Every day people are doing amazing feats to raise money for charity and today I'd like to introduce you to Marty Holland, a pensioner who intends to walk around the entire coast of Ireland to raise money for the Irish Cancer Society.
Not only is he a retired university lecturer from Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, he's also my dad and I couldn't be prouder that he is taking on this solo challenge.
He'll start off his marathon trek near our home in Cratloe, Co. Clare on Tuesday, 24th May and will walk along the Clare - Galway border. His route will take him in an anti-clockwise direction along the Munster and Leinster coasts. He will walk until the end of September and then recommence in April 2017 when he will walk the Ulster and Connacht coasts.
En route he hopes to find accommodation through ‘couch-surfing’ and through provision of a place to sleep by supporters and well-wishers.
The total walk will cover in the region of 4000km and Marty hopes to manage between 20 and 30 km per day, depending on the conditions. Coastal roads and established paths and walkways will be the main routes, always sticking as close to the coast as is possible and safe.
Those interested in mapping his progress can follow his blog
CoastForCancer and his Twitter updates
@CoastForCancer. In the blog, a personalised link to the
MyCharity website will enable those who wish to make an online donation to do so.
Marty, who was inspired to take up the challenge after witnessing two close friends battle cancer in recent times, says, "the sense of powerlessness that I felt when my friends Michael and John were dying from cancer has motivated me to get out there and do something positive to help combat cancer”.
The Irish Cancer Society funds invaluable work in the areas of cancer research and support services so Marty hopes to raise money to help them in their work. Like most Irish people, down through the years Marty has seen a number of relations, friends and colleagues succumb to the disease but he is quick to point out that, increasingly, the picture is brighter for those who get cancer saying, “I see the benefits of on-going research in the growing number of those who have survived and recovered from cancer including my own sisters and a brother."
Apart from the obvious challenge of the kilometres to be walked, Marty identifies accommodation and transportation of gear as two key logistical issues, "I am confident that people will be generous in their support for this worthy cause by way of financial donations, there are few out there whose lives have not been touched by cancer, but, to keep costs down, I’ll also be dependent on peoples’ good will and generosity in offering me somewhere to put my head down for the night and in getting my rucksack transported from A to B."
Those wishing to offer support of any kind can contact Marty directly at his email address: coastforcancer@gmail.com. He would particularly welcome offers of accommodation and/or transportation of luggage from point to point along the route.
