywide average of 15.6%.

People with disabilities are highly vulnerable in Amhara. Stigma is pervasive. People with disabilities are seen by many as helpless, in need of constant care, and as economic burdens to their families. This stigma, in turn, makes accessing essential services and care extremely difficult.

Girls and women with disabilities are even more vulnerable and at greater risk of violence.

The stigma and discrimination that people with disabilities face from all corners of society in Amhara has led to a mental health challenges: large swaths of the disabled community report experiencing massive levels of mental distress.

But thanks to Electric Aid’s support, some positive changes for people with disabilities can be observed now in the areas of health, education, and livelihood. –

Two assistive device workshops have now been established in the Amhara Region, allowing wheelchairs, crutches and other assistive devices to be produced. People with disabilities are being given their independence once more and a chance to engage in community life.

Anbessamie, Ethiopia – 2019-09-06 – Destaw Derso, who has a mobility impairment, gets a push start from Mekuanint Tadesse, 11, in Anbessamie, Ethiopia, on September 6, 2019. Tricycles, and other assistive devices, are built at the workshop of CBM-partner Cheshire Foundation Action on Inclusion in nearby Bahir Dar by Alemayhu “Alex” Teka, who had polio as a child.

To address the undernourishment of children with disabilities from poor families, at least 120 households have been supported with nutritious food supplements for a period of one year. CBM’s ready-to-go nutritional support addresses this need in the short term, while investments in health and education will bridge the gap in the long run.

Four health centres and eight schools were recently renovated and made disability-friendly: Schools were equipped with accessible learning materials and sign language dictionaries so that every child is given the best possible opportunity to learn.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been felt acutely by people with disabilities. People with disabilities are often excluded from support during an emergency and are more likely to miss Covid-19 messaging and medical care. Electric Aid has provided personal protective equipment to 1,710 families so that CBM’s project team can continue their work and so that vulnerable groups can keep themselves safe.

Crises like the Covid-19 pandemic disrupt society and as a result of that disruption, hard won progress risks coming undone. With Electric Aid’s help, CBM is working to ensure that does not happen.




Debre Tabor, Ethiopia – 2019-09-04 –  Worky Belay uses her tricycle in Debre Tabor, Ethiopia, on September 4, 2019. Worky lost mobility in her right leg 20 years ago in a farming accident; recently, she received a tricycle through Bridge the Gap, which she is still learning how to use.

2020 ElectricAid Annual General Meeting

 

ElectricAid will host its AGM on Tuesday 15th of June at 3pm via MS Teams video conference and all ESB & EirGrid serving and retired staff are welcome to join.

Agenda

  1. Welcome & opening address
  2. Minutes of 2019 AGM, held on 15.09.2020.
  3. Executive Report
  4. Honorary Treasurer’s Report for year ended 31.12.2020.
  5. Reappointment of Auditors.
  6. Election of Officers.
  7. Election of Executive Committee.
  8. Any Other Business

To book your place, please register via the link below and you will receive an invite shortly via return email.

The Election of ElectricAid Committee 2021 – 2022 will also take place at the AGM with attendees casting their votes via online poll. If you would like to join the committee and play your part in supporting aid and development projects at home and abroad, you must register your interest via the form below before 12pm on Friday 28th of May via the online form below. Please include a short summary (100 words) and profile picture which will be added to the ElectricAid website in advance of the Election.

To find out more about what’s involved in the ElectricAid Committee, contact the ElectricAid office via email  electricaid@esb.ie

 

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ElectricAid C/o ESB, East Wall Road, Two Gateway, Dublin 3, D03 A995 CHY Number 14228, CRA 20045821

The ESB Sligo 30k Walk, Your Way, This May

Every cloud has a sliver lining.

Sadly, ESB’s famous Sligo Walk can’t take place in its usual format – but in the spirit of keeping the show on the road, the Walk is going virtual for 2021 with all funds going to charities. ELECTRICAID is one of the chosen partners so why not dust off the walking shoes and put a spring in your step this May.

