Fundraising cycle to commemorate K2 mountaineer Ger McDonnell
10 July 2009
For online donations please visit www.dcu.ie/trust/gift.shtml

At 10am on Saturday the 18th of July, 39 cyclists including classmates, family and friends of the late Ger McDonnell, took part in a 112km sponsored cycle from Kilcornan in Limerick to Doolin in Clare.  The cyclists’ battled wind and rain on their epic journey which passed through Askeaton, Kilrush, Ennistymon, Lahinch and Lisdoonvarna.

The cycle took place to help raise funds for the Ger McDonnell Memorial Scholarship Fund at DCU, where Ger studied Electronic Engineering and raised over €10,000.  The first Scholarship will be awarded to an Access Student at DCU in September.

Members of Ger’s family took part in the cycle, including Ger’s brother JJ, brother in law Barry and cousin Michael, while other family and friends collected donations in towns along the route.  The cycle ended with a celebratory pint in O’Connor’s pub in Doolin, where Ger played the Bodhrán on occasion, before everyone returned to Kilcornan for the evening.

Our sincere thanks to all those involved in the cycle, to Ger’s family and friends for their support and especially to our graduates who cycled the 112kms on the day – Noel O’Connor, Fiona McDonnell, Shay Walsh, Niall McCarthy, Sean Morris, Derry O’Donovan and Tony O’Brien.

Background
Ger came to world attention in August 2008 when he became the first Irish person to scale K2 and was subsequently killed in the single worst accident to have taken place on K2.

In a memorial service held for Ger shortly after the accident,/ his brother JJ recounted how Ger once cycled from his native Kilcornan in Co. Limerick to Doolin in Co. Clare to post a letter. This summer Ger’s university classmates will recreate this epic cycle as part of a fundraising drive. Their aim is to raise €50,000 to fund a scholarship in Ger’s name for students from disadvantaged backgrounds who wish to study engineering at DCU.

"One of the reasons Ger was so well known and respected by so many people was because of his commitment to helping others", said Fiona McDonnell, a class mate of Ger's and one of the group doing the cycle. "It's fitting that he be remembered within DCU by an Access Scholarship that can help someone else", she adds.

To learn more about the Ger McDonnell Memorial Scholarship Fund at DCU please contact Claire Whelehan at the DCU Educational Trust on (01) 700-5467.
For online donations please visit http://www.dcu.ie/trust/

DCU ACCESS PROGRAMME - FURTHER INFORMATION
The DCU Access Scholarship programme was introduced 20 years ago to provide talented students with the opportunity of a third-level education which their circumstances did not otherwise allow. This year, over 400 students from all over the country attend DCU as a result of the programme. The scholarships are privately funded by individuals and companies who appreciate the difference the scheme is making to so many lives and communities around the country.
DCU's Access Programme is one of the largest and most successful schemes of its kind in Ireland. It reaches over 6,500 schoolchildren and teachers, with over 30 schools programmes in over 100 primary and secondary linked schools, encouraging young people to see progression to third-level education as a realistic and attractive option for them.