Croagh Patrick Stakeholders group launch funding initiative in Mayo

The Croagh Patrick Stakeholders group launched the ‘Friends of Croagh Patrick’ initiative in Westport this week.

‘Friends of Croagh Patrick’ is a funding initiative set up to grow and maintain the work the group has completed on the reek over the past four years. Their website also went live simultaneous to the launch.

Set up in 2015, the Croagh Patrick Stakeholder's group was a response to the concerns of mountain shareholders, the local community in Murrisk, the Westport Parish and Mayo County Council.

Speaking at the launch, Chairman of the Croagh Patrick Stakeholders group, Martin Keating, said the initiative's importance is ‘ensuring that the good work that [they] have done on Croagh Patrick’ is sustained so that ‘we never, ever have to witness Croagh Patrick in the eroded state and again in the future’.

“It was eroded, it was uncared-for, and I think as a group and as a community, we have turned that around. So the aim of the initiative is that we would raise some money locally to co-finance with the project's co-operators, which have been the Mayo County Council and the Department of Community,” said Mr Keating.

What seemed like an impossible project at first, moving millions of stones, and working tirelessly for three years, the path was officially completed in April.

Mary Walsh from Mayo Mountain Rescue said the path makes the climb ‘so much safer’.

“From our point of view it has made Croagh Patrick so much safer, we have less call-outs so we're not as busy which is a good thing. People are safer coming off, they have a much more enjoyable climb, and that to us is the most important thing,” added Ms Walsh.

_{Pictured at the launch (L-R)  Fr Charlie McDonnell, Caroline Goucher, Michael Foy, Raul Downey, Martin Keating, Chairperson, and Fr John Kenny (Pic: Frank Dolan)}

Reek Sunday

The launch comes at the perfect time as the annual pilgrimage, Reek Sunday, is set to take place July 28.

“I suppose we're launching this at a very, hopefully, opportune time. It's coming into the busiest period on Croagh Patrick. Reek Sunday is but days away at this stage we're on the countdown to that, and hopefully that will be an opportunity as well for people to make a contribution,” commented Mr Keating.

Just this week, Father John Kenny of St Mary’s Church in Westport invited other priests around the country to Minister on Croagh Patrick for Reek Sunday.

Speaking at the launch, Fr Kenny thanked and welcomed Father Charlie McDonnell, and said he feels he has ‘been handed over a role that was a team effort, and Charlie was very much a part of that team.’

Fr Kenny continued: “There’s an Irish phrase that comes to mind, ‘Ní neart go cur le chéile’ (There’s no strength without unity), and I’m sure Charlie, and others like him, got teams together, different interest groups and different people, the stakeholders and so forth; and the results are evident here in this lovely display.”

Agreeing with Mr Keating, Fr Kenny also commented on the ‘opportune’ timing as 2024 is the celebration of a year of prayer, ‘leading into a year of pilgrimage, pilgrims of hope 2025’.

“I’m looking forward to promoting the mountain for its holiness and its place of pilgrimage and prayer with an added bonus of safety and the accessibility and the habitat, all the things are coming together,” continued Fr Kenny.

Into the future

With years of hard-work finally coming together, Mr Keating made a final appeal to local people and businesses to get involved and help the Team of the Reek.

“Become a friend, sponsor or partner of the project. There’s a QR code which brings us directly to the donation section of our website, which we're also launching this evening.

“I suppose the call that we're putting out this evening is go check it out and donate, become a friend of the reek, a sponsor of the reek, a partner of the reek, so that it doesn't ever, and we don't ever have to witness it as an eroded, uncared-for mountain again; maintain it as it is now into the future,” he concluded.

For more information and to get involved, see the Croagh Patrick website.