Drive to raise €100,000 to secure new Lough Ree RNLI boathouse
A local committee raising funds to build a new boathouse for Lough Ree RNLI is urging the community around the lake to show their support for the lifeboat station.
Chairman of the committee, local businessman Michael Ganly, said the appeal is designed to support a key lifesaving service locally.
“This is about lifesaving. This is about keeping people alive. Lough Ree RNLI have already saved a lot of lives and will continue to do so,” he said.
Michael Ganly explained he was motivated to help spearhead the initiative, called The Boathouse Appeal, due to his lifelong association with the lake and his profound admiration for the work of the local RNLI volunteers.
“I have spent my life on Lough Ree. I was born on Inchturk on Lough Ree. I've spent all my younger days growing up on Lough Ree, I've fished, I've been involved in the angling clubs. Lough Ree has given me a huge amount in my life. I got so much joy and entertainment out of Lough Ree and this is an opportunity to put something back.”
The committee is seeking to raise €100,000 as the local contribution to the overall €1.2m building costs for the new Lough Ree RNLI boathouse. The balance of the overall funding will be provided by the RNLI organisation.
The site of the planned new building at Dunrovin is located on the shore of Lough Ree at Coosan Point.
It was the original home of the Rice family, who generously bequeathed the site to the Inland Waterways Association of Ireland (IWAI) with the wish that the organisation would benefit from its use.
As part of a partnership between the RNLI and the IWAI, a shared home for the two organisations in Athlone will be developed. The two premises will be connected to each other on the same site but will operate separately.
The IWAI is developing a meeting room and headquarters, whilst the RNLI is to build a new boathouse to include boat storage, slipways, an office, changing and shower facilities, a workshop, lecture room and kitchen facilities.
Since its foundation in 2012, Lough Ree RNLI has been operating from a temporary station consisting of shipping containers at Coosan Point, and the new boathouse will provide modern facilities for volunteers and to house the lifesaving equipment.
Michael Ganly said: “Given that this is one of the busiest RNLI stations in Ireland, this building is absolutely essential.”
Since its establishment, Lough Ree RNLI has responded to over 400 callouts, and has helped almost 1,240 people. In its busiest year, it had 72 callouts and last year alone, despite the curtailment caused by COVID-19, it experienced 44 callouts.
With the arrival on Lough Ree last year of a brand new Atlantic 85 inshore lifeboat, Tara Scougall, there is now a growing need to build a proper lifeboat station to house the essential equipment needed in search and rescue operations on the lake and river.
The RNLI itself is fully backing the initiative. Indeed, Lough Ree RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager Tony McCarth points out that the project is one of the very few the RNLI has allowed to continue during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“They deemed this to be so necessary that it is one of the few building projects that's going ahead. We are delighted about that and look forward to it finishing.”
The RNLI relies entirely on charitable donations and fundraising and does not receive grant aid from government or other agencies.
The €1.2m cost of the new boathouse on Lough Ree will be met from RNLI headquarters' existing coffers along with the €100,000 local contribution.
The committee established to raise the local funding consists of Michael Ganly (chairman), Tony McCarth (Lifeboat Operations Manager), Vincent Rafter (Hon. Treasurer), Jude Kilmartin (Launch Authority), Dympna Cunniffe, Tom McGuire, Pauline Irwin.
Michael Ganly said: “I'm delighted to be offered the opportunity to spearhead this. I'm delighted from a community and from a business perspective as well that we are being offered the opportunity to support the RNLI in their venture out there.”
He said the Boathouse Appeal represented a once-off fundraising project for funding for a specific capital development.
It also represents an opportunity for the people of the midlands to express their gratitude to the RNLI. “It's a nice way of saying 'We've contributed and this is our way of thanking you. This is our support'”
He said he has always been in admiration of the energy, enthusiasm and commitment of the local volunteers who crew the Lough Ree RNLI lifeboat and who help in the ongoing running of the charity in this region.
“We need as a community to come around and help you, give you support and show you from a community point of view that we really appreciate what the RNLI does and what you do as volunteers who operate the service.”
Some 35 volunteers are involved in the running of the lifeboat station. Lough Ree RNLI provides a search and rescue service across the entirety of the lake, spanning 105 square kilometres, and is a registered service with the Coastguard. As a result, a pool of trained volunteers are on call to respond to requests for assistance from the Coastguard.
In certain circumstances, Lough Ree RNLI helps to bring closure to families by recovering the bodies of people who have entered the water.
Michael Ganly understands from personal experience the tragedies associated with the lake.
“I know at first hand what the lake can brew up. I've been affected down through the years. My own uncle John drowned in the lake and my cousin Seamus. So I've had two close relatives and we understand fully what the lake can bring to people and how devastating it can be. It's a place that can best us on a rough day.”
He said the importance of a service like the RNLI is invaluable. “To have the RNLI locally is peace of mind. When I get into a boat to go up the river. I know I have a crew on the shoreline that are prepared and waiting to help me out at a moment's notice.”
Due to the impact of Covid-19, fundraising plans have been rearranged and the committee is now encouraging people around Lough Ree to donate to the Boathouse Appeal.
The public around the lake will be contacted by direct mail, by email or be directed to a special GoFundMe link.
Michael Ganly said his committee would also be targeting key stakeholders around the lake to ask for their support.
HOW TO HELP
You can donate
by cheque
Make cheque payable to the Lough Ree RNLI Boathouse Appeal. Post to Treasurer Vincent Rafter, Hillquarter, Coosan, Athlone.
By Bank Transfer
Account: LoughRee RNLI Boathouse Appeal. Account No. 58090098
BIC: AIBKIE2D
IBAN: IE8AIBK93226458090098
or by GoFundMe
www.gofundme.com/mfkuh-the-boathouse-appeal
Tax relief is available for certain donations.