Anonymous donor pledges €20,000 to house fire orphans

A BIG-HEARTED Dubliner who wants to remain anonymous has donated €20,000 to an appeal to help three children orphaned in a fire at their home.

Money has flooded in from all over the country to help 10-year-old Cian O’Regan, his seven year-old sister, Brianna and little brother, Aaron, who is just five.

Their parents, Bryan and Johanna, died in a fire at their home in Waterford’s Ballybeg at the start of this month, along with their baby sister, Niamh, who was just 21 months old.

To date, donations are pouring into the special bank account from across the south east and as far afield as Wicklow, Limerick and Cork from individuals and businesses touched by their plight.

“There’s been a great response and the money is continuing to flow in,” said Bank of Ireland appeal co-ordinator Carmel Hutchinson. “There’s been the very generous donation of €20,000 from a Dublin man who wants to remain anonymous and while most of the money coming in is from the south east, really people are digging deep all over the country,” she said.

Eurovision hopeful Chris Doran is also taking to the stage on Monday night next at Waterford’s Forum Theatre to raise money for the appeal. Tickets are available from the theatre as well as WLR FM and the Centra in Ballybricken as well as other outlets.

The O’Regan appeal account is held at the Bank of Ireland in Lisduggan but donations can be made at any BoI branch. The appeal fund will remain open until mid-July. The account number is 40559976 and the sort code is 906216.