Are young people in your community struggling to build resilience and find their direction after the disruption of recent years? Many secondary school students today face unprecedented challenges - from educational gaps to mental health concerns - leaving parents, educators, and community leaders searching for effective ways to support the next generation's development.

Imagine a community where every young person has access to the tools, mentorship, and opportunities they need to thrive. Picture teenagers who are not only academically supported but also equipped with life skills, resilience, and a sense of purpose - young people who understand their potential to make a positive impact and are empowered to become the changemakers and philanthropists of tomorrow.

Louise McElvaney and Sean McDaid, co-founders of the 5Ten Trust in Donegal, have created exactly this kind of transformative community program. Louise brings extensive HR expertise in organizational development, while Sean leverages deep community connections built over years of local engagement.

Together, they've developed innovative approaches including peer tutoring, targeted workshops, and their groundbreaking "Pay It Forward" initiative that's turning young people into active contributors to their communities - even during the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

• Why a global pandemic became the unexpected opportunity to transform youth mental health support in one Irish community
• How two friends turned mutual respect into a powerful formula for launching successful community initiatives
• The "Pay It Forward" strategy that transforms teenage bursary recipients into active community changemakers
• Real examples: How former students are now running social media campaigns and funding community gardens
• The proven framework for building resilience and life skills that you can adapt for your own community's young people

GUEST DETAILS

In 2020 we Co-founded 5Ten Trust, a charity set up to help young people further their education and development ambitions, by enabling them to remove barriers.

The trust sponsors numerous education initiatives with education providers to develop resilience and address mental health challenges among children and young people in the North or Ireland.

QUOTES

• We're trying to influence them to pay it forward, for a better word of the future, with their time, talent and perhaps funding. - Louise McElvaney
• For the children, It's about giving them the confidence that they are enough, that they are capable of anything that they set their mind to. - Louise McElvaney
• if we can change someone's life early on, and instill in them the power that small changes can make in their lives, hopefully it has long, lasting and huge consequences for the community.– Sean McDaid
• We touch on hundreds of kids to help build resilience, to help them with life skills, to help them with what they're going to do next. – Louise McElvanery
• If you're wanting to help children deal with anxiety, resilience and build them into better people, you have to start somewhere. So just just start small.. – Sean McDaid

KEYWORDS

#Philanthropy Ireland, #5Ten Trust, #bursaries, #mental health, #secondary school children, #Donegal

When Ed Dunne sold Nua Healthcare after 20+ years building it into a successful social care business, he didn't just write checks to charities he got into the weeds.

The Síol Foundation (meaning "seed") provides business models teaching organizations self-sufficiency, like Sensational Kids charging half-price for therapy services instead of giving everything free, becoming sustainable from day one without needing donations.

From Moldova institutional care reform to co-founding Dídean challenging direct provision by housing migrant children in communities (not hotels) with 70-year-old toilet cleaners at music festivals to proactive young fathers needing support, Ed's ADHD-driven passion focuses on karma, seeing people behind problems, raising four children to recognise others' struggles, and believing money without structure often fails while €10,000 teaching self-sufficiency beats €100,000 creating dependency—all while avoiding charity registration burdens by working through Community Foundation Ireland's donor-advised structure.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

• Gaisce President's Award sparked lifelong commitment to community development volunteering
• Síol Foundation provides seed capital teaching organizations self-sufficiency over dependency
• Sensational Kids became sustainable charging half-price rather than free services
• Dídean challenges direct provision system humanely supporting migrant children families
• Mountrath Bridgerdean Convent transformed into self-sustaining community hub gym workspace

GUEST DETAILS

Ed Dunne is a philanthropist, social entrepreneur, and successful businessman whose giving journey began through Gaisce (the President's Award) as a young person.

After founding and building Nua Healthcare into a successful social care business over 20+ years (fully exiting in 2020), Ed established the Síol Foundation (Irish for "seed") to provide seed capital and business models helping organizations become self-sufficient rather than donation-dependent.

His hands-on approach has supported projects ranging from €500 to over €1 million—from Sensational Kids (half-price therapy services sustainable from day one) to Moldova's institutional care reform, the Tala Fund supporting his hometown, and transforming Mountrath's Bridgerdean Convent into a €1 million self-sustaining community hub.

In 2019, he co-founded Dídean (Irish for "shelter"), challenging Ireland's direct provision system by housing migrant children and families in community settings across four counties with social care support, achieving high integration rates.

