An Cosantóir November 2019 www.dfmagazine.ie
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VETERAN'S NEWS VETERAN'S NEWS VETERAN'S NEWS
BY BENNY HILL
THE FOURTH MILITARY BALL – 'VETERANS HELPING VETERANS'
T
he Fourth Military Ball took place on Saturday 24th of August in Mo-
rans Hotel Red Cow Dublin. The Ball was attended by a record number
of almost 300 people, all there to support a great cause.
This event started in 2016 as a morale booster for ex-service personnel, it
was an idea to have veterans from all branches of the Defence Forces meet up
once a year on a social occasion with their partners. The Ball soon turned into
a brilliant way to raise much-needed funding for Brú na bhFiann (Home of the
Brave), a home for Defence Forces veterans operated by the Organisation of
National Ex-Service Personnel (ONE).
The Ball has turned into a great way for all veterans' associations to meet
and this year we had the following – Erskine Childers Branch ONE. Naval
Association, 2 Inf Bn Association, Military Engineers Association, The Doyle
Family, 2 Cav Association, 2 Fd Arty Regt Association, 2 Bde Tpt Association,
The Military Women's Associa-
tion, The Irish United Nations Vet-
erans Associations (IUNVA) were
represented by Posts 30 and 9
and also the Chairman of IUNVA
Mr Jim Casey.
The Ball was also attended by
representatives of ONE, Chair-
man of ONE Brig Gen Colm
Campbell Retd and Ms Sinead Black Asst House Manager from Brú na bhFiann.
Another excellent night was had by all, with the evening starting off with the
pipers and trumpet playing on 'The Colours' and the opening address followed on
by a delicious four course meal.
Generous donations and raffle income
meant a substantial sum of €12,000 was
handed over to Brú na bhFiann for the
specific use of furthering the welfare and
comfort of the residents.
Already many tables have been booked
for 2020 Military Ball, with many people
both military and civilian showing an in-
terest in supporting us next year. A really
big thank you to all our supporters and to
the organising committee – on a job
well done!
