Kilkenny family set to appear on RTE hit television show

DIY SOS: The Big Build Ireland are preparing for their first build of the new year, which will take place soon in Kilkenny - and need your help!

In just a few weeks (March 18 - 27), Baz Ashmawy and the team will travel to Mooncoin in County Kilkenny to rally the troops to help complete a dream home for the O’Hanlon family, who are in desperate need of an adapted house for their little girl, Aoibhínn.

Aoibhínn (9), was born with a severe type of spina bifida and hydrocephalus, posing significant challenges for her and her family, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

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She is completely paralysed from her belly button down and has had to have a shunt inserted to drain the fluid from her brain.

Aoibhínn lives in Mooncoin with her Mam Sharon (Aoibhínn’s full time carer), her Dad John, and her two younger siblings.

After many years struggling to secure the money to build a home to meet Aoibhínn’s growing needs - with a lot of knockbacks and refusals - John and Sharon eventually managed to secure an extremely modest mortgage and embarked on their self-build.

Progress has been painfully slow - despite family and friends giving every spare moment to the project. To save money the family moved in with Aoibhínn’s grandparents.

Conditions there are cramped as the house is now jam-packed with assistive devices and mobility equipment, such as wheelchairs, a stander, commodes, high chairs and a changing unit.

John and Sharon might eventually achieve their goal of a home for Aoibhínn but not without budget driven compromises and not without further significant delay.

DIY SOS - The Big Build can make a huge difference to this young person’s life and are looking for local people to get involved with the build.

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Groundworkers, ticketed machine drivers, carpenters, general labourers, plumbers, electricians, slabbers, blocklayers, painters, plasterers, joiners, pavers, landscapers, fencers, tilers, photography, audiovisual companies, catering, cleaning and registration volunteers - you name the trade, they need you there!

The production team also need local companies who can assist them by supplying goods and materials for external works: Grab hire, skips, waste management, lawn turf and other landscaping products.

For catering, an army marches on its stomach and they need to feed their volunteers! So they are looking for catering companies or local restaurants and cafés to provide breakfast rolls, lunch, dinners and snacks to fuel their 100+ hardworking troops.

For interiors, they need joinery companies, glazing, furniture, wallpaper, extensive homewares, photography and frames, bedding, mirrors, mattress supplier, curtains and blinds.

For site support, they need traffic management, site security, van drivers, transport companies, marquees, accommodation, and printers.

If you'd like to get involved, get in touch via email - diysoskilkenny@gmail.com - or call/ text 083 126 3130 and include your:
* NAME
* NUMBER
* EMAIL
* Details of your TRADE or what you can SUPPLY.

Come on Kilkenny… let's do this together!

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