80 years serving Kilkenny and still no place to call home.
The Order of Malta are appealing for help in finding a place that they can use as a training facility, a store and a base for their ambulances in Kilkenny.
They say they’ve tried fundraising to purchase a place themselves but it’s just not feasible for a charity like them.
Speaking to KCLR News, Heather Woods from the group says they don’t know what to do about it:
“The Order of Malta in Kilkenny will celebrate 80 years this year of serving the community, and we still have no permanent home. So we really haven’t progressed from the last time we spoke and it’s five years.
“The last time we put a big push on it, and a big drive to try and get somewhere, was on our 75th anniversary.
“We’re not looking for anybody to give us somewhere for nothing. They just have to be mindful that we are a charity.”
Heather says that between their senior and junior units they have just under 70 members locally, and they really need somewhere to be able to train properly:
“So we’d need a large enough room that we would class as our training room; obviously we’d need some sort of kitchenette; a store room; and an office.
“I think the biggest thing for us is the vehicles. We have three ambulances and we have to house them. And obviously it needs to be secure housing. So we’d have to be able to fence it to secure them.”
Anyone who thinks they might be in a position to help can contact the team on their Facebook page here.
