Aoife’s Clown Doctors have been nominated as this year’s Galway Masters tournament charity. The group are currently funded by ‘The Friends of Aoife Hendrick’ which was set up in memory of five year old Aoife Hendrick who sadly lost her battle to leukaemia in 2012. Clown Doctors Razzmatazz and Ditzy Glitzy launched the tournament recently at UCHG’s paediatric unit.
‘Aoife loved the Clown Doctors and looked forward to their visits to Crumlin Children’s Hospital’ said Aine Hendrick, Aoife’s mother and co-founder of The Friends of Aoife Hendrick along with her husband Adrian. ‘As parents, we could see the positive effects of the Clown Doctors on Aoife and all the other children. A year after Aoife passed away, we heard the Clown Doctors had lost their funding so along with family and friends, we set up The Friends of Aoife Hendrick to raise money to keep the Clown Doctors show on the road. We are delighted to be nominated as this year’s tournament charity by the Galway Masters and look forward to working with them to raise much needed funding for the Clown Doctors’.
The Galway Masters International Tournament has become an annual event since it started in 2011 and this year, 38 men’s and ladies teams from Ireland, United Kingdom, Scotland, France, Sweden, Italy & the USA will compete to raise money for the tournament charity.
Masters Basketball is played by men and ladies in three divisions, over 40’s, 50’s, & 60’s with equal emphasis on the social as well as competitive side of basketball. Bernard O’ Byrne, CEO of Basketball Ireland said ‘The Galway Masters has quickly grown from a simple idea as a social tournament into a major international event in the basketball calendar. It still has a great social side to it but it crucially serves the sport by bringing people back in touch with the game and each other. I wish it continued success’.
The tournament is supported by funding from Galway City Council, the Galway masters basketball community and local businesses. It will run from Friday 3rd to Sunday 5th November at NUIG Kingfisher, admission is free.
Galway Masters organisers Mike Murray and Mike Lydon with Clown Doctor Razzmatazz and Doctor Ditzy Glitzy, Aine Hendrick from Friends of Aoife Hendrick and staff and volunteers from UCHG paediatric unit.
