Kilrush RNLI is asking the public to support Mayday, the charity’s annual fundraising campaign. The appeal comes as the RNLI announced their rescue figures for 2018. Lifeboat crew in Kilrush launched four times and brought eleven people to safety.
For the month of May, the RNLI’s Mayday campaign is asking people to ‘do their bit, to fund our kit’ with the lifesaving charity hoping to raise €780,000 to fund the crucial kit volunteer crews rely on, which includes lifejackets, helmets and the RNLI’s yellow wellies.
Veteran marathon runner Mary Nolan Hickey who ran around the coastline of Ireland last year to raise funds for the RNLI at the age of 65 is helping the RNLI launch Mayday. She raised over €72,000 but felt that she had not yet completed her fundraising for the charity. Mary is now cycling around Ireland counter clockwise on her bike to try and bring her funds raised for the charity to €100,000. She is expected to arrive in Clare on the 15th May and will visit the lifeboat station to thank them for their work.
Kilrush RNLI Lifeboat Helm Charlie Glynn said, ‘As a volunteer crew-member I know first-hand the commitment it takes to become lifeboat crew. Our crews drop everything when their pagers go off to launch the lifeboat and head out to help those in trouble. The lifeboat crew kit we wear gives us the confidence to face changing weather and conditions, day or night. The right kit is vital in helping our lifeboat crews carry out what we are trained to do. Not every callout is a dramatic rescue, but every callout is to help someone who is in difficulty and that is a great feeling for our crews.’
‘I hope people will answer the RNLI’s Mayday appeal and consider doing something to support the RNLI’s volunteer lifeboat crew. It doesn’t matter how big or small it is. Every piece of kit on a lifeboat crewmember has been funded through the generosity of people who donated to the charity.’
People who want to get involved should visit RNLI.org/Mayday to register for a free Mayday pack. The pack provides a host of fundraising ideas. The charity is also encouraging people to show support on their social media, joining the conversation using the hashtag #MaydayEveryDay, or by donating online or buying a yellow welly pin badge.
Mary Nolan Hickey’s official RNLI fundraising page is https://give.everydayhero.com/ie/rnli-lap-of-the-map-2019-by-bike