Events co-ordinator Emma McNulty from Swinford, is making a difference for children and young people across Ireland this summer by taking on a 100km challenge for ISPCC Childline.
Emma, who moved home from Dublin during the time of Covid-19 restrictions, has dived into a brand new fitness routine and is determined to run 100km in the month of July for Ireland’s only 24-hour active listening service for those aged under 18.
Emma is highlighting how this ‘staycation summer’ can be put to good use, having also recently celebrated her 22nd birthday at home in Mayo.
The Childline listening service is a confidential, non-judgemental active listening service which is available 24 hours a day, every day, to every child and young person in Ireland, online, on the phone and by text.
Childline answered over 72,000 online contacts, calls and texts from children and young people across Ireland throughout the time of peak Covid-19 restrictions, from the week in which schools closed in March, to the week of June 28th, before many aspects of Irish life began to re-open.
Emma can usually be seen spending her summer days and nights helping to raise significant funds for Childline by offering ponchos to attendees at some of the biggest concerts, in return for a donation to the service.
Emma said: "I decided to try and run 100km throughout the month of July to help raise money for Childline, as I realise how challenging this time has been for children. I know this will be a physical challenge for me personally, but I was determined to use my free time at home to push myself to do something which could help others.
"Children and young people’s lives have been turned upside down in the past few months. They haven’t had the refuge of being able to spend time with friends, or at school. Many have turned to Childline for support. It is essential that the service is always available to them, but this is only possible with public donations. Fundraising events which usually take place for the charity every summer have had to be put on hold, so I want to help any way I can."
Any individual who would like to support Emma’s fundraising endeavours for Childline can do so by visiting her ‘Running 100km for Childline’ page on GoFundMe at https://gf.me/u/ydby8n.
