Dedicated fundraiser on the day that changed his life

For Alan Nelson, it was a day that changed his life. It had started like so many other days, only this time it was to be different. He got up, went to work and set out for Dublin on a routine delivery. His task was to transport a consignment of orthopaedic chairs to the Children's Sunshine Home Hospice in Leopardstown, south Dublin. The hospice was set up in 1925 to look after seriously ill children. While there, Nelson, who works in the furniture business, was offered a cup of tea and a tour around. What he saw rocked him to the core. He has no hesitation in saying it was a "life-changing moment", a deeply upsetting yet profoundly inspiring experience. As well as the sight of children clinging tenaciously onto life, other images left their mark on Nelson. There was the staff who went about doing their jobs with a quiet, but humanitarian air. Their work seemed to him so worthwhile. "It was incredible. I remember driving away that day and saying I would definitely try and raise money for the hospice, an amazing place. The money is used the bring the best facilities possible and care to the children but they really are very, very sick," That life-changing visit to the hospice was six years ago and, since then, Alan Nelson has been actively seeking to generate funds, displaying the kind of 'never-taking-no-for-an-answer' approach that Bob Geldorf needed to turn Live Aid from a vague idea into a practical fundraising phenomenon. In the last few years, Alan has also become a parent and he and his wife, Martina, have adopted two children from Mexico - Conor Ricardo Nelson (6) and Aoibhín Lupita Nelson (3) - who are natural siblings. As far as they are aware, the Nelsons are one of only two couples in Ireland to adopt siblings from the Central American country. Alan (46) is part of the sales team for Royal County Furniture and he is also a self-confessed "sports fanatic". A former Navan rugby player and Gaelic footballer with Navan O'Mahonys, he has tapped into his interest in sport to come up with a number of fundraising initiatives. DREAM TEAM The latest is the 'The Irish Rugby Dream Team' project which he has organised with the help of some high-profile people, including Irish coach Declan Kidney, and RTE's Miriam O'Callaghan. The idea is straightforward. People are given a shortlist of famous Irish rugby players and are asked to pick their best 15 and contribute €10. The 'Dream Team' has been selected by Alan Nelson, his brother David, also a former rugby player, along with Irish Times correspondent Gerry Thornley. Their selection will be announced at a function in Carton House on Friday 24th June. Miriam O'Callaghan has agreed to fill in as the MC for the night. Those who come up with the selected Dream Team will be in line for prizes, including a trip to Paris. A similiar venture, organised by Alan, to pick the best Gaelic football team of the previous three decades and held in Mick Ryan's hostelry in Navan in 2008, generated €17,000. He is hoping for more of the same this time around. The first step in putting the rugby project together was to approach six or seven people he knows well to form a committee. Conor and Paula Irwin, Orla Maguire, Fran Sweeney, Nikki Casserly, Majella Considine and Linda Nelson all rowed in. They now meet regularly to organise things. Alan obtained permission for the project from the Children's Sunshine Home and set about reeling in some of the celebrities. He wasn't shy in putting his case forward. "I went up to the Castle Hotel in Killiney around Christmas because I knew the Irish rugby team were using the facilities there," he recalls. "The first person I bumped into when I went in the door was Declan Kidney, just walking down the corridor and he gave the (fundraising) idea his full backing. He recommended I contact Karl Richardson, the marketing manager of the IRFU, and I've had a lot of meetings with him. I've been back there since and I also met some of the players. Paul O'Connell and David Wallace are among those now on board." Alan Nelson feels that everybody should pay a visit to the Children's Sunshine Home Hospice which is being expanded to include the Laura Lynn House Hospice. He suggests that what is to be seen there will dwarf other difficulties and make weighty matters, such as bank bailouts and squandared billions, frivilous by comparison. "I really believe everybody should see a place like the Sunshine Home. In fact, one of the committee has asked to bring up his three children to the Sunshine Home and just let them see the other side of life. I really believe everybody should do that. "Certainly for me, it was life-changing. Every morning I wake up, the first thing I think about is the Sunshine Home. We want to get the word out there that it is an amazing place." To enter the Dream Team competition visit irishrugbydreamteam.org