Jobstown Running Club take on Hike4Hope
By Hayden Moore
THE Jobstown Running Club have established themselves as a powerhouse fundraising team, with raising money for a suicide prevention centre next on their agenda.
Headed up by Jobstown resident Stephen Martin, the Jobstown Running Club (JRC) will be changing gears to complete a sunrise hike up to Bohernabreena Reservoir for HOPE suicide prevention drop-in centre.
Karen McEvoy from VISIT with Jobstown Running Club’s Stephen Martin and his daughters Libby and Catelyn. JRC recently raised €360 for VISIT through their fundraiser ‘Festival of Running’
HOPE, which stands for Hold On Pain Eases, was established in 2012 by Tallaght mother Mary McLoughlin in response to the growing number of people losing their life to suicide.
“I volunteered with HOPE as a counsellor for two years, a number of years ago,” Stephen tells The Echo.
“I stayed in touch with Mary ever since.
“They really helped me out, I needed to do training hours as a counsellor for the course I was doing at the time and I just wanted to be able to give back to them.
“They do a lot of work in providing a space where people who are struggling with their mental health can go.”
Meeting at the carpark of Old Bawn Shopping Centre on August 21, the Hike4Hope will set out for Bohernabreena Reservoir at 5.30am to watch the sunrise during their walk.
Entry is €10 for adults and €5 for kids, with all funds raised going directly to HOPE.
Programmed club runs will be postponed on August 21 to cater for the hike.
The free club, which was established in May, recently completed a Festival of Running fundraiser in aid of homeless charity VISIT – where they ultimately donated €360.
For that, members completed the challenge of covering a half-marathon, 10k or 5k distanced runs.
Following that, the JRC completed a Chase the Sun Challenge where they ran from 4:52am until 10:12pm in a single day in a bid to raise funds for young Tallaght girl Hannah Keogh.
