Online fundraiser set up for storm-damaged church in Gurranabraher

Tue, 22 Feb, 2022 - 18:32

Martha Brennan

A FUNDRAISER has been set up online to help raise money for the repairs of a well-known Cork City church following damage to the building caused by Storm Franklin.

The Church of the Ascension in Gurranabraher suffered damage to its iconic rooftop cross during a series of storms last weekend, which brought wind gusts of over 100km/hour to the city.

It is believed that the cladding around the 15ft-high cross, which was erected in 1962, was weakened and bent during Storm Eunice and Storm Franklin, causing the cross to tilt.

Cork City Fire Brigade attended the scene on Sunday evening and secured the cross. Weekday mass services have since resumed but it is unsafe to hold larger gatherings such as funerals or weddings until repairs are undertaken.

A GoFundMe page was set up by parish secretary Wendy Murphy on Monday to help pay for the restoration.

The fundraiser raised over €1,600 of its €10,000 goal in the first 24 hours, which the parish priest, Very Rev Tomás Walsh SMA, said would be a big help.

“It will be costly as the cross hasn’t been treated for a good number of years,” he told The Echo.

“An engineer was up there on Monday and the good news is that it’s the cladding, rather than the cross, that is damaged so once we get the cladding off it won’t pose a danger.

“The bad news is that it will be a restoration job really. It will take a while. Once we get the cross safe so that the compound can be used again we’ll evaluate.”

Fr Walsh said that the local community had been very supportive since the news broke on Sunday.

“We’ve had a huge amount of people sympathising with us,” Fr Walsh said. “They all have a story of the cross.

“I can remember it myself as a child. We could see it from our bedroom windows in Ballyphehane.”

Cork North Central TD Thomas Gould, who was in the area when the incident happened, said that he hoped people would get behind the fundraiser.

“When I looked up and saw it tilting over, it was very concerning. The cross is an iconic figure in the city,” Mr Gould said.

“I know a lot of people locally will support the restoration. There are a lot of good causes out there that need support, but I think it would be great if this could be completed and people would welcome that.”