Advancing patient support

Bringing nearly 30 years of experience in the voluntary sector, Rachel is a highly accomplished senior leader with a deep commitment to driving positive change. Rachel began her career in London and has championed causes across disability, social disadvantage, Black & Minority Ethnic issues, and homelessness. For the past 23 years, she has served as Director of Fundraising at Cork Simon Community where she was also a member of the Senior Management Team. She played a pivotal role in transforming lives through her leadership and partnership-based approach to affecting social change. Rachel is committed to building capacity within the not-for-profit sector and has volunteered on the Boards of various charities over the years. She is currently Chair of Charities Institute Ireland’s Munster Fundraisers Network, further demonstrating her dedication to the nonprofit sector.

As Head of Partnerships, Deirdre leads the Mercy Foundation’s partnership strategy, developing and nurturing relationships with corporate and community to help deliver lasting impact for staff, patients and families across the Mercy University Hospital. With more than 13 years’ experience at the Foundation, including 5 years as Head of Fundraising and 8 years as Community and Campaigns Manager, she brings extensive expertise in relationship management, fundraising, and stakeholder engagement. Deirdre has played a key role in a number of significant Foundation developments, including the completion and relocation to 9 Dyke Parade, the opening of the Mercy Cancer Care Centre, and the introduction of a new CRM system to strengthen donor relationships and enhance supporter engagement. A graduate of MTU Crawford with a BA in Fine Art, Deirdre spent over a decade working in Marketing and Development within Cork’s arts sector before joining the Mercy Foundation. She is passionate about building meaningful partnerships that help fund world-class patient care, leading-edge research and state-of-the-art equipment, ensuring the best possible outcomes for patients and their families.

As Community Fundraiser, Louise supports people who are organising their own fundraising events for the Mercy and helps them to turn their gratitude into meaningful impact. Louise is involved in many aspects of fundraising including events, communications and campaigns and connects with people, families, clubs, groups and schools across the region from Cork City to Castletownbere and Waterford to West Limerick, all of whom make a real difference on people going through treatment in the Mercy Hospital. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Music and a Masters in Arts & Heritage Management and a long career in event management and business, Louise has brought a broad wealth of experience to the Foundation since she joined in 2021. Louise loves helping people to put their generosity into action for the Mercy, whether in memory of a loved one, in support of people in their community or in gratitude for the care they experienced.

Monica joined the Foundation in 2025. She’s responsible for banking and accounts administration, reconciliations, lodgements, payments, oversees financial aspects of Restricted Funds, acts as a point of contact for all finance related queries for suppliers and donors. As a qualified Accounting Technician and Operational Management Accountant she’s got over 15 years of experience in accounting in industry. Monica is delighted to be able to use her knowledge and contribute to the work of this fantastic nonprofit organisation.