What The Irish Pilgrimage Trust does

The Irish Pilgrimage Trust, operating commercially as Rise & Shine, is a volunteer-led registered Irish charity that provides week-long pilgrimage holidays for approximately 400 children and young people with additional needs annually. Its flagship offering is the Easter Pilgrimage to Lourdes, France, complemented by a Summer Pilgrimage and a Friendship Weeks program run from a dedicated holiday home in Kilcuan, Clarinbridge, Galway during July and August. The organisation operates with a lean team of 5 staff and is governed by a trained, Garda-vetted volunteer carer base, with safeguarding policies and pre-trip assessments for guests with medical needs or limited mobility. It is listed on the Charities Regulatory Authority register under the Charities Act 2009 (Charity Registration Number 20009953; Chy No. 5992) and has recently rebranded from its legacy Irish Pilgrimage Trust identity to Rise & Shine.

The charity's revenue model is donation-based, with no fees charged to beneficiaries. Income is sourced from private donations, volunteer-led fundraising events (including a fundraising cycle), and a corporate sponsorship channel, all of which are directed toward covering guest costs on the pilgrimages and holiday programs. Volunteers pay their own participation costs, so the direct cost of carer labour is largely offloaded from the organisation's accounts. Distribution is direct: beneficiaries apply via the organisation's website (riseandshine.ie) and Jotform application forms, and are matched with volunteer carer teams managed centrally. There is no proprietary technology stack; digital touchpoints consist of a Squarespace website, a Jotform-based application process, and the idonate.ie donation platform.

Commercially, Rise & Shine operates in the Irish disability and respite-care segment with a focused, vertically integrated service model. The organisation's scale signals indicate a beneficiary reach of around 400 annually for the Easter program, with additional capacity from Summer Pilgrimage and Friendship Weeks. There is no disclosed revenue, no funding round history, no parent company, and no AI, API, or software product layers, consistent with its positioning as a small, mission-driven charitable service rather than a venture-backed enterprise.

Name

The Irish Pilgrimage Trust

Legal name

The Rise & Shine Trust

Website

https://irishpilgrimagetrust.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Rise & Shine (The Irish Pilgrimage Trust) is a volunteer-led Irish charity that provides free week-long pilgrimage holidays to Lourdes and Friendship Weeks in Galway for approximately 400 children and young people with additional needs each year, funded by donations, fundraising, and corporate sponsorship.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Charitable Disability Respite Services

NAICS

Religious Organizations (8131), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Pilgrimage Packages (Air-Inclusive) Tour Operators (THAKAHAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Faith-Based Group Travel (Church/Mosque/Temple) Organizers (THAKAHAH), Religious & Sacred Sites Tours (THAJAAAF), Pilgrimage & Faith-Based Multi-Day Tour Operators (THAKADAH)

Keywords

• Charitable holiday programs
• Disability respite services
• Pilgrimage holidays
• Volunteer carer programs
• Accessible youth holidays

Headquarters

HQ city

Galway

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Private Donations: The organization is primarily funded by private donations from individuals, supporters, and the general public. Donations cover guest costs for pilgrimage holidays.
2. Fundraising Events: Volunteers and supporters organize fundraising events to generate revenue that covers guest costs for the pilgrimage holidays.
3. Corporate Sponsorship: Corporate entities can sponsor the organization, providing financial support for the holiday programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Irish Pilgrimage Trust (Rise & Shine) is a volunteer-led Irish charity that organizes and delivers free pilgrimage and holiday programs for children and young people with additional needs. Its core offering consists of an annual week-long Easter Pilgrimage to Lourdes serving approximately 400 guests, a Summer Pilgrimage program, and week-long Friendship Weeks at its holiday home in Kilcuan, Co. Galway, supported by a trained volunteer carer workforce.

Product overview

Rise & Shine (formerly The Irish Pilgrimage Trust) is a volunteer-led charity offering a single integrated service focused on providing pilgrimage holidays for children and young people with additional needs. The core offering consists of the Easter Pilgrimage to Lourdes and Summer/Friendship Weeks at the charity's holiday home in Kilcuan, Galway. The organization also operates supporting programs for volunteering and fundraising to sustain its charitable mission. The portfolio comprises two primary holiday programs (Easter Pilgrimage and Friendship Weeks), supplemented by volunteer and fundraising support services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Easter Pilgrimage to Lourdes Week-long life-changing pilgrimage holiday to Lourdes, France, held every Easter for approximately 400 children and young people with additional needs. Provided free of charge to guests, supported by trained volunteer carers.
• Summer Pilgrimage Week-long pilgrimage holiday program for young people with additional needs offered during the summer months as an alternative to the Easter Pilgrimage.
• Friendship Weeks Week-long holidays for young people with additional needs held at the charity's holiday home in Kilcuan, Galway, during July and August.
• Fundraising Programs (including Fundraising Cycle and Corporate Sponsorship) Fundraising events, fundraising cycles, and corporate sponsorship programs that generate the financial support used to cover guest costs for the charity's holiday programs.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Irish Wheelchair Association: National Irish organization supporting people with physical disabilities, including accessible activities and respite opportunities. Comparable beneficiary focus and Irish non-profit funding model, but with a wider scope beyond pilgrimage/holidays.
• Rehab Group: Large Irish non-profit providing health and social services, training and employment support for people with disabilities and marginalized groups. Comparable mission and beneficiary base but at a substantially larger, multi-service scale.
• Enable Ireland: Major Irish disability services charity providing therapy, respite, education and family support to children and adults with disabilities. Overlapping beneficiary cohort with Rise & Shine's guests but operating at significantly larger scale and a broader service mix.
• St. John of God Community Services: Established Irish disability and community services provider supporting children and adults with intellectual disabilities across residential, respite and day services. Comparable beneficiary population to Rise & Shine, though a much larger, multi-site operator.

Direct peers

• HCPT (Handicapped Children's Pilgrimage Trust): UK-based charity that takes disabled children and adults on pilgrimage holidays to Lourdes, with volunteer carers supporting guests with additional needs. It is the closest functional analogue to Rise & Shine's Easter Pilgrimage model.
• Order of Malta Ireland: Irish branch of the Order of Malta runs the annual Maltese Lourdes Pilgrimage, taking sick and disabled pilgrims to Lourdes with trained volunteer carers. Directly comparable mission, volunteer-led delivery model and Lourdes destination.

Others

• Down Syndrome Ireland: Irish charity providing support, services and social opportunities for people with Down syndrome and their families. Shares a relevant beneficiary cohort and donation-driven Irish charity model, but does not deliver pilgrimage or holiday programs.
• Special Olympics Ireland: Irish arm of the Special Olympics movement providing year-round sports training and competition for people with intellectual disabilities. Operates in the same Irish disability charity ecosystem, relying on volunteer carers and donations, though with a sports rather than holiday mission.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-irish-pilgrimage-trust

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Irish Pilgrimage Trust