The Entry fee is an absolute bargain @€10 which includes your Sligo Walk t-shirt, The challenge is very achievable with entrants asked to cover 30km over 10 days in May and it’s a great opportunity get outdoors and support ElectricAid.

Walk entry is open to staff members or retired staff employed directly or indirectly by ESB, as well as spouses /partners, and children. Click on the link below to register

Virtual ESB Walk 2021 (njuko.net)

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ElectricAid Funds Inclusive Quality Education Programme in Kenya

Aidlink is an Irish charity working to educate, enable and empower individuals, families and communities in Kenya, Uganda and Ghana. In 2019 & 2020, ElectricAid helped with funding to create a quality and inclusive educational system in 2 primary schools in Turkana, Kenya.

Turkana is among the poorest and most at-risk areas in Kenya. The Turkana people are often discriminated against and they are significantly below the national average in terms of access to clean, safe water and education. Life has been made even harder in recent years due to climate change. Prior to October 2019, Turkana County experienced severe drought and had not seen a drop of rain for three years. In the past, droughts typically occurred every 10 – 15 years. Now with the effects of climate change, droughts are occurring every 2 – 3 years. Families have been forced to move around to find pasture for their animals. During droughts, boys typically drop out of school to migrate with their animals and girls stay at home to collect water. The distances girls travel to collect water during drought can reach up to 18km. This places girls at a much higher risk of gender-based violence and sexual assault. In October 2019, Turkana was hit by severe flash floods that wiped out many homes and villages as well as farms and livestock and killed nine people. These flash floods cut off villages and families from schools and food sources, leaving communities in danger and students out of school. They are still trying to rebuild.

ElectricAid donated €10,339 to Aidlink to implement an inclusive quality education programme in 2 Turkana primary schools, to achieve the following goals;

  • They met the UNICEF standards of a child-friendly, gender sensitive and disability-friendly school in both schools. They had inclusive, gender and disability-friendly latrines, water tanks installed, and teachers were trained on gender and disability-responsive participation and inclusion.
  • Children, particularly girls and those with disabilities, in the two schools were informed and empowered to defend their rights and engage in education. Rights of the Child (RoC) clubs were established in the schools and the members were trained on child rights, life skills (including health and sanitation) and supported to participate in at least two international human rights campaigns.
  • Target schools and communities were given enhanced knowledge, capacity and skills to manage the effects of drought and reduce its impact on access to education, particularly for girls and learners with disabilities.

800 students, teachers and their families benefited from this programme because of the newly provided improved water and sanitation infrastructure. The number of girls and children with disabilities attending school has increased significantly because of the new gender sensitive and disability-friendly latrines and facilities which help them to feel more secure at school. A large proportion of students in these schools are now able to demonstrate knowledge of children’s’ rights and families have been able to learn how to properly prepare for droughts and how to make sure droughts do not impact their children’s education. The benefits of this project were also felt by the wider community who were able to see the benefit of education and are now more likely to send their children to school. This programme also achieved the following Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs):

ElectricAid needs your signature!

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One of ElectricAid’s largest sources of income is our annual tax rebate under the Revenue Commissioner’s Charitable Donation Scheme.

We’re incredibly grateful for the continued support and generosity of our donors. With your help, your donation could go that bit further releasing an additional 45% of your annual donation via Revenue.

Here’s how it works

When one of our donors contributes €250 or more in a year either by monthly or one-off donations, ElectricAid can claim a 45% rebate. In order to do this, we need a signed CHY 3 form  from each of our eligible donors.

CHY 3 forms are valid for five years, so if you signed back in 2016 or earlier, it is now expired and you need to renew.

Simply complete and scan the attached form and return to electricaid@esb.ie or the postal address below and the ElectricAid team will process the claim via Revenue. It’s entirely optional but makes a massive difference to ElectricAid allowing us to fund even more projects at home and abroad.

Thank you to everyone who has returned forms so far, it’s never too late to send a form our way and we’ll do the rest.

Postal address: ElectricAid C/O ESB, Matthews Building, 38/42 James’s Place East, Dublin 2 D02 X3P1

CHY 3 Image

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