Who We Are…
The name ‘Mná Feasa’ (in English, ‘Wise Women’) originates from Irish Mythology. The wise women were warrior women to whom Fionn Mac Cumhaill was sent as a child by his mother to save him from potential violence or death.
Mná Feasa is a community based project set up in 1991 by the Cork Women’s Action Group as a response to calls received when a local woman was murdered by her husband in their home. It was set up primarily by women who have themselves survived domestic violence and it is thus a crucial link in women’s challenges to violence.
The group started a two-hour a week helpline staffed by women who had themselves travelled the road of Domestic Violence. The Cork Women’s Action group began programmes of personal development and facilitation work and the project slowly grew to what we see today.
Staff and Management
The project employs a Team Leader and three development workers. All positions are part time and the workers’ different skills are used in the various areas they work within the project. The work of Mná Feasa can be both demanding and challenging and the workers are supported through the provision of regular supervision.
Members of Cork Women’s Action Group manage the project on a voluntary basis with management meetings taking place monthly to oversee and support the project.