Louth GAA

Main Menu

  • Fixtures & Results
    • Next 7 Days
      • Next 14 Days
      • Next 21 Days
    • Last 7 Days
      • Last 14 Days
      • Last 21 Days
    • Championship
      • Senior Football
      • Intermediate Football
      • Junior Football
      • Senior Hurling
      • Maurice Murphy Cup
    • League
      • Division 1
      • Division 2
      • Division 3A
      • Division 3B
      • Division 4
      • Division 5
      • Division 6
      • U19
      • Senior Hurling
      • Special Hurling
    • Paddy Sheelan Cup
      • Paddy Sheelan Cup KO
      • Paddy Sheelan Shield
    • Kevin Mullen Shield
      • Kevin Mullen Shield KO
      • Kevin Mullen Plate
    • U21 League Competition
    • Minor Board
      • U17
      • U16
      • U15
      • U14
      • U13
      • U12
  • Stadium
  • Committees
    • Management
    • Other Officers
    • CCC
    • Minor Board
    • Intercounty Panels
    • Coaching & Games Steering
    • Infrastructure
    • PR & IT
    • Development
    • Cultural
    • Childrens
    • Coiste Iomána CCC
    • Youth
  • Club C’ship Tickets
  • NFL Tickets
    • NHL Tickets
  • Clubber (TV)
    • Video on Demand
  • Resources
    • Coaching and Games Staff
    • Downloads

logo

  • Fixtures & Results
    • Next 7 Days
      • Next 14 Days
      • Next 21 Days
    • Last 7 Days
      • Last 14 Days
      • Last 21 Days
    • Championship
      • Senior Football
        • SFC Knockout
      • Intermediate Football
        • IFC Knockout
      • Junior Football
        • JFC Knockout
      • Senior Hurling
      • Maurice Murphy Cup
    • League
      • Division 1
      • Division 2
      • Division 3A
      • Division 3B
      • Division 4
      • Division 5
      • Division 6
      • U19
      • Senior Hurling
      • Special Hurling
    • Paddy Sheelan Cup
      • Paddy Sheelan Cup KO
      • Paddy Sheelan Shield
    • Kevin Mullen Shield
      • Kevin Mullen Shield KO
      • Kevin Mullen Plate
    • U21 League Competition
    • Minor Board
      • U17
        • Championship
          • U17 A Championship
          • U17 B Championship
        • League
          • Regional League
      • U16
        • League
          • U16 Division 1
          • U16 Division 2
          • U16 Division 3
      • U15
        • Championship
          • U15 A Championship
          • U15 B Championship
        • League
          • U15 Division 1
          • U15 Division 2
          • U15 Division 3
      • U14
        • League
          • U14 Division 1
          • U14 Division 2
          • U14 Division 3
      • U13
        • League
          • U13 Division 1
          • U13 Division 2
          • U13 Division 3
        • U13 A Championship
        • U13 B Championship
      • U12
        • League
          • U12 Division 1
          • U12 Division 2
          • U12 Division 3
          • U12 Division 4
  • Stadium
  • Committees
    • Management
    • Other Officers
    • CCC
    • Minor Board
    • Intercounty Panels
    • Coaching & Games Steering
    • Infrastructure
    • PR & IT
    • Development
    • Cultural
    • Childrens
    • Coiste Iomána CCC
    • Youth
  • Club C’ship Tickets
  • NFL Tickets
    • NHL Tickets
  • Clubber (TV)
    • Video on Demand
  • Resources
    • Coaching and Games Staff
    • Downloads
CountyClub
Home›County›Almost 35,000 people helped by GAA clubs during COVID-19 crisis

Almost 35,000 people helped by GAA clubs during COVID-19 crisis

By Mark Byrne
14th May 2020
2309
0
Share:

A survey of approximately 1,600 GAA clubs by the Association’s Community and Health Department has highlighted the huge role that clubs are playing in supporting their members and communities during the COVID-19 health crisis.

The survey found that 86% of those clubs have been directly involved in the COVID-19 community response.

That equated to approximately 19,164 GAA volunteers directly supporting 34,571 people in a variety of ways.

“It’s incredible,” says the GAA’s Community and Health Department Manager, Colin Regan.

“Humbling, really, is the word that comes to mind. When you look at the numbers involved you realise the contribution the GAA is making at this time of crisis in the country.

“If our front-line services or other charities were required to provide support to an additional 35,000 people in our communities, it would put them under enormous drain.

“It allows them to focus on the high-need areas where there’s maybe a higher threshold of expertise or qualifications required.

“Our volunteers are essentially doing their part to prop up and take the strain off the front-line services and allow them to deal with the higher-level requirements this emergency is bringing on our society and local communities.”

The GAA has always prided itself on being a community organisation as much as a sporting one, and the current health crisis has underlined the extent to which it is.

Sport has stopped, but GAA clubs have still been hugely active within their communities in a variety of different ways.

Local knowledge has proven to be a crucial asset in a time of emergency. While statutory services on both sides of the border were still working to get official structures fully up and running, GAA clubs were already being very proactive responding to the particular needs of their own communities.

“The ability of the GAA to mobilise at a community level was immediate, almost,” says Regan.

“And as soon as the emergency hit, we knew that because we have a direct communication line with the 300 clubs that are involved in the Healthy Club Project.

“Almost all of those within the first week of the scale of this emergency becoming apparent were involved in some form of COVID-19 response on behalf of their community. It wasn’t exclusive to the Healthy Clubs, but we were seeing that immediately with them just because we have real-time visibility with the Healthy Clubs Facebook page.

