Making a difference, at home and abroad
From supporting children displaced by war to helping families living with serious illness, Roses and Rose Escorts continue a proud tradition of fundraising, volunteering and giving back.
Chernobyl Children International & Happy Kids Foundation
For many years, the Rose of Tralee International Festival has made an unbelievable impact on the lives of victims of the nuclear tragedy of Chernobyl through our work with Adi Roche’s Chernobyl Children International.
Our Rose Class of 2025 once again could not travel to Ukraine due to the ongoing war. As a solution, the Festival also partnered with the Happy Kids Foundation in Poland to provide humanitarian support to both groups in a time of great need, fundraising for both charities and providing volunteering help in person in Poland.
From February 19th to 23rd, 2026, a group of Roses and Rose Escorts from the Rose of Tralee Class of 2025, together with Festival Director Suzan O’Gara, travelled to Poland in an attempt to uplift and give hope to traumatised and orphaned children from war-torn Ukraine.
The group included four Roses from Kerry, Carlow, Wexford and Arizona, one Rose Escort from Donegal, two translators, the Festival Director and five volunteers from Chernobyl Children International.
They volunteered at three safe houses for orphans in the Polish city of Łódź. These are three of 18 safe houses around Poland providing shelter and support for children up to the age of 18, including children with special needs and many who have been traumatised by the war in Ukraine.
A significant part of the humanitarian trip involves collecting as much aid as possible in advance and transporting it by road to Poland with the help of Chernobyl Children International volunteers.
The aid is unloaded by the Roses and Rose Escorts and distributed to day care centres and safe houses. Money raised also plays a crucial role in transporting the aid and supporting Chernobyl Children International’s ongoing work in Ukraine.
At the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine war, the Polish Happy Kids Foundation prioritised evacuating 1,500 Ukrainian children, along with their caregivers, from orphanages and finding places for them to stay throughout Poland.
Donations from the 2025 Rose group were allocated to immediate needs including transport, food, cleaning products, clothing, specialist medical treatment, psychological therapy and legal care.
Chernobyl Children International also delivers aid to approximately 320 families in the highly radioactive Ivankiv district, provides food for 145 pupils at Radynka School, organises respite camps for children in the Chernobyl zone affected by war and helps finance cardiac surgery in Lviv for children born with a condition known as Chernobyl heart.
Fundraising by Roses and Rose Escorts over many years has also helped maintain a basic level of medical care and comfort for children at Vesnova Orphanage in Belarus.
Cliona’s Foundation
The Rose of Tralee International Festival is very proud of its partnership with Cliona’s Foundation, a national charity supporting families with seriously sick children all over Ireland.
This year, a group of Roses and Rose Escorts from Cork, Boston and beyond walked the Portuguese route of the Camino de Santiago to raise funds and awareness for the foundation.
Cliona’s provides financial assistance directly to parents of seriously sick children with life-limiting or chronic complex care needs, helping families meet the non-medical expenses associated with caring for their child.
The foundation was established by Brendan and Terry Ring following the death of their daughter Cliona from an inoperable brain tumour in 2006, aged 15.
During Cliona’s hospital treatment, Brendan and Terry were struck by the number of families facing enormous financial hardship as non-medical expenses mounted while they were already coping with the reality of having a seriously ill child.
A recent Cliona’s survey found that in 70 per cent of families, at least one parent must give up work to care for their sick child. Studies have highlighted that a family may need between €10,000 and €15,000 a year to cover various non-medical costs while their child is ill.
Festival Director Suzan O’Gara said the Festival was thrilled to support a charity providing crucial financial assistance to families caring for a child with a serious illness.
Barretstown
The Rose of Tralee International Festival continues its support of Barretstown, with money raised through Rose Bud and Rose Buddy applications going to the vital charity camp.
Barretstown offers free, specially designed camps and programmes for children and their families living with serious illness, supported behind the scenes by 24-hour on-site medical and nursing care.
All children attend Barretstown free of charge. Accommodation, food, activities and medical assistance are provided at no cost to their families.
Barretstown is supported by donations and fundraising from corporate supporters, individuals and community groups, and is recognised as a centre of excellence in childhood cancer care and other serious illnesses.
Find out more about Barretstown →
