Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112 Page 113 Page 114 Page 115 Page 116 Page 117 Page 118 Page 119 Page 120Monica’s Place was established in 2000 by Monica Jones and her husband Brian. The charity assists individuals for whom many other agencies have already failed or do not wish to deal with. Residents have often had no contact with their relatives for years and staff work to provide this vulnerable and often unwelcome group with a supportive environment, in which to address physical and mental health needs. Monica’s Place received an award and a grant by The Ireland Fund of Great Britain at the Annual Awards Ceremony in January, in recognition of the outstanding work Monica’s Place does in the local community. Monica Jones contacted The Ireland Fund of Great Britain afterwards to share a remarkable story. One of the men living at Monica’s Place was able to reunite with his son after 25 years of being estranged. The son had spent much time try- ing to trace down his father, but his efforts had been unsuccessful. The father feared he had lost all of his friends and family due to his previously chaotic lifestyle. Monica and her team helped him put his life back together piece-by-piece by showing him the love and support he so desperately needed. The fateful moment came when the son discovered an image of his father in a national publication covering the annual Ireland Fund of Great Britain Award to Monica’s Place held at the Irish Embassy in London. He could not believe it. After so many unsuccessful attempts over the years his father was now staring straight at him from the newspaper page. They have since been reunited and both have told many stories of happy childhood memories. They are now on their way to creating new memories together. Upon sharing this heart-warming anecdote, Monica Jones said; “My interpretation of this story is the bond and love a father gave his son the strength and wings to fly and make a very successful life and between ourselves we helped him fly back to his father. Again, this would not have been possible without your recognition.” 107 connect 2016 | T H E I R E L A N D F U N D O F G R E A T B R I T A I N NEWS GREAT BRITAIN AROUND THE WORLD After the Award a Story from Monica’s Place “The moral of our story is Monica’s Place has again reunited another Irish gentleman back to his roots and family, this would not have happened without the help of The Ireland Fund of Great Britain.” —Monica Jones, Founder of Monica’s Place