Vital Laois Kilkenny suicide service Teac Tom needs your help

The Kilkenny Laois suicide support service Teac Tom needs your help it to continue to prevent suicides and support people who have lost loved ones who have taken their own lives.

The Thomas Hayes Trust fund is an initiative started by the Hayes family to support individuals and their families affected by suicide, or contemplating suicide. It has centres in Kilkenny and Stradbally in Co Laois where it provides free counselling.

Teac Tom has not been in a position to fundraise due to the current pandemic but has kept the service open throughout the lockdown and strive to remain open for the foreseeable future.

As part ensuring this happens founder Angela Hayes and others in the charity hope people get behind a fundraising event this weekend.

"Teac Tom receives no government funding so in order to keep the doors open we need to fundraise," says the charity. "This Sunday, June  21 is Summer Solstice. The James Stephens Army barracks (Kilkenny) and Teac Tom have created an event 'Step up for Teac Tom' from Dawn until Dusk. We hope to reach 1 years worth of steps in 1 day - 3,650,000 steps.

"We are encouraging you and your family and friends to walk or run 10,000 steps within the times from 5.05am until 9.57pm (Dawn until dusk) and you can do this from your own preferred location as there is no planned route due to the restrictions.

"This is a global event so wherever you are in the world you can take part and support Teac Tom. It's nice to know that our family and friends that are overseas can also take on the walk/run while feeling they are connected to home and supporting mental health/suicide prevention.

"We ask people to take part in 'Step up for Teac Tom' and share their steps while making a donation on idonate - https://www.idonate.ie/StepupforTeacTom. If people can upload a photo to the event page to show their support it would be great.

You can support the event on facebook https://www.facebook.com/events/993209421134070/

People can also donate €4 by texting TOM to 50300

Teac Tom says there are no costs involved for running this event so every penny that is raised will go directly to providing free counselling and support to the people that need it in our community.