With summer in full swing, lots of teens are enjoying trips away with friends. However, a couple of summers ago, two teens in Ireland, Scott and Derek, put on their walking boots and used their time to raise funds for a very worthy cause.
Scott’s cousin, Lucas, attended Abacus Kilbarrack Special School in Dublin. And as Scott shared on his GoFundMe page, the school was instrumental in helping Lucas progress. “This school is amazing, and I wanted to say thank you for the support they have given him and my aunty and uncle,” he shared.
As a result, the pair thought they’d raise a few hundred euro by setting out on a 186-mile walk from the school in Dublin to the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare.
While the pair found the 19-day walk pretty challenging, especially with some grueling days lasting 18 hours, their good humor and determination kept them going. As Derek shared, he would say: “I can do this, I want to do this.”
Yet what remains particularly refreshing about the duo is the attitude they displayed: They saw the positive side of their walk. In addition to raising funds, they also discovered more of their native Ireland. And while they were delighted with the funds raised initially, as the walk progressed the donations started to climb, leaving the pair thrilled. In fact, the final figures on GoFundMe totaled over $82,000 in donations.
The money will be put to good use, of course, but the teen’s efforts were more far-reaching. They inspired people to get out there and use their time to do good, their example is still motivating other youngsters to lend a helping hand — or in this case, pair of feet! — and they proved what great lengths family will go to in order to support each other.
And today we celebrate...