The Loving Life Choir, which was established by Foscadh Housing in 2019 in response to the impact of violent crime in Drogheda, has been awarded €27,326 from the RTÉ Toy Show Appeal by the Community Foundation for Ireland.
Foscadh Housing will use the funding to support the development of its programme and Foscadh Housing CEO Ken O Heiligh said the grant would make a big impact on the lives of the choir’s youth members.
“The funding will help to build the children’s skills in performance, communication and self-expression while also showing them what is possible through their exposure to the creative arts,” he said.
“Thanks to the RTÉ Toy Show Appeal, we are one step closer to achieving our goal of firmly establishing the Loving Life Choir as a positive pathway that provides children the confidence, skills and inspiration to achieve their future ambitions.”
Foscadh Housing plans to use the grant monies to appoint a permanent choir director to provide Loving Life members with stability and continuity of leadership.
Funding will also provide choir members with support from a drama choreographer to develop their skills in self-expression and performance. Here are the choir members as they appeared on RTE News in 2021:
Choir members will also benefit from excursions to creative performances such as musical theatre. Choir membership is free and provides children with a safe, inclusive and supportive environment to make new friends, develop their confidence and express themselves freely.
The Loving Life Choir has won two national awards for community integration, delivered a number of public performances, and has appeared on RTÉ radio and television, including the Late Late Toy Show in 2021.
The choir was also awarded funding from the Housing Finance Association in 2020 to write and produce an original song about members’ experiences of the pandemic and associated lockdowns.
