NOW THAT’S POWERFUL! €500,000 RAISED THROUGH TODAY FM’S POWER HOUR FOR JACK AND JILL.
First-ever Power Hour campaign will fund 25,000 hours of vital in-home nursing care and respite support for Jack and Jill families across Ireland. 1st October 2026: The Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation and Today FM are celebrating the extraordinary success of the first-ever Power Hour for Jack and Jill, which has raised an incredible €500,000 – and counting – enough to fund 25,000 hours of in-home nursing care and respite support for families across Ireland.Built around one simple idea, that €20 funds one hour of care, Power Hour called on Ireland to turn 60 minutes into something powerful for Jack and Jill families. And Ireland answered the call.
Across three action-packed weeks, schools, workplaces, sports clubs, businesses, community groups and individuals embraced “One Hour. Your Way.” From school discos and danceathons to bake sales, coffee mornings, sporting challenges and workplace fundraisers; communities nationwide came together behind Jack and Jill families.
Pour Hour culminated in a major day of activity across Today FM on Friday, 25th September, with presenters and listeners coming together to get involved and help raise funds for the cause. Throughout the day, Ian Dempsey took on the Hole-in-One Challenge, Dave Moore hosted a School Disco, Louise Cantillon tackled the Crossbar Challenge, Ray Foley brought the Power Ballad Hour to the airwaves, while Matt Cooper gave listeners the chance to win an exclusive training session with Jamison Gibson-Park. The packed day of challenges, entertainment and listener participation helped make it a memorable finale to the fundraising campaign.
But the impact of Power Hour has gone far beyond the phenomenal fundraising total.
The campaign helped new families discover Jack and Jill and recognise that their child may be eligible for support, prompting new referrals to the service. Community nurses also came forward to register their interest in providing care hours in family homes, while families and supporters contacted Jack and Jill and Today FM to share their own experiences and connections with the charity.
Deirdre Walsh, CEO of the Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation, said: “Power Hour became so much bigger than we ever could have imagined. For three incredible weeks, it felt like one giant Jack and Jill community had come together across Ireland. Families, schools, businesses, sports clubs, community groups, volunteers and supporters, all finding their own way to Power an Hour.
“To have raised €500,000, enough to fund 25,000 hours of care, is simply phenomenal. Every one of those hours represents something very real for a family: time to sleep, take a breath, spend time with another child or simply recharge for whatever comes next.
“But there has been another incredibly powerful impact too. New families have found our service and reached out for support, nurses have contacted us wanting to provide care hours, and families past and present have reconnected and shared their stories. That awareness matters enormously because no family caring for a child with complex medical needs should feel they have to walk that journey alone.
“Our heartfelt thanks go to the entire Today FM team and their brilliant listeners for embracing Jack and Jill so wholeheartedly. They gave our families a national platform, listened to their stories and brought tremendous energy, warmth and fun to this campaign. And to every single person who donated, fundraised, volunteered or helped spread the word.. thank you. You have powered something truly special for our families.”
Nathan Murphy, Today FM Managing Editor said: "Raising €500,000 for The Jack and Jill Children's Foundation is a remarkable result, and it belongs to our listeners, whose generosity never fails to amaze us. The work Jack and Jill do for children and families across Ireland is extraordinary, and all of us at Today FM have been honoured to play a part in supporting it.''
The Real Power of an Hour
At the heart of the campaign were the families themselves, whose lived experiences helped listeners understand what an hour of Jack and Jill care really means. Among them was Dublin mum Louise Garrahan, whose seven-year-old son James has Cri du Chat syndrome and requires round-the-clock care. James receives Jack and Jill nursing care at home and has developed a special bond with his nurses, so much so that he will sometimes gesture for Mum and Dad to leave when they arrive, knowing it is his time with them! For Louise and her husband Gerard, those care hours provide something equally precious: time.
Louise Garrahan said: “We would be lost without Jack and Jill. When the nurses come in, James is happy and we know he is with people who know him and understand his needs. That gives Ger and me the chance to step away for a little while, maybe go for a coffee, go to the cinema or simply take a breath.
“Caring for James is a full-time commitment, so that time gives us a chance to recharge and rebuild our strength. An hour might seem small, but for a family caring around the clock, that time can make such a difference. To know that people all over Ireland got behind Power Hour and have helped fund thousands more of those hours for families like ours is just incredible. Thank you.”
Jack and Jill currently supports 537 families across Ireland, funding and delivering in-home nursing care and respite support for children with severe learning disabilities, often associated with complex medical needs.
The service gives parents a vital break from their around-the-clock care regime, safe in the knowledge that their child is being cared for at home, where they belong.
With Jack and Jill preparing to mark its 30th anniversary in 2027, Power Hour has demonstrated the extraordinary support that exists for the charity and the families under its care in communities right across Ireland.
€500,000 raised. 25,000 hours of care. One incredible community.
That’s the Power of an Hour.
-ENDS-
Andres Poveda is issuing photographs free of charge on behalf of the Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation.
For further information please contact: Clodagh Hogan (087 774 6128) or Eileen O’Malley (085 828 9002).
Notes to Editor
About Jack and Jill
Jack and Jill is a nationwide charity that funds and provides up to 100 hours per month of in-home nursing care and respite support to families caring for children, up to the age of seven, with severe learning disability often associated with complex medical needs.
Typically, these children may be tube fed, oxygen dependent, may not sleep, take seizures, need a lot of medication and require around-the-clock care. Understandably, their parents can be exhausted and need a break, which is where Jack and Jill comes in. Jack and Jill’s service operates seven days a week, with no means test, no red tape and no waiting list. Another key part of the service is end-of-life-care for all children up to the age seven, irrespective of diagnosis, empowering parents to take their child home to die at this most difficult time.
Jack and Jill was founded by parents Jonathan Irwin and Mary Ann O’Brien in 1997, based on their experience of caring for their son Jack. Jack and Jill's mission is to empower the families it supports to care for their child at home, by funding and delivering nursing, respite and advocacy. The charity must raise over €8.72 Million in 2026 to keep this vital service going, with approximately 20% coming from the HSE.
Jack and Jill currently supports 530 families in communities across Ireland and has supported 3,319 families since 1997. This support is often described as ‘a gift of time’ or a ‘lifeline’, giving parent carers a break from their 24/7 care regime, safe in the knowledge that their child is well cared for at home, where they belong.
Jack and Jill is proud to have been awarded Triple Lock status by Charities Institute Ireland for 2026, marking our sixth consecutive year achieving this gold standard for transparency, governance and ethical fundraising.