01/02/2015

Huge preparations went under way in the weeks leading up to the big night! There were several things that needed to be completed and this wouldn't have been possible without all the support from friends & family!

I felt it was important to create a buzz and excitement surrounding my event. Third Level students are constantly invited to new things and events and I was aware the event had to stand out. At times this process felt quite daunting and scary. Putting your idea out there and hoping people will like it can sometimes almost feel impossible. I wanted people to believe in my event just as much as I did. With the help of a few creative heads and through the very unique contestants we made this possible!

We created a campaign to get people excited and involved in promoting the event! The idea was simple yet effective. We had several competitions which encouraged people to share, like, post the event and in return they'd have a chance of winning a bottle of bubbly and free tickets!

Special Thanks to Burlington Engineering who kindly donated several bottles of Jameson & Vodka. This worked to my advantage and before we knew it the cheesy catch phrase " #Love is Blind " was a success.

In the meantime we knew it was important to make posters, banners and physical tickets to get the word out and reach as much people as possible! With the help of Orna Foley, The Wright Venue and Digital Print & Image we had printed of hundreds of tickets and very slick posters including a background drop & an actual "Blind Date" Set for the stage on the night!

02/02/2015

Blind Date was all about showing the contestants bubbly & unique personalities, the night was light hearted and funny. Its intentions were for people to come sit back relax, have a few drinks and enjoy entertainment provided by the 24 contestants. As so we came up with the idea of having sneak peak promo videos of the contestants themselves!

This was possibly the most enjoyable part for me. It allowed me to explore a creative element of the process that I hadn't done before. Id a great team who did research into date shows, we asked the contestants to really think outside the box and show off there personalities! The results we got back were hilariously funny and showed true initiative from the participants!

The Videos were widely varied and each idea was completely different! We'd such a strong panel of contestants that were totally up to joke about themselves in such a way that generated such hype & had everyone excited about!

Ill take this time to thank Jane Tolan who filmed, edited and contributed greatly to putting together these videos! Eoghan Mc Ginty & Oni Mc Grath who took it upon themselves to create very unique, hilariously funny, fabulous videos. To Fergus Neary, Cian O Scolai, Alan O Hara, Laura O Leary & Niall Kelly for getting involved.

Big help from Orna Foley, Deirdre Mc Carthy & Levi Mc Grattan. Together we researched fantastic questions, ideas and showed excellent leadership skills towards the team. The dynamics were so important to organise and get right on the night & we managed to pull this off very swiftly.

goodnightgreatcause

13/02/2015

The generosity we received on the night of the event was overwhelming & we managed to sustain some fabulous prizes thanks to great business's! We came up with the idea of having a lucky dip instead of your average raffle.

How it worked was we had 4 decorated boxes, each contained envelopes of prizes and over 50 scratch cards to be won. Therefore people had a 1 in 3 chance of winning a prize. This made it a little bit more exciting on the night and worked really well! Big shoutout to the very generous prizes that were donated.

PRIZES INCLUDED • Private Room at The Wright Venue . T & C apply • Signed Leinster Jersey • €50 voucher for Blue Bar Skerries • Jewellery from Fields • 5 Wash & Blow Drys for Salon 56 • Meal for two for Fowlers • 5 Nail & Polish vouchers for Beauty 56 • 3 Cookbooks from Itsa Bagel worth €30 • Avoca Hamper • Bottle of Hennessy • 2 Bottles of Bubbly • George Forman Grill • €30 voucher for McGoverns • 2 Nandos vouchers •€10 voucher for Jnails •€50 voucher for Ruby's bar & Grill •€5 for Really Old Sweet Shop •€50 Hamper from Mc Cabes •€35 voucher make over from Mc Cabes with Lancôme products •€15 Bath Set •€20 Scotch Bonnet • Caris Closet Earings worth €40 • Shellac nail file forBlue Moon • €40 gift set for Clarins •2 Fish & Trips vouchers •2 Grafton Barber vouchers X1 wash cut X1 hot shave

Special thank you to Levi Mc Grattan & Deirdre Mc Carthy who drove around half of Dublin to collect these with me and to Stephen Clarke, Orna Foley who used the art skills in organising the lucky Dip.

