1) The national fundraising day for Cystic Fibrosis Ireland takes place on Friday (April 13th). Called 65 Roses Day (because that is how some children first learn how to say "Cystic Fibrosis") the symbol in Ireland for CF is a purple rose. And you can buy a rose when you are out and about for just €2. Or you can text 65ROSES to 50300 to donate €2 (CF Ireland will receive a minimum of €1.80). Or go to 65rosesday.ie
2) Researchers at Trinity College Dublin (TCD) are seeking 100 people to participate in the first large-scale international study on Alzheimer's disease, which hopes to identify the earliest signs of the dementia in mid-life, some 20-30 years before symptoms, such as memory loss and confusion, develop. The three-year Prevent study involves researchers at the Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI) at TCD, INSERM Neuroscience in France, Imperial College London and the universities of Cambridge, Oxford and Edinburgh. Volunteers must be aged between 40 and 59 and have no current signs of dementia or cognitive difficulties. See tcd.ie/Neuroscience/Prevent or email preventdementia@tcd.ie.
3) The Dublin City Volunteer Centre (DCVC) is looking for older volunteers to join the ranks of volunteers for charities and community organisations. Volunteers can decide whether to help at a special event or on a weekly or monthly basis. Charities seeking volunteers include Barnardos, Dublin Simon Community, Serve the City, National Council for the Blind, Our Lady's Hospice, Little Flower Penny Dinners, Arc Cancer Support Centres, Canal Cleanups and Dublin Samaritans.
"We have a real shortage of people aged 50-plus registering as volunteers. Older people have life experience, commitment and maturity which are invaluable attributes. Volunteering is also proven to have physical and mental health benefits for older people such as social engagement, giving people a sense of purpose and also fulfilment of the need to give something back," says Edwina Dewart, manager of the DCVC. Register on volunteerdublincity.ie, call 01 4737482 or drop in for coffee on April 17th from 11am-1pm at the Dublin Central Mission, Abbey Street Methodist Church, Lower Abbey Street, Dublin 1.
4) April is bowel cancer awareness month and the Marie Keating Foundation's bowel screening campaign aims to raise awareness and highlight the importance of early detection. The core campaign tag line is "I gave a S**T . . . and it saved my life". For further information on bowel cancer go to www.mariekeating.ie or talk to our nurse at the mobile unit which will be at the Headford Road Shopping Centre in Galway every Friday from 11am to 3pm in May.
5) Health Heroes is a new series in the Health&Family supplement highlighting the people who stand beside the most vulnerable in our society and help them on the journeys through illness, disease and recovery. Often unpaid and in the background, these heroes offer care, kindness, comfort and expertise to those under their care. If you know someone deserving the health hero tag, contact us on irishtimes.com/healthheroes
sthompson@irishtimes.com
