How The College Cares for its Alumnae; the Hard Work of the Alexandra College Alumnae Bursaries Charity
When something has been around for well over a hundred years, its proof that it serves a valuable purpose.
In a forward-thinking move, back in 1897, the College set up the Alexandra College Alumnae Bursaries Charity (formerly known as The Alexandra Guild) to put into practice the school’s philanthropic ethos.
The Charity’s initial aim was to assist past pupils and staff of the College who found themselves in financial difficulty.
Through the work of the Alumnae Bursaries Committee, Alexandra College pupils (both past and present) can offer assistance to women in need, of all denominations and from all walks of life, whether they are connected to the College or not. In so doing they can give something back to the community while acknowledging their own fortunate circumstances.
However, the important work of the committee is only possible due to the input from past pupils, who honour their connection to the charity, either by serving on the Committee itself, by making donations to the charity or by getting involved in and supporting the fundraising events run by the committee.
Our Alexandra College Alumnae Committee is the powerhouse of the charity, carrying out stellar work. There is a whole team of people contributing to the charity including Chairperson – Clodagh Conroy, Hon Secretary – Sinéad Buckley, Hon Treasurer – Rachel Barry, Jane Grindle, Priscilla Kirwan Browne, Gemma Dargan, Aisling O’Kelly, Fiona Ryan and Susan Whelan. Many thanks to all our committee members for their continued hard work.
Several popular events are organised annually and are well attended by past pupils, whose continued support is truly vital to their continued existence and is greatly appreciated.
Alexandra College Alumnae
We currently have 1,320 members in our Alexandra College Alumnae Network, and as we are only as strong as our members, we are always on the lookout for new faces. You stand to gain so much without having to pay a cent in membership charges.
As a past pupil of Alexandra College, you are automatically a member of the Alumnae, so if you are not currently availing of the priceless wisdom and networking opportunities on offer, you’re missing out. So sign up and get on board – start talking to like-minded people. It’s amazing how willing our Alumnae are to go the extra mile for each other. You can sign up to the Alumnae emailing list here (will be linked).
The Alexandra College Alumnae Network is structured as an umbrella committee with its own bank account and comprises of subcommittees within, which look after specific areas to enhance its smooth operation.
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Annual Wash Bag Appeal
The Alexandra College Alumnae Bursaries Charity Wash Bag Appeal is taking place on March 14th this year. These wash bags are donated to the Women’s Refuge. Toiletries and other things that we take for granted are very scarce commodities at the Women’s Refuge. The TY pupils coordinate the collection of deodorant, shower gel, shampoo, moisturiser etc and arrange them into cheery wash bags.
As a reward for the pupils’ participation in the project, a ‘Pizza Party’ is up for grabs for the TY form that collects the most wash bags!
In 2016 over 200 wash bags were donated, providing a five-month supply for women at the Refuge, and no doubt making their day a little more bearable. With an incredible effort from the students and parents, they managed to more than double this number in 2017, making 510 wash bags, which meant that we provided the women with almost one year’s supply.
The Alexandra College Alumnae Bursaries Charity annually award one Bursary to the Women’s Refuge in Rathmines, to provide help for women leaving the shelter to start independent lives.
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Spring Charity Lunch
The inaugural Alexandra College Bursaries Spring Charity Lunch took place on 23rd February at the fabulous location that is Marco Pierre White Restaurant, on Dawson St. This was the first event for parents to get directly involved and learn more about the work of the Alexandra College Alumnae Bursary Charity. Tickets for this exclusive event included lunch, prosecco and entertainment from Alumnae actors Rose Henderson and Isobel Mahon. The event was an incredible success for the Alexandra College Alumnae Bursaries Charity raising €8,350 which will cover three and a half bursaries this year. We plan to make this an annual event.
Also in February, just before half term, we held our annual Father and Daughter Pancake Breakfast. The event was a super success as record numbers attended – everyone enjoyed the pancakes and the chocolate sauce came in for a substantial amount of praise. The event afforded “the dads” a chance to meet each other and spend some time with their daughters in the school environment.
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The Alexandra Alumnae Bursary committee has now appointed three Fifth Year students to be their ‘Bursaries Ambassadors’. Stephanie Foley, Lucy Grindle and Aisling Whelan are the three girls now taking up this role.
These girls will be working more closely with the committee helping to coordinate the events that run through the College, like the Christmas Hampers, Pancake Day and the Wash Bag Appeal. They will bring news of the charity initiatives and their women in need back to the student body and so build better communication and understanding of the work of the Bursaries Charity. These girls will be awarded a Humanities Prize for their community service work on Prize Day.
Huge thanks to Ms Barbara Ennis and Ms Avril Lamplugh, to George and his staff, and to the Fifth Year girls and fathers who helped out on the day.
We are also very grateful to all who showed their support by attending these events and those who made donations to the Alexandra College Alumnae Bursaries Charity. It is very much appreciated.
Please follow us on www.facebook.com/AlexandraCollegeAlumnaeBursariesCharity/
Contact us on alexalumnaebursaries@gmail.com
Check out https://alexandracollege.eu/alumnae/
Charity# CHY 1721
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