PayPal donates over €55,000 to Irish charities

PayPal today announced that it has donated over €55,000 ($60,000) to seven Irish charities. Five of the charities received funding through the PayPal Gives initiative, a fund that supports and recognises PayPal employees who participate in charitable giving, volunteering and fundraising activities. A further two charities received donations through the PayPal Financial Inclusion Charity Grant Programme.

The five charities that received funding through PayPal Gives are ARC Cancer Support, homeless charity Depaul, children’s hospice Laura Lynn, Dundalk Dog Rescue and children’s charity Temple Street Foundation. The organisations were nominated by PayPal employees at the Blanchardstown and Dundalk offices and received a donation of €8,400 ($9,000) each.

The donations demonstrate PayPal’s commitment to supporting the Irish communities in which it operates. In the last 12 months, the company has donated €110,000 to Irish charities through PayPal Gives.

ARC Cancer Support will use its donation to continue its work in supporting children and adults affected by cancer and those caring for them. Depaul, will fund a programme that supports homeless women leaving prison; helping them integrate successfully back into their local communities. Laura Lynn’s donation will help fund its popular annual Light Up event, when the charity turns on its Christmas tree lights. The contribution to Temple Street Foundation will support a new play facility for children in the hospital, while Dundalk Dog Rescue’s funding will enable it to continue to give unwanted dogs a second chance.

Through the Financial Inclusion Charity Grant Programme, two more charities received support from PayPal. They were selected from a number of charities that pitched their financial inclusion ideas, which aim to help people and businesses that struggle to secure safe and affordable financial services. The chosen charities were Junior Achievement Ireland, which received €9,300 ($10,000); and Outreach Moldova, which received €4,600 ($5,000) in funding.

Junior Achievement Ireland’s programme encourages young people to remain in education, while helping them to develop the skills they need to succeed in a rapidly changing world. As part of the programme, the charity will provide financial training and workshops for schoolchildren in Louth. Fifty PayPal employees in Dundalk have volunteered to help deliver the workshop.

Meanwhile, Outreach Moldova works with orphaned and abandoned children in Moldova with disabilities, chronic illnesses and terminal illnesses. PayPal’s contribution will help it to provide integrated support services and assistance to more than 400 children living in its residential accommodation and temporary residential units.

Laura Morgan Walsh, Director of EMEA Risk and Financial Services Operations, was on hand to present the charities with their PayPal Gives grants.

Laura Morgan Walsh said: “At PayPal, we are constantly looking for ways in which we can give back to the local communities in which we operate. Through the PayPal Gives programme, every year we provide funding to charities that are close to our employees’ hearts and we also support teammates in their own volunteering and fundraising efforts. It’s fantastic to see the impact that these activities have on our local communities and the difference that our chosen charities make to people’s lives.”

Maeve Dorman, PayPal’s Head of Global Operations, Europe, Middle East and Africa said: “The PayPal Gives initiative is something that we at PayPal are extremely proud of, as it reflects the spirit of giving rooted within our company. The programme allows our teammates to see that they are making a real, tangible difference to the charities that they care about in terms of donations, volunteering and fundraising opportunities. We are delighted to support these seven charities and recognise the invaluable work each of them does.”