BOMB FUND FOR OMAGH TO TOP £2M
Bomb fund for Omagh to top £2m
Daniel O'Donnell concert to be held
EXCLUSIVE
By Martin Breen
THE Omagh bomb fund is set to top £2m by the sixth month anniversary of the atrocity, it emerged today.
Around £615,000 has already been given out. but the initial £l2m target has now been reduced to between £4m and £5m.
Less than three months ago only £860,000 for the victims of Northern Ireland's worst single terrorist atrocity had been raised.
It was disclosed today that fundraising is likely to cease on the first anniversary of the August 15 attack in which 29 people were killed by a Real IRA bomb.
Details just revealed of forthcoming fundraising events include a Daniel O'Donnell concert for the bomb-stricken town in April.
Several people have also entered the London Marathon to raise sponsorship money.
The fund today received a boost with news of a fundraising bicycle race in Denmark.
Omagh Fund manager Brian Oliphant said: "We are just short of the £2m mark and would expect to go over it very, very shortly.
"We're evaluating the information we have drawn up from our volunteers' visits to the bereaved and injured.
"The money will then be distributed further. We would hope the fund will raise four or five million pounds. We are always pleased that people continue coming up with initiatives to raise funds.":
In May a charity match is to take place in Dublin between Northern Ireland and the Republic.
The 700km cycle race will take place from May 25 to 29 from Skagen in north Denmark to Copenhagen.
The group behind the bicycle race is planning for SDLP leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner John Hume to travel over for the final day of the event.
The race organisers, many of whom work in the media, have raised money in previous years with similar races for children suffering from cancer and disabilities.
The Omagh tribute CD. Across the Bridge of Hope, surged to the top of the charts when it was released two months ago.
In December. German tennis ace Boris Becker and British champion Greg Rusedski played a charity game in London raising £30.000 for Omagh. Singer Dominic Kirwan, who lives in the Tyrone town, netted £21,000 from a number of fundraising shows in England.
The massive sum of £300,000 was raised by a golf tournament in Dublin last year featuring Tyrone-born golfer Darren Clarke.
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