To the helpers on the night Katherine Troy, Ciara Kinsella, Leah Edwards, Sarah Slevin, Rachel Lennon, Stephen Clarke, Orna Foley & Ellie Bullock who sold an enormous amount of raffle tickets, ticket sales and acted very professional throughout. Sporting Barnardos and Blossom Ireland Tshrts.

22/11/2014

To kickstart the fundraising, last weekend with the help of 30 young girls we raised a fantastic €250! The idea came to mind during my brainstorming when I felt it was important to get as many different age groups involved in various parts of my fundraising. I was able to contact these girls through my younger sister !

The event was simple yet effective ! In the space of a week, invitations were sent out and with the help of Woodies DIY my living room was transformed into a decorated movie screening with red & white balloons ! There were refreshments & treats for all which was kindly sponsored. Thank you to all the parents who contributed! The turn out was great and the girls were so excited to be involved in raising money for the project ! It helped me greatly as we raised a significant amount without the stress of the usual organising and planning that goes into events. It was simple !

Big congrats to all of the girls who donated last Saturday what a fabulous way to start of the fundraising !

Keep an eye out for more updating as the next project will be announced very soon!

03/03/2015

Being apart of 100minds has been nothing but rewarding. I have learnt so much in such a small space of time & seeing how much of a difference you can make is amazing. There is nothing more rewarding than seeing your idea come to light and meeting some very interesting people along the way! It expands your network greatly, you learn so much about yourself and its great for your personal growth.

I cant recommend the program enough to anyone who may be tempted in taking part in 100minds! What you will gain is endless! Its an amazing way to give back! Not only have I learnt so much but I've also had the most fun while doing it. The idea may seem daunting & scary, at first I had no idea what I was going to do. It is difficult to put yourself out there and take responsibility. The truth is you will have a 101 thoughts in your head why you cant do it. Proving those thoughts wrong each day and seeing yourself succeeding is so rewarding. knowing perhaps you made an impact in changing a Childs life is inspiring!

Special Thanks to Declan Egan, My mentor Emma Lu Leavy, Kevin Cassidy and the whole 100minds team for supporting and giving me the goal to begin with. My Family and friends especially Deirdre Mc Carthy who encouraged me and believed in the 100minds project as much as I did. Its been truly an amazing experience!

BLIND DATE IN ASSOCIATION WITH 100 MINDS

13/02/2015

Big thank you to everyone who came down to "Blind Date with 100minds" on Friday! I am delighted to say our target was exceeded for two amazing children's charities, Barnardos and Blossom Ireland.

To everyone who bought tickets, donated an contributed to the raffle this result is all down to your generosity & the impact your creating is huge.

The night was a huge success and exceeded all of my expectations. The whole lay out ran so smoothly and the contestants themselves put on a great show & created a great buzz on the night ! The Wright venues stage was turned into a cheesy date show with lights and fantastic music picked from each contestant and provided by The Wright Venue.

Id amazing helpers on the night who allowed the night to run smoothly. We had no queue delays at the door and everyone was up for contributing further to the raffle. The night couldn't have gone better and I was truly proud of what we managed to put together!

My two main runners Deirdre Mc Carthy & Levi Mc Grattan really made this possible and took full responsibility on the night when it came to organising the contestants , dealing with large sums of cash and managing to have all the guests buzzing

12/01/2015

I'm excited to be finally announcing Blind Date & Valentines Auction which will be taking place Friday the 13th of February in The Wright Venue. After eliminating several venues it was clear to me that this Venue would work best with my themed concept on the night & were offering me best prices, facilities and more!

What promises to be a Good night for a Great Cause, the night plans to entertain and match off candidates just in time for Valentines Day! Great efforts will be made in the next few weeks in preparation to make this event a success. Including 24 candidates who are willing to get involved and make the night a special one!

The night hopes to be good crack for everyone attending and a great excuse to enjoy some fabulous drink promos, prizes and so much more that will be announced very soon !! (To be confirmed).

Tickets will be available soon through Event Brite so make sure to keep an eye out on this space and the event itself via facebook!

https://www.facebook.com/events/991537217527534/991540870860502/?notif_t=like