November 22nd 2023 – This year’s Pedal For Grace event had huge support from across Kerry and Ireland as the event raised a whopping €20,136 for Vision Ireland.
Vision Ireland, which is the new name for NCBI, would like to extend its eternal thanks to Grace O’Sullivan, 13, her mam Mary, their family and their local communities in Kerry for this huge donation off the back of an incredible event which was held in September of this year.
Pedal for Grace, which just completed its second year, has become a hugely important event for the community in Firies, Co Kerry, bringing together people from around the county and surrounding counties to support Grace and her fundraising goals for Vision Ireland. The second event is also the second time Pedal For Grace broke the €20,000+ barrier in funds raised.
Grace O’Sullivan is 13 years old and she has a visual impairment called Stargardt disease, which causes progressive sight loss. Vision Ireland continues to support Grace to gain and maintain her confidence and independence as she makes her way through her young life.
Kevin Whelan, head of Vision Ireland Charitable Foundation, said: “The support from Grace, her family, friends and local community has blown us away here at Vision Ireland. For such a young lady, Grace has a huge heart and is dedicated to helping people like her who have a vision impairment and people who are blind in Kerry and across Ireland. It has been a pleasure for our team to work with the O’Sullivan family who gave their all to make this event one of the hottest tickets in town for two years running! We hope to be able to work with Grace, Mary and their supporters on more projects in the future.”
Grace’s mam Mary O’Sullivan said: “The journey to Pedal for Grace has been really brilliant because we have had such huge support from our family and our communities. It was such a nice experience to have everyone come together last September to get some exercise through the walk and cycles and meet like-minded people. NCBI’s support for Grace over the years has been incredibly helpful for our family and for Grace directly. We will continue to access the supports that are available for so many children and young people who may need them now that the organisation is Vision Ireland. Handing over the cheque for this year’s Pedal for Grace was our way of saying thank you to Vision Ireland for the work they do with Grace.”
Pedal for Grace kicked off at the Firies Community Centre, Church Road, Firies, Co. Kerry on September 9th. Participants took part in either a 60km cycle around the Killorglin Loop, a 14km Loop walk or a 5km Molahiffe walk.
ENDS