Pat Jones Cycle cheque presentation

We were delighted to be presented with a cheque for €4,000 by Team905 Cycling Club in Edenderry, funds raised by the 2026 Pat Jones Memorial Cycle.

Each year the club holds the event to support a local cause while also honouring Pat, a founding member who passed away suddenly in 2012. We we honoured to be Team905's chosen charity for the third year in a row.

Event organiser Brendan McAuliffe said: "We usually support an organisation for two years at a time. But, last year, the event suffered from poor weather in the week before the event and on the day, so Kare did not benefit as much as we would have liked. For that reason, we're delighted to join forces with them again for 2026, in the hope that we'll get a better day with a bigger turnout."

The cheque was officially presented last week in our Edenderry day service, where we support local people with intellectual disabilities.

Kare CEO Margaret O'Neill said: “We're really grateful to Team905 for their continued generosity to Kare and the people we support. The Pat Jones Memorial Cycle has become a fantastic annual event for the Edenderry community, and the funds raised make a real difference to the lives of people with intellectual disabilities in the area."

Margaret also presented certificates on the night for individuals who had recently completed further education and training courses with the LOETB.

The annual cycle attracts more than 200 cyclists from all over the country to Edenderry to take on either a 40km or 92km route. The event has raised over €56K for local charities over the past 11 years, and continues to go from strength to strength. Kare, which provides a range of services for people with intellectual disabilities, is the club's chosen charity for the third year in a row.

Team905 Cycling Club was founded in 2009 and draws its members from the North Offaly and North-West Kildare area who can be seen pedalling the roads of the region each weekend. The club name comes from the traditional departure time for the Sunday morning spin: 9:05am.