Speaking ahead of the annual Good Friday Church services, Bishop’s secretary Fr. John Carroll has appealed to people across the Diocese of Ferns to remember to return their Trócaire boxes to their local Churches this weekend.

“An annual appeal, the Trócaire box collection is now over forty years running,” he said “and down the years it has been the vehicle by which many hundreds of thousands of lives have been saved or enhanced across the developing world.”

“Our slogan this year says it all – “Your donation will make a great difference” – said Fr. Carroll, the diocese’s representative to Trócaire as he urged people to return their boxes to their local churches as they assemble this Easter weekend to mark the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

In conclusion, Fr. Carroll thanked the churchgoing population of the Diocese who in this (1916) Centenary Year have “down the many years since Trócaire was founded in 1973, contributed in the quietest way possible, several millions of euro to helping our brothers and sisters across the world in their struggle for autonomy, dignity and the right to flourishing.”

Thanks to support from people in Ireland, Trócaire supported 2.4 million people across Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Middle East in 2015. This included 45,000 poor families who got access to local resources, including land and water. Trócaire protected over 700 human rights defenders who were abused and attacked in Guatemala and over 6,000 women, who survived abuse, got healthcare, counselling and legal aid to get justice.