Each year Dominican College identifies charities at both a local and national level to support.
The annual Dominican Beach Walk is one of a number of initiatives we use to support our chosen charities and we are delighted that this year’s Beach Walk will take place on the afternoon of Thursday 28th September. Once again, our entire school community, in line with our school ethos, will walk together in support of social justice.
Acknowledging those in need and reaching out in support continues to be a vital part of our Dominican philosophy of education.
Over the past twenty years we in Dominican College, Portstewart have raised in excess of £185,000 for our sponsored charities as a consequence of our Beach Walk.
Our challenge in 2023 is to maintain this proud tradition and that every member of our Dominican community does their best to raise as much money as we can to help those in need within our community and beyond our school walls.
This Year we have identified four key charities that we wish to help:
Young Lives V Cancer (YLVC)
Many members of our school community have had or will have some form of cancer within their lifetime.
Young Lives V Cancer (formerly Clic Sargent) is UK wide charity that supports children and young people diagnosed with cancer and their families.
YLVC provide support in lots of different ways through our grants, social work service, and “Homes from Home”. Families face an additional cost of almost £700 per month whenever a child or young adult is diagnosed. YLVC provide grants and benefit support to those families- as well as free accommodation in our two “Homes from Home” in Belfast to help with cancer costs.
Laura Ohlrich, a past pupil of Dominican, works for this charity and explains:
“Approximately 200 children and young people are diagnosed in Northern Ireland per year. One of those young people was my friend and former pupil who was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma in 2009. She is the reason I work for YLVC as at 19 years old I watched her undergo gruelling treatment with little to no specialist consideration for her age and the multi-faceted impact cancer had on her.
I’m so thankful my friend is still with us and still a big part of my life- Dominican friendships really last a life time!
I’m so proud of the work I’m able to do with Young Lives vs Cancer as now I am part of a team providing that specialist age -appropriate care to young people that didn’t exist in 2009. Being one of your chosen charities will make a big difference to families facing cancer in Northern Ireland. The job is so varied and so specialist! I couldn’t have imagined myself doing this when I left school in 2008”
We are delighted to be helping YLVC for the first time as a Dominican Charity.
https://www.younglivesvscancer.org.uk/
Aware NI.
Aware NI, is the depression charity for Northern Ireland. It runs support groups all over the country, and delivers mental health and well-being programmes into communities, schools and workplaces. Dominican College has availed of their ‘Mood Matters’ workshop for Key Stage 4 at no cost to the school. This has benefitted our students greatly, not only on a personal level, but also on an academic one as the workshop contributed towards their ‘Mental Health, Wellbeing and Resilience’ module (OCN NI Vocational Skills). In order for Aware NI be able to offer these valuable resources for free, not only to us but to other schools across Northern Ireland, the charity relies on fundraising efforts.
More information is available on their website:
We are delighted to be helping Aware NI for the first time as a Dominican Charity.
Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children (RBHSC)
This is the only hospital in NI dedicated specifically to the care of sick children.
The Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children (RBHSC) is dedicated specifically to the care of children and provides general hospital care for children living in Belfast, as well as providing most of the paediatric regional specialities (including palliative care) for all children throughout Northern Ireland.
RBHSC provides a regional service to children up to the age of 16 from across Northern Ireland who have been diagnosed with cancer or a haematological disorder.
Children’s cancers are treated on a specialised ward. The Hospital focuses on family centred care.
There is also a specialist Children’s Haematology Unit (CHU) on site which specialises in providing care and support to children and their families with a haematological disorder.
We are delighted to be helping RBHSC for the first time as a Dominican Charity.
Dominican College Myanmar.
In 2018, as a way of recognising the 50th anniversary of boys joining our school community in 1968, it was decided to support a Dominican School in Myanmar as part of our school charity work over the past five years.
We have witnessed a serious situation unfold in Myanmar over recent months and continue to pray for the safety and well-being of all the people of Myanmar and want to help provide the basics of food, water and education for Dominican students in this war –ravaged part of the world.
This is our sixth year supporting Dominican Myanmar and this year the school needs our help more than ever.
Arrangements for Thursday 28th September.
- Pupils will have a non- uniform day on Thursday 28th September
- Pupils should ensure they dress appropriately (including a rain jacket).
- The use of mobile phones/ MP3 players/ cameras is prohibited.
- Pupils should pay a donation of £1.00 on Thursday 28th for non-uniform.
- Normal class will operate until lunchtime.
- All pupils should go to their form room at the end of second lunch (1.05 PM)
- The Year 14 pupils will be allocated groups to walk with years 8-12.
- Our senior pupils will help organise the walk and accompany junior pupils.
- Pupils will have their roll taken: before they leave for the walk, at the end of the beach and on their return to school.
- Form teachers and assistants will accompany their groups on the walk.
- Pupils must remain in your year group throughout the walk.
- The school day will end at the normal time of 3.15 and buses will be at the usual times.
- A first aid team will be on the beach to assist pupils.
- Pupils’ medical boxes will be brought to the beach on the minibus.
Friday 29th September is a Staff Development Day.
