I volunteer because helping is priceless

Ann O’Sullivan was a ‘greeter’ for visiting families at the Midlands Prison, but still wanted to support others after retiring, so she now works in a Jack & Jill charity shop

Jack and Jill volunteer Ann O’Sullivan in the shop at Kealew Business Retail Park in Portlaoise. Picture: Alf Harvey.

Ann O'Sullivan has volunteered in the Jack & Jill shop, Portlaoise, for almost six years, but the 73-year-old knew nothing about the charity until her granddaughter, Zoe, was born.

“Zoe had very special needs. We knew ahead she had problems — we didn’t expect them to be as bad as they were. They knew she wasn’t going to live very long — she passed away at 11 weeks. Her twin, Lucy, was 10 in May,” says O’Sullivan, who first heard about Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation in Crumlin Hospital.