Laois man Oliver’s Christmas single raised €10,000 for children’s charity
Presenting the 10,000 cheque which was raised from donations to the fundraising single An Irish Christmas were left to right: Linda Berry, Danielle Ryan (Lack and Jill), Oliver Berry and Michaela Foley (Jack and Jill)
BALLYLINAN singer-songwriter Oliver Berry, who released a Christmas single to raise funds for the Jack and Jill Foundation, presented a cheque for €10,000 to the children’s charity last week.
Along with his sister Linda, Oliver travelled to the charity’s headquarters in Johnstown Co Kildare, where they handed over the cheque to fundraising executives Michaela Foley and Danielle Ryan.
was written and performed by Oliver, with backing vocals from Linda and Carrie Haskins, along with Seamus O’Halloran on guitar and Noel Donovan on banjo. The single was recorded in Joe Cleere’s studios.
An online account was set up on iDonate on 1 December and the staggering sum of €10,000 was raised when the page closed on Sunday 26 January.
Oliver wanted to raise funds for the charity because he knew “a few families around where I live that have been assisted by Jack and Jill. It’s also a charity for children, and Christmastime is all about children”.
Accepting the cheque on behalf of the Jack and Jill Foundation, Ms Foley said: “It is amazing. Well done to Oliver and all involved. What a great achievement!” Oliver said: “It’s the people who made this happen. We had donations from individuals, family, friends, companies, people from England, Scotland, Wales, America, Canada and Australia. The amount of support was amazing. Thank you all so much.” Oliver is now preparing to head back into the studio to record another song, which will be his third release. His first recording, , was very well received last year and got plenty of airtime.
