Darkness into Light has proven to be another great success in Waterford.
Thousands of people got up in the rain and the wind this morning to raise funds for Pieta House.
Participants walked, ran, swam, or hiked on their own or in their social bubble.
Fundraisers will continue throughout the weekend, and Merry's Gastro Pub and Café Bliss have combined to show their support for Pieta.
Emiliene Stafford is from Merry's Gastro Pub in Dungarvan:
"What we decided to do is we would do curb-side cooking. So a pop-up restaurant, which combines Merry's Gastro Pub and Café Bliss.
"All the proceeds that we raise between Saturday and Sunday - we'll be operating from 11am to 4pm both days - will go to Pieta House for the Darkness Into Light."
Emeliene says they're going to make sure it's a great weekend in the town:
"We're set up outside the front door of Merry's on Lower Main Street.
"Thanks to the council we were able to get an outside hut due to the pandemic and COVID. So we're using that and we'll be out on the street doing our curb-side cooking.
"We've got 100kgs of pork from O'Reilly's Traditional Butchers in Kilmacthomas - Joe and the boys out there have been really good to us and have donated towards the cause as well."
Suzette Bliss from Café Bliss in Abbeyside says the community spirit is very evident in Dungarvan.
Speaking about the joint-venture with Merry's this weekend to support Darkness into Light, the New Zealand native says she loves the town:
"That's exactly it. It's the community. You walk down the street and, even though people are wearing masks, you can tell they're smiling.
"It's so nice to see people out and about again and the sunshine makes such a difference."
