Newman charity gives €25k to supply detox beds for drug addicts

PAUL NEWMAN’S charitable legacy has yet again benefited Ireland with a €25,000 cheque to fund much-needed medical detox beds for drug addicts.

Wed, 20 Jul, 2011 - 01:00

Cormac O’Keeffe

Ireland has long had a shortage of these facilities, with just 30 such beds in the country.

This is despite a heroin- using population in excess of 20,000 people, some 9,000 of whom are receiving methadone treatment.

Merchants Quay Ireland is the latest recipient from the Newman’s Own Foundation.

The €25,000 will provide funding for the opening of a new, ten-bed, medically supervised detox facility at St Francis Farm in Tullow, Co Carlow, which is run by Merchants Quay.

“Heroin is now a national crisis, with well over 20,000 heroin users. There is an acute shortage of inpatient detoxification beds, with only 30 beds currently available across the whole of Ireland. This means the services that are in place are stretched,” said Tony Geoghegan, Merchants Quay chief executive.

“The grant by Newman’s Own will help support a 35% increase on current national detox provision. When the facility is operating at full capacity, it has the potential to help 130 men and women toward a drug free life each year.”

The grant was announced by Robert Forrester, president of Newman’s Own Foundation, at an event in The Westbury Hotel, Dublin.

“We recognise the needs of communities, especially during these difficult economic times,” said Mr Forrester. “Paul Newman was committed to helping make the world a better place. He believed in sharing his good fortune with those in need. We are proud to be able to continue his philanthropic legacy today and to assist the work of Merchants Quay.”

The famous actor was aged 83 when he died in 2008. To carry on his philanthropic legacy, the foundation donates all post-tax profits and royalties to charity.

To date, Paul Newman and Newman’s Own Foundation have given over $300 million (€207m) to charities worldwide.

Earlier this year, to celebrate hitting the $300m mark, the charity said it was giving more than €400,000 to 12 Irish charities.

One of the most well-known recipients is Barretstown, the first of Newman’s family of Hole in the Wall camps for children with life-threatening illnesses in Europe.