Locals taking on night-time Carrauntoohill challenge

A local group will take on Ireland’s highest peak Carrauntoohill this weekend to raise funds for Féileacáin, the stillbirth and neonatal death association of Ireland.
This is a massive challenge at the best of times, but the 40 strong group will have the much tougher task of taking on the climb in darkness.
Lyndsey Barnwell of LB Fitness, Navan, has organised the challenge and explained they will start the climb at 12.30am on Sunday morning and aim to reach the peak for sunrise.
A personal trainer and fitness instructor, Lyndsey was inspired to organise the fundraiser for Féileacáin after seeing first hand how much they helped one of the mums from her baby bootcamp.
Earlier this year, Karen Lynch from Navan lost her baby daughter Rebecca late in pregnancy. Her baby had a rare chromosome disorder called Triploid Sydrome. Infants with triploid are normally miscarried in pregnancy but if the pregnancy continues to term, the child generally would die within a few days. A very small number may make it to adulthood. Sadly baby Rebecca was stillborn.

 

Karen Lynch and Lyndsey Barnwell with a photo of baby Rebecca

 

After seeing all the support Karen and her partner Micheal received from Feilecain, Lyndsey wanted to do something for the charity and in memory of baby Rebecca.
“We are doing a night ascent of Carrauntoohill, Ireland’s highest peak. A massive challenge at the best of times, but we are doing this at night, with head torches, our backpacks and two guides. Massive training goes into this. We start out at half past midnight and we get to the summit to see the sun rise over the country,” said Lyndsey.
“Féileacáin is an amazing non profit charity that provide support to the families of those who have lost a baby during pregnancy or after birth. They provide cuddle cots and memory boxes to the families as well as taking photos and taking care of as much as they can to take the pressure off the families. This is just the start of what they do.
“There is a stigma surrounding the topic which means people don’t really talk about it. So many people don’t know about Féileacáin even though almost everyone has been touched by it in some way, themselves, families or friends who have had to deal with a loss. They provide support groups for after too.
“I run a baby bootcamp, a class that caters for mams who can bring their kids along. I’m in contact with these mams and kids many times a week and unfortunately one of my mams had to deliver a dead baby girl very late on in her pregnancy. I’ve seen first hand how they helped her and listened to her stories. She is the strongest woman I know, with the help of Féileacáin.
“She is the inspiration behind me organising this climb, in memory of baby Rebecca, and many on the climb are also doing it in her memory but also there are others who are climbing it in memory of their little ones or for someone they know.”

The link to the donation page is https://give.everydayhero.com/ie/caraauntoohill-night-climb