Going head to head for charity
Six lads from Castlepollard, who cycle and run for fun and fitness, have decided to travel by bike and foot from one end of Ireland to the other.
Paddy Cheevers, Martin Murphy, Joe Cheevers, Derek Cheevers, Denis Heany and Paddy Tierney will travel from Malin Head in Donegal to Mizen Head in Cork between August 24 and 29, stopping off in Bundoran, Tuam, Limerick and Cork.
“We had put our mind to really make a difference this summer and do something to challenge ourselves and raise money for charity. The two we have chosen are linked to two issues that really touch nearly every single family in Ireland, Marie Keating Foundation and Pieta House.
“We really admire the Pieta House Mind Our Men campaign and both Tuam and Limerick have a Pieta House operating there, so even if we raise awareness about the charities and the work they do, sure that is important too,” said Martin.
The six have taken on all the logistics, helped by their wives, who are organising accommodation, collectors in every town and even liaising with the charities to arrange promotional balloons.
The route they have chosen for their duathlon measures 650k and the six men will cycle through the countryside and get off their bikes to run through towns along the way.
“Paddy Tierney has run many marathons for Crumlin and the Cheevers family have raised money for Aware through running 5ks and marathons. But we are not by any measure really super fit athletes. So this will be a real test of endurance for us all but as Paddy [Cheevers] is always saying, we do this, cycling and running, not just for our physical fitness but for mental fitness too. So we will be working at getting our heads and our bodies fit for the last week in August,” says Martin.
Additional interview that hasn’t been in the print edition of the Westmeath Examiner.
Paddy Cheevers begins with sad words: “Mine is not a good story”.
“I lost two of my brothers to suicide. My brother Chris in 1986 and my brother Sean in 2003. My family was torn apart. We had all questions and no answers. We didn’t expect it. We didn’t see them struggling or worry that it was something that was going to happen. We didn’t understand and we were just devastated by it.”
“We didn’t expect it and back then no none spoke about it. Suicide was something families just didn’t talk about. There was shame attached to it you see. But now, thank God people are talking. They are talking about how they feel and all the help that is out there. There are so many organisations and people who will help you, ready and waiting,” explains Paddy.
The year after his brother Sean died, Paddy decided he would like to do a parachute jump and his family decided to organise it for him. Then they decided they would raise money for Aware in the process. They organised car washes and table quizzes as well as the jump and raised over €6,000. To date the amount raised for Aware by the Cheevers family is just shy of €20,000.
This fundraiser is to be split between Marie Keating Foundation and Pieta House.
“We chose Pieta House because of their amazing campaigns especially this years “Mind our Men”. So we hope to raise awareness as well as money. Eight out of every ten suicides are men. They are doing great things to make the roads safer and decrease the number of people dying on the roads but we are losing a lot of people to suicide. There is such suffering and the Mind our Men campaign is all about spotting the signs,” explains Paddy.
Paddy did the Assist course which teaches people how to recognise the signs of suicidal intention and what little signs there are when people are in trouble.
“We don’t see them unless we are looking for them,” explains Paddy. “Families always say we had no idea they felt like this. It is a shock, We don’t understand why. But with the work that Pieta House and their “Mind your Men” campaign that is changing. They get very little in the way of government funding that is why they need people like us to help raise funds.”
There are three members of the Cheevers family taking part in the duathlon, Paddy his brother Joe and his son Derek.
“Thank God, our family is close and we encourage communication. I say to them, all the time, don’t panic, don’t worry, there is no trouble that can’t be got over. Be level headed, be calm and ask for help if you need it.
“I would say that to everyone and I would also say there are huge amounts of help out there. But also mind yourself. Get exercise, keep in touch with your friends and family, live your life.”