A cheque for almost €6,000 has been presented to Pieta House, the proceeds of the Keep’er Lit tractor run, which took place in Kilmurry on December 17 last year.
It was organised by 16-year-old Shay O’Sullivan from Kilmurry.
“We’re very proud of him and he’s a very driven fella,” said Shay’s sister Shauna this week.
“When he came up with the idea we just said we’d get behind him if he was willing to do it. He put in an awful lot of work. There were sponsors’ prizes and everything on the night.
“The weather hampered it a little bit, it was frosty weather so he didn’t get the turnout that he deserved. But he did great work, he raised close to €6,000 for Pieta House,” she added.
The tractor run began at Sixmilebridge mart, then went through Newmarket and Quin, going back through Kilmurry and back into Sixmilebridge.
There were around 75 participants on the night, and Shauna said that the money raised will go to a great cause.
“There are so many people who will benefit from that, and the families connected to them, and their communities.”
Pieta House provides a professional one-to-one therapeutic service to people who are in suicidal distress, those who engage in self harm and those bereaved by suicide. All of its services are provided free of charge and no referral is needed.
You can see a video of the Tractor Run on Fcebook at this link
Owen Ryan has been a journalist with the Clare Champion since 2007, having previously worked with a number of other publications in Limerick, Cork and Galway. His first book will be published in December 2024.