An Cosantóir

An Cosantóir November 2016 www.dfmagazine.ie 10 | VETERAn'S nEWS VETERAn'S nEWS VETERAn'S nEWS ONEConference2016 REPoRT & PhoToS By SGT WAYNE FITZGERALD onE's Annual Delegate Conference 2016 was held in the Radisson Blu hotel, Athlone, from 23rd-25th September. In his address to the delegates, President Mick Carroll thanked CEo ollie o'Connor and his assistant, Paul Cooley, for their work, and onE house managers and their staff for the excellent contribution they make towards achieving onE's main aim, helping former soldiers in distress. Mick also thanked the branches for their continued help and fundraising efforts throughout the year. Chairman, Patrick Rooney, spoke about the recent White Paper on Defence, telling delegates that a lot of work had been carried out meet- ing politicians and the general staff to get their points heard. He went on to list a number of initiatives, including the Fuchsia Appeal and the DF Race Day, to help fund ONE's work and said they could be better supported by the mem- bers. He also questioned if County Councils could do more. "Everyone agrees we are 'doing a wonderful job'," he said, "but what about giving us €5,000 towards the upkeep of the houses? Nothing comes in!" In his address, CEO Ollie O'Connor said: "It was a very busy year with parades, but this has paid dividends as one unnamed benefactor donated €20,000 for house projects, because of the great turnout and seeing you marching smartly down O'Connell Street on Easter Sunday." He told the conference: "There are currently 43 residents in our homes: 30 in Brú na bhFiann, six in Letterkenny, and seven in Athlone." He also said ONE was not finished with the White Paper and that they had expressed to the Dept of Defence and the minister that they wanted to flesh out the bulleted points listed in the veterans' policy. Ollie thanked those non-members who continued to help fundraise for ONE, including Benny Hill, Tommy Conlon and Paul Clarke, who presented a cheque for €6,000 on behalf of Swan Batt from the proceeds of their recent black-tie Veterans' Ball; Trisha McLoughlin, who raised €6,600 from swimming; and the Tpr Bob Farrell Committee and its sup- porters, who raised €10,000 in Bob's name. Ollie encouraged members to take part in the Defence Forces Friday Club initiative and spoke about the great work being carried out by the drop-in centres in Limerick and Dundalk, saying that anyone was welcome to drop in for a cup of tea and a chat if they are passing. Ollie thanked the DF for the recent Veterans Day, and fin- ished by saying that ONE would continue working with other veterans organisa- tions and would seek clarification about the mention of 'catastrophic injury' in the veterans policy section of the White Paper, as many vet- erans suffer mentally as well. Again the issue of the requirements and duties of being a charity were raised when Paddy Rooney, as head of the Financial Committee, complemented the board and the committee for reducing overall spending by 12.5%. "Now we need to look at branch spending," he said. "We owe it to our donors to make sure we operate correctly – or we risk losing our charity status." ONE Director Derek Ryan spoke about their Strategic Plan, "We are at war with other charities for funding! We have to focus on raising funds and plan like other agencies do. Our vision and mission is to look after our former colleagues and homeless veterans." ONE Company Secretary Albert Farrell spoke about gover- nance and gave a stern warning to all branches to provide receipts for any spending. "We are governed also... otherwise we would have chaos. If we see irregularities with any ac- counts I, as company secretary, am obliged by law to inform Revenue and An Garda Síochána or I face a €5,000 fine and/ or a year in jail – and I'm not doing either!" Finishing the conference CEO Ollie O'Connor urged mem- bers to "Support the Fuchsia Appeal and let us do more to help our comrades!" President elect Tom James, St Conleth's Branch, who will take over at the 2017 ADC in Limerick. ONE Director Derek Ryan discussing ONE's Strategic Plan. New board elected for 2016/17. Branch of the Year award winners Fr James Gilmore Br, N/Dublin. L/R: John Whelan, President Mick Carroll and Seán Shinnors.

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