Fr. John set for Pedal Paddle Pilgrimage for Pieta House

LAST Saturday morning week thousands of people all over the country took part in the Darkness Into Light walk/run, raising much needed awareness and funds for Pieta House. In Westport alone hundreds took part in the event which took place around the grounds of Westport House, writes Padriag Burns.

Next Saturday (May 20), Westport will once again be the location for another Pieta House fundraiser when the second Pedal Paddle Pilgrimage takes place in and around the town.

The brainchild of a former priest in the town, Fr. John Kenny, it celebrates some of the pastimes that Fr. John holds very dear while at the same time it’s a reminder of the hugely important work being done by Pieta House in our community and communities all across the country.

'The thousands that took part in the Darkness Into Light walk were not necessarily doing it just so they could get up and go for a walk early in the morning. It was to raise awareness for something that was so personal to them and one way or the other everyone that took part was touched by suicide,' he said.

In his life as a priest he has known so many families touched by suicide but it was the tragic passing in 2015 of his close friend and priest colleague, Fr. Michael Mannion, that forced him to do something practical for an organisation like Pieta House.

'Michael was a dear friend as well as being a colleague when we were in Westport together. We both really enjoyed our time in Westport and it was only natural then that Westport was the base for the first Pedal Paddle Pilgrimage last year,' he recalled last week when we spoke.

Now based 20 minutes away from Westport in Partry he said that its closeness to Westport has helped make organising the event that bit easier.

'All the same because it’s for Pieta House I don’t think it would matter where I was based. When you ring someone up and say what you are doing and it’s for Pieta House it’s just like pushing an open door all the time. People are so good and can’t do enough and it’s great,' he said.

The concept of all the Ps together on one day is a consequence of all his various hobbies. Pedal is for cycling, paddle is for the paddle boarding that he has grown to love and the pilgrimage provides the spiritual angle.

There are a couple of more what he calls ‘silent Ps’ in there as well as such as photography and partying but the first three are what has really caught the public imagination.

'It’s important to say that this is not a race. I can’t say that often enough or loudly enough. People are asking me what time is Mass on top of the Reek and I say back to them ‘when we get there’. It’s not an adventure race or anything like that at all; we will pray at the Statue and we will say Mass when we got to the top and we will all do it together.'

For an east Mayo man brought up away from the sea Fr. John realised how much he loved it after spending 14 years living beside it in his ministries in places such as Achill, Westport and Leenane.

'I think I was the best part of 14 years living beside the sea so that influenced me a lot. I grew to love surfing and though I can’t do that in Partry I can do the paddle boarding there in the lakes and that’s great.

'Cycling has always been a part of my life and hiking as well so really we’re combining everything together next Saturday week and hopefully having a great day out as well as making some money for Pieta House.

'There will be plenty of opportunity too for photography (the other silent P) along such a scenic route so everyone will be able to have some great memories from the day. '

The ‘it’s not a race’ aspect of the event screams from the posters promoting it and it’s borne out by the cycle route that starts it all off from Westport Leisure Park. 'No matter how you do it’s impossible to take one of the main roads out of Westport without climbing a hill. The town is surrounded by hills and because we want to appeal to everyone and not just the athletic type we have decided to cycle through the grounds of Westport House and out towards the Quay that way. I can’t thank everyone involved in Westport House enough for allowing us do that and Mayo County Council for all their help too. That will bring us out at the Quay and from there it will be a group cycle, not a race, to the Reek. We’ll replenish with some tea at Campbell’s before we climb the Reek and the plan is to have Mass on the summit at 2 p.m. When we get down we’ll paddle on beautiful Clew Bay and we’ll round it all off later that night with the final P, the party in the Clew Bay on James Street.'

All the emergency services will be on board during the day to provide assistance if needed and Fr. John is anxious to pay tribute to everyone who has helped him make the Pedal Paddle Pilgrimage happen.

'As I said, it’s like pushing an open door when you say you are doing it for Pieta House but people have been so good and I can’t thank them often enough. Pieta House was set up in 2007 and the goal was to have a house within 100k of everyone in the country. Our nearest one is in Tuam and it does magnificent work and Pieta has also taken on the workload of Console so the awareness and funds is necessary,' he said.

Registration fee for the event is €30 and it all gets underway on Saturday, May 20, with registration between 7 a.m. and 7.45 a.m. at the Westport Leisure Park. The activity aspect of the day then will get underway at 8 a.m. when the group will leave the Leisure Park and head towards the Reek via the grounds of Westport House. Remember, doing everything is not compulsory so it’s possible to pick the activity that suits best and have a bit of fun doing that.

The most important thing to remember though is that. . . . . . it’s not a race.

 

More information is available by contacting Fr. John at (087) 2401533.

 

 

* Interview from Padraig Burns' Under the Clock column, featured every Tuesday in our print edition