A community run organised by an Ederney man to raise money for a mental health charity has collected almost £2,500.
Barry McAleer from Ederney set up the run in the Co Fermanagh village, which saw more than 100 people complete the ‘Around The Block’ course.
Raising money for Aware NI, Barry told MyFermanagh the issue of mental health was one that was important to him and that he was delighted with the turnout.
“It was just a small event at the start but we ended up with over 100 people taking part at it,” Barry said.
“We had it at home here just with a wee loop we call Around The Block, a lot of our neighbours got involved and others in the local community.
“We had a couple of wee signposts along the way with inspirational quotes to keep people going.
“I always wanted to do something for mental health and I picked Aware NI because they are a charity that support a very worthwhile cause.
“It affects everybody’s life in one way or another, especially at this time I know a lot of people will be looking for that help.”
Barry added it was the first event of its kind, but said it may not be last after seeing the response from the local community
He said: “This is the first time I’ve ever done anything like this, it was something I wanted to do for a long time and we really enjoyed doing it.
Welcome to MyFermanagh, a brand new local news site dedicated to the county.
Falling under the Belfast Live banner, MyFermanagh is part of our drive to cover news, people and events in your area.
We’re always open to ideas and if there’s a story that you think needs reported or a person doing great things in the community, you can send us an email at [email protected] and we’ll do our best to cover it.
Sign up to our FREE newsletter here for the latest news straight to your inbox.
You’ll also find MyFermanagh on:
“There was a bit of work in it but it was worth it to see the response from everybody.
“Seeing how people reacted and a lot of people around here love running and walking, so it might be something that we will have to do again next year.”
To donate to Barry’s Just Giving page, you can visit this link.
