09.12.2017
Dublin Black Santa Appeal Gets Underway on Wednesday
The 2017 Black Santa Sit Out at St Ann’s Church, Dawson Street, Dublin, will be launched this Wednesday, December 13, at 12.45 pm by the Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Revd Dr Michael Jackson. They will be joined by the Choir of Kildare Place National School.
The appeal raises in the region of €40,000 for a range of charities every year, including charities which serve homeless people. This year the Vicar of St Ann’s, Canon David Gillespie, is looking forward to an increased footfall on Dawson Street with the opening of the Luas Cross City service and says all the volunteers and choirs who will be singing are looking forward to bringing Christmas cheer to a much wider audience.
“The launch of this year’s appeal almost coincides with the official launch of the Luas Cross City service which will be passing by our doors. This will increase our exposure considerably and we look forward to many more people stopping by to donate but also to sharing the joy of the approaching Christmas season with even more people than before,” Canon Gillespie commented.
“Last year, our funds were hit badly by the work associated with the Luas project, and so we look forward this time round to a bumper year. We will have an increased number of choirs singing outside St Ann’s for us this year and even more collectors as we seek to capitalize on the increased footfall,” he added.
All the charities supported by Black Santa do invaluable work and every cent donated to the appeal is divided among them. There are no administration charges and all the collectors are volunteers. The choirs which join Black Santa every lunchtime provide their festive cheer free of charge.
The annual sit out will continue right up until Christmas Eve. Canon Gillespie, joined by clerical colleagues from around the United Dioceses of Dublin & Glendalough and teams of volunteers, will remain outside the city centre church from 10.00 am until 6.00 pm each day collecting donations.
This year they will be joined by a huge number of choirs who will sing festive songs and carols each lunchtime. These include Castleknock National School, St James Primary School, Francis Street CBS, St Stephens Church Choir, Catholic University School, Taney Parish Junior School, Alexandra College, Kildare Place National School, Cornucopia Brass Group, Irish Life Choir, Revenue Choir, AIB Choral Society, Permanent TSB Staff Choir, John Scottus School, Loretto College, Seafield Singers, Dublin Male Voice Choir, the Line Up Choir, Steadfast Band and the Brook Singers.
The Black Santa sit out is modeled on a similar appeal, which has been run by successive Deans of St Anne’s Cathedral in Belfast for many years. It became known as the Black Santa appeal because of the long heavy black cloaks worn by the clergy to keep out the cold. This is the 17th year that the appeal has been held in Dublin and in that time well over €500,000 has been raised for local good causes.
Among the charities to benefit from the appeal are Trust, The Salvation Army, The Simon Community and the Peter McVerry Trust all of which work with the homeless. Other charities supported include Protestant Aid, Barnardos, St Vincent De Paul, the Laura Lynn Foundation and Solas Project.
The Vicar thanked those in St Ann’s who will help organise what is a massive undertaking in terms of extending hospitality to the choirs who will sing outside the church.
“There is a small but very faithful team of people working behind the scenes in St Ann’s preparing food, counting money, and liaising with the many choirs who participate and to them I want to express my sincere thanks. We are all busy at this time of the year and the fact that parishioners from St Ann’s are willing to set that time aside and help is very gratifying indeed.”