Working through Community Foundation Ireland's donor-advised structure, Ed deploys personal and family funds based on passion rather than distant check-writing, believing in karma, teaching self-sufficiency over dependency, and raising his four children to see people's struggles regardless of status—exemplified by his festival moment watching a 70-year-old toilet cleaner and wanting his legacy to be children who actually see people.

CONNECT WITH ED:

• Síol Foundation through Community Foundation Ireland
• Dídean: Supporting migrant children and families
• Mountrath Bridgerdean Convent community project

MORE INFORMATION

Looking to learn more about the power of strategic giving and effecting real change? Visit https://www.philanthropy.ie/ to learn more.

The Philanthropy Ireland Podcast is produced by DustPod.io.

QUOTES

• That's where you'd have people saying, Look well, no, I'm sure look bad. Leave us alone. Go away. Just write a check. And that's not what I do. - Ed Dunne
• I don't particularly like donating at a distance. I don't like just giving people money and then off they go. Money isn't always the answer in projects. It doesn't always fix things. - Ed Dunne
• We sponsored all of the salaries for the year, but from day one, they were able to build those services out to people at half price. They never needed a penny to fund their salaries because the order book on the clinical services was just full. - Ed Dunne
• Whatever everybody thinks a migrant is, a 19 year old boy from a particular place coming over here to take jobs—on the most part, a significant number of these people are children and children with complex needs.. If you ask any Irish person, do you think it's okay for a child to grow up in a hotel all their life, they will go, No, - Ed Dunne

KEYWORDS

#SocialEntrepreneurship #StrategicGiving #SelfSufficiency #DirectProvisionReform #CommunityDevelopment

In this episode, Vincent Wall speaks with Maeve Cavanagh, CEO of the Tomar Trust, about the remarkable philanthropic journey started by her late father, Tom Cavanagh. Maeve shares how the Trust was built on a simple vision of “levelling the playing field” in education, rural communities, integration, and the arts — and why Tomar’s funding was always intended to be the “icing on the cake,” complementing rather than replacing other supports.

As the Trust approaches its planned sunset in 2026/27, Maeve reflects on its impact, from transformative school initiatives to creative arts projects that changed young lives. She also offers candid insights on family dynamics, the challenges of governance, and the evolving culture of philanthropy in Ireland. Above all, Maeve emphasises that real legacy is found not in buildings, but in people — and in the opportunities philanthropy makes possible.

THINGS WE SPOKE ABOUT

• The origins of the Tomar Trust and Tom Cavanagh’s vision of “levelling the playing field”
• Why the Trust always aimed to be the “icing on the cake,” not a replacement for other funding
• How family dynamics shaped Maeve’s path to chairing the Trust
• The four pillars of Tomar’s giving: education, rural communities, integration, and the arts
• What it means for a trust to enter “sunset mode” and plan its wind-down
• Memorable stories of impact, from school workshops to creative arts initiatives
• The challenges of governance, compliance, and balancing risk in philanthropy
• Why Maeve believes true legacy is about people, not buildings

GUEST DETAILS

The Tomar Trust is a philanthropic trust that aims to contribute to strengthening Irish society over 10 years 2016-2026. Established in 1994 the Tomar Trust has been supporting community and voluntary activity in rural Ireland, particularly North Cork, West Waterford, Clare and Donegal and disadvantaged communities in Cork City. The Trust aims to deepen its commitment to rural Ireland, to the building of strong communities and resilient young people, and aims to address some of the big issues facing Ireland today and investing in the solutions to solve them.

MORE INFORMATION

Looking to learn more about the power of strategic giving and effecting real change? Visit https://www.philanthropy.ie/ to learn more.

The Philanthropy Ireland Podcast is produced by DustPod.io.

QUOTES

• We’ve always said there’s no room in philanthropy for any bit of ego. Everybody has to play their part. – Maeve Cavanagh
• Tomar was never about replacing funding — we were always the icing on the cake. – Maeve Cavanagh
• It’s often the projects where we’ve given the least amount of money that have had the most benefit. – Maeve Cavanagh
• Real legacy isn’t in buildings — it’s in people, and in the opportunities they’re given. – Maeve Cavanagh
• Never underestimate the impact you will have. Philanthropy enables transformation, and it does achieve that. – Maeve Cavanagh