Press Release

Naval ship open to public on Sunday

Thursday, 15 December 2005

The Irish Navy Vessel, LE Eithne, will make a return visit to Derry this weekend and berth at Queen’s Quay from Saturday 17 to Monday 19 December. Members of the public interested in visiting the ship are encouraged to do so on the afternoon of Sunday 18 between 12 noon and 4.30pm when the vessel will be open to the public.

During the pre-Christmas visit, the vessel will welcome a number of families with sick children on board and co-host a reception with the Mayor of Derry, Cllr Lynn Fleming. The event is aimed at raising awareness of two deserving charity organisations, the Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children and Our Lady’s Children Hospital, Crumlin, Dublin.

The Mayor speaking ahead of the visit said she was delighted to be involved in such a unique event. She said: “The visit by the LE Eithne this weekend, will not only raise awareness for both organisations and raise much needed funds; but it will also facilitate developing relationships and networks within the medical sector on a North-South basis. We are also looking forward to welcoming representatives from Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital in Dublin and our friends from Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children at this festive time,” she said.

Commander Mark Mellett said he was looking forward to returning to Derry. “We have been made extremely welcome on our previous calls to your city and look forward to visiting for this important event. Over the past year the crew of LE Eithne have been overwhelmed by the dignity and unconditional courage of children suffering from serious ailments particularly in the areas of cardiac and oncology. We are delighted to help in raising awareness in the strength of these little warriors and we are back in Derry to assist the Mayor in doing just that,” he said.

Cruise North West continues to market the city as a destination for navy visits, cruise liners and maritime events. Aideen Corr, said of the forthcoming visit, “It is unusual to welcome visiting ships at this time of the year, but we are thrilled that LE Eithne is involved in this event with the Mayor, and we know that the ship’s crew will enjoy their pre-Christmas visit to Derry. Our calendar for 2006 includes a number of naval vessels, which will be visiting for the first time.”

Notes to Editor:

LE Eithne is the Irish Navy flagship and they have a twinning arrangement with Our Lady’s Hospital for Sick Children. This is LE Eithne’s third visit to the city. The Mayor and Commander Mark Mellett agreed to host this event during their previous visit to Derry in September on the occasion of European Heritage Week.
Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children Crumlin is an acute paediatric teaching hospital with 236 beds, employing 1200 staff. It is Republic of Ireland's largest paediatric hospital and is responsible for the provision of the majority of tertiary care services for children and medical research for childhood illnesses. It is the national referral centre for paediatric cardiac surgery and childhood cancers.

The Northern Ireland Cancer Fund for Children is a registered Charity, which offers practical support to children, and young people up to and including the age of 21, who have been diagnosed with cancer, and their families. In order to support services, a constant and varied programme of fundraising is ongoing throughout the year. Many volunteers join NICFC Support Groups around Northern Ireland to raise much needed money and have some fun all at the same time. We are proud to say that all funds raised in Northern Ireland, stay in Northern Ireland to help children from all over the Province.

For further information, please contact Aideen Corr, Tel 028 71 376 505 or email cruise@derrycity.gov.uk

For additional information contact:

Press Office

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