My name is Daire Lawler and I am a 2nd year Mathematics and Economics student in Trinity College Dublin. I am delighted to have the opportunity of being selected for the 100 Minds programme and will do my utmost to ensure that this venture is successful.

Over the course of my life, I have been fortunate to receive the unconditional help and support of so many around me; my family, my friends, my school teachers, other loved ones and of course, society as a whole. Each night when I come home from college I come home to a dinner on the table and an atmosphere of warmth and comfort. My family and friends are always there to listen to me, and to comfort me when things aren't going my way. I attend college on a SUSI grant which is a vital support in allowing me to pursue my education. Now is when I feel it is time to give back.

There are lots of children out there who aren't as fortunate as I was during my upbringing. At a time when hospital resources are stretched thinner and thinner every year after years of health service cutbacks, this is the time that our nation's sick children need our help more than ever before. €1000 to one child can be enough to pay for their medicine, to pay for their bed, to feed them during their care, to partially pay for a doctor or a nurse or even to put a smile on their face by for example, buying a games console for their ward. And if this is what €1000 can do for one child, think of what can €100000 can do for our sick children.

This year, 100 Minds participants will gather together to attempt to raise €100,000 to fund an education centre for children on wards in Temple Street Hospital. It is vital that our sick children are not denied their universal right to an education and that as they look forward to their futures, they see bright days ahead where they can live, learn and prosper just like all of the rest of those around them. This is the kind of positive change that I want to be apart of and without your help, none of this change can be possible. So I am kindly asking you to donate whatever is within your means to help this wonderful cause. I hope that you will join me in this time of giving back and what better way to give back than to do so for those who need our help the most. Thank you.