ABOVE: Ava Battles, Chief Executive, MS Ireland with Aoife Kirwan and her son Adam from Kildare
The 31st MS Readathon is open for sign up and young readers in County Kildare are encouraged to take part.
Multiple Sclerosis Ireland has officially launched the 31st MS Readathon, joined by charity partner Leinster Rugby and Aoife Kirwan, from Kildare, who works with MS Ireland with her son Adam. A new MS Readathon character Bobby Bookworm was also introduced.
Pictured are members of the Leinster Rugby team with Ava Battles, Chief Executive of MS Ireland and Aoife Kirwan and her son Adam.
Thanking young readers, parents, teachers and schools for their continued support, the organisation is now encouraging schools and home readers in County Kildare to sign up to read and raise funds to help people with Multiple Sclerosis. This year the campaign will run from October 12th until November 12th 2018. Please visit www.msreadathon.ie to find out more.
Pictured is Ava Battles, Chief Executive of MS Ireland with Aoife Kirwan and her son Adam.
Ava Battles, Chief Executive of MS Ireland commented: “Through 30 years of the MS Readathon and now into the 31st year, young readers, parents, teachers and schools have continued to support the MS community, reading and raising funds to help people living with MS and their families. This is greatly appreciated and as each annual MS Readathon comes around, we want to acknowledge their efforts. The MS Readathon is a key annual fundraising campaign for MS Ireland.”
Jordan Byrne, the 31st MS Readathon ambassador, was diagnosed with MS on New Year’s Day 2015 at the age of 21: “I knew very little about MS at the time,” she says, “I read some terrible stories. I just didn’t know what was going to happen.”
The damage that MS causes and the nature of MS attacks are often invisible to others. Jordan suffered from constant pain and fatigue. She and her family found the support they needed from MS Ireland: “Geraldine from MS Ireland started calling around shortly after my diagnosis, to help me come to terms with things. Finally, someone understood what I was going through. MS Ireland helped me to meet other people my own age living with MS. Their support made an incredible difference.”
Jordan is positive and wishes to spread awareness for young people diagnosed with MS so that they can have someone their own age to talk to about it. She says: “I may have MS but MS has not got me."
Ireland’s authors and illustrators continue to support the MS Readathon with encouraging tips and advice for young readers which can be found on www.msreadathon.ie, including Sarah Webb, Cecelia Ahern, Nicola Pierce, Catherine Doyle, Oisin McGann, Aine NiGhlinn, Ruth F Long, Erika McGann, Kieran Crowley, Chris Haughton, Claire Hennessy, Alan Nolan, Judi Curtin, Alan Early, Anna Carey, PJ Lynch, Matt Griffin, Marisa Mackle, and Pauline McLynn.
Cecelia Ahern, author, says to young readers as the 31st MS Readathon launches: “Books are magical. You sit down, open the front cover, and as soon as you read the first few sentences, you go time travelling. You are instantly transported to other countries, worlds and planets. You can live inside other character’s minds, see what it’s like to live with another family, you can go on adventures you may only have dreamed of or that are beyond your wildest imaginations. Reading is the most wonderful way to explore the world and understand how other people may think, It can distract you from your own worries, it can prepare you and teach you about how you might react in a similar situation to the character.”
On the best thing about reading an exciting book, illustrator Chris Haughton says: “You can get completely lost in a book in a different way than getting lost in a film or a computer game. It’s the best feeling.”
Multiple Sclerosis Ireland is the only national services, information and advocacy organisation supporting people with MS and their families.
More than 9,000 people are living with MS in Ireland, with thousands more family members affected. Multiple Sclerosis, meaning ‘many scars’, is the most common neurological disease of young adults in Ireland. MS affects the motor, sensory and cognitive functioning of the body and is usually diagnosed between 20 and 40 years of age. There is currently no known cause or cure for the condition. MS symptoms include impaired mobility and vision, severe fatigue and cognitive difficulties. Three times more women than men are diagnosed with MS.
Funds raised by young readers around the country directly support vital services, for example the MS Ireland Information Line, enabling one-to-one support for those newly diagnosed, physiotherapy and exercise classes to help people with MS remain independent, and respite care.
To increase awareness about Multiple Sclerosis for young readers, people living with MS visit their local schools and talk about the complexity of the condition and the nature of relapses, or attacks when MS symptoms flare up.
Young readers can get their reading lists ready by checking the 2018 lists on www.msreadathon.ie featuring great books for kids from the new to the classics.
For participating schools around the country, the 31st MS Readathon will provide:
- Information leaflets and posters for each class
- A reading certificate for each participant
- Many fantastic rewards and prize draws
- Up to 10% of funds raised by each participating school may go towards the individual school
To get involved with the 31st MS Readathon 2018:
Visit: www.msreadathon.ie
Email: read@msreadathon.ie
Phone: 01 678 1624
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