Galway United Friend Co-op is officially partnering with Galway Simon Community for Friday night’s match, Galway United v Bray.
The Galway Simon Community Choir will perform in Eamonn Deacy Park, and there will also be a bucket collection on the night.
GUFC has been working with Galway Simon for the past few years, mainly supporting Galway Simon weekly soccer sessions in Westside, and in turn Galway Simon has been supporting GUFC by volunteering stewards on matchdays.
Jim Brennan, one of the founding members, says the partnership sits well with the vision the founders of the Galway United Friends Co-op had for the club in supporting and interacting with the local and wider community and organisations.
Galway United Friend Co-op was formed in 2014 when its chairman Bernie O’Connell, organised an ad hoc committee of interested supporters of the club to investigate the feasibility of setting up some form of co-operative to support the club in various ways.
The co-op was formed, registered with ICOS, launched on December 8, 2014 with its first member President Michael D Higgins. The aims of the co-op are to support Galway United FC, give supporters a stake in the club and a voice on the board, form links with the community, and to develop links with local and regional organisations and to assist in the development of a strong underage football setup.
When other stakeholders in the re-formulated Galway United FC withdrew from the board, the co-op became the controlling interest on the board.
Karen Golden, CEO of Galway Simon Community says is delighted to officially partner with Galway United Friend Co-op.
In 2022, Galway Simon Community supported 810 households, including 225 families and 476 children. Galway Simon provides prevention, housing and wellbeing services to those at risk of or experiencing homelessness.