“The numbers involved obviously quickly came to exceed those 300 clubs involved in the Healthy Clubs Project, but they had training in health promotion and partnership development that allowed them to immediately activate their project teams in supporting their communities and pulling together a team of volunteers to deliver groceries, et cetera.

“Beyond the Healthy Club Project, the GAA’s strength in general is our ability to be able to mobilise an army of volunteers for whatever need.

“And, then, also the structures that are required to coordinate and maintain that over a prolonged period of time as we’re seeing now.

“The statutory services in both jurisdictions probably took three weeks to get official structures up and running, so at that stage the GAA was already at the front-line in every single county doing what a lot of them do on a weekly basis.

“It’s hidden a lot of the time because the games, quite rightly, take the centre-stage and that’s what the media attention focuses on and that’s what the community sees to see, the manifestation of the GAA through the very highly physical wearing of the jersey and the playing of our games.

“But this type of work does happen in a much more hidden way throughout a calendar year. The removal of the games has allowed the spotlight of the games to be shown on that element of the Association and I’m anticipating that it will result in a lasting increased appreciation of the community side of the GAA.”

 

 

By John Harrington

www.gaa.ie

TagsCovid 19responseclubsvolunteers
Previous Article

Mental Health Resources

Next Article

Virtual Scór 2020

0
Shares
  • 0
  • +

Related articles More from author

  • Fixtures & ResultsClub

    Live GAA back on TG4

    10th July 2020
    By Mark Byrne
  • Club

    Covid-19 Club Grant

    7th August 2020
    By Mark Byrne
  • Fixtures & ResultsClubCounty

    GAA announce revised Master Fixtures Calendar for 2021

    8th April 2021
    By Mark Byrne
  • SponsorsClub

    Cullen Auto Parts-Sanitising Products and Signage

    19th June 2020
    By Mark Byrne
  • Fixtures & ResultsCoaching & GamesClubCountyHealth and Wellbeing

    Updated Advice to Clubs and Counties – for activities post Dec 31st

    1st January 2021
    By Mark Byrne
  • Fixtures & ResultsClubCounty

    Covid Restrictions -Important Update

    10th February 2021
    By Mark Byrne

Leave a reply Cancel reply

You may be interested in

  • Fixtures & ResultsCoaching & GamesClubCountyHealth and Wellbeing

    Updated Advice to Clubs and Counties – for activities post Dec 31st

  • Coaching & GamesClubHealth and Wellbeing

    GAA Covid Health Questionnaire now available

  • Darver
    Fixtures & Results

    Louth GAA season structures set out

Pick A House

Fixtures & Results

  • Fixtures & ResultsCoaching & GamesCounty

    Breaking: Management Appointments within Louth GAA

    Louth GAA have tonight ratified Fergal Reel as the new U20 football manager on a 2 year term with an option to extend and an annual review. The Armagh native, ...
  • ClubCountyFixtures & Results

    Louth GAA Statement regarding CCCC Hurling Proposal

    Louth GAA Statement on CCCC Proposal Louth GAA held a special meeting on Monday 20th to discuss the recent proposals from the CCCC regarding the development of hurling in Louth ...
  • Fixtures & Results

    Paul McCormack steps down as Senior Hurling Manager

    Paul McCormack has stepped down as manager of the Louth Senior Hurling Team. The former Armagh dual player guided the Wee County to the 2020 and 2022 Lory Meagher Cup ...
  • CountyFixtures & ResultsClub

    Clubber TV Announces Exciting Partnership with Louth GAA for the 2023 Louth Club Championship

    Clubber TV is delighted to announce a groundbreaking partnership with the Louth County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) ahead of the highly anticipated 2023 Louth Club Championship. This ...
  • CountySponsorsFixtures & Results

    All-Ireland SFC: Classy Kerry top Group One

    All-Ireland SFC Group One Kerry 5-24 Louth 0-11 By Dan Bannon at Laois Hire O’Moore Park Kerry’s Sean O’Shea revelled in the Portlaoise sunshine with a stunning performance to end ...

Louth GAA Tweets

Twitter feed is not available at the moment.

Louth GAA

logo

Louth GAA is one of the 32 County Boards of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) in Ireland and is responsible for the promotion of Gaelic Games and Irish Cultúr in County Louth including Gaelic Football and Hurling.

Lú Abú

  • Recent

  • Popular

  • Breaking: Management Appointments within Louth GAA

    By Mark Byrne
    24th November 2023
  • Louth GAA Statement regarding CCCC Hurling Proposal

    By Mark Byrne
    22nd November 2023
  • IRFU, GAA and FAI unite to launch “Respect Our Games” initiative

    By Mark Byrne
    27th September 2023
  • Paul McCormack steps down as Senior Hurling Manager

    By Mark Byrne
    20th September 2023
  • LOUTH GAA – WEE COUNTY DOUBLE HOUSE DRAW

    By Mark Byrne
    30th January 2021
  • Protection and Prosperity Louth GAA Training Centre Darver

    By Mark Byrne
    3rd June 2022
  • Do you want to be part of LúTV?

    By Mark Byrne
    8th August 2020
  • Louth GAA Coaching Conference 2021

    By Mark Byrne
    5th January 2021

About Us

  • Louth GAA Centre of Excellence, Newtowndarver, Readypenny, Co. Louth, A91 CF62
  • operationsmanager.louth@gaa.ie

Follow us

© Copyright Louth GAA. All rights reserved.