A wonderful evening of dining, wining and top-class entertainment will be happening in the plush environs of the Berkeley Court Hotel next January in aid of the children who are suffering from the ‘Chernobyl Heart’ condition and you too can be a part of it.

The evening begins with a wine reception featuring music by the renowned classical guitarist Alan Grundy and a viewing of the photographic exhibition by the Sandymount award-winning photographer Julien Behal.

There will be a sumptuous four course meal followed by dancing to the live music of the band ‘Johnnie Be Goode’, an auction hosted by Niall Gunne and a Raffle. RTE’s Derek Mooney will host the event, with contributions by Adi Roche and Duncan Stewart.

It is Duncan Stewart’s wife Agneta, who is the force behind the ‘Chernobyl Heart Ball’. Duncan, who lives with his family in Sandymount, is widely known in Ireland for his programmes on RTE. He is a very keen environmentalist and also an architect.

When I spoke with Agneta she told me that, back in October 2003, Duncan was in Belarus helping to redesign an old building as a day-centre and he had a very serious accident. The prognosis of the doctors was that “if he survives he’ll likely be paralysed”.

He did survive and to this day he believes he did so mainly because of the excellent care he received in the two Russian hospitals where he was treated. And it was while he was there in hospital that the particular condition of ‘Chernobyl Heart’ first came to his immediate attention.

After the Chernobyl disaster in 1986 the issue of nuclear fallout came crashing into the world’s consciousness as the horrific results of the event were blasted across the media.
One of the results of the Chernobyl disaster is that around 1,000 children are born every year with ‘Chernobyl Heart’ and currently there are 7,000 cases. The life expectancy of the affected child is three to five years but with the necessary operation there is every chance of a normal life.

While Duncan was in hospital one little girl in particular touched his heart and he felt he wanted to help her. Agneta, deeply grateful for her husband’s recovery, was keen to help and through her brother, a doctor in Germany, in November 2003 the one-year old girl arrived in Germany where she had several operations over the following six months and is now progressing satisfactorily.

Agneta wants to continue helping by raising funds to enable more of these children to have the necessary treatment. For every €1,000 raised a child’s life will be saved. The donations will be used to provide life-saving equipment in Belarus and send teams of international surgeons to perform the operations while at the same time training local surgeons to be able to continue the work.

The tickets cost €200 each or €2,000 for a table of 10. Anyone interested in supporting the ‘Chernobyl Heart Ball’ or needing further information on tickets, donations, etc. can contact Libby Keeling on 087 994 4860.