Walk raises over £4,000 for church needing major repair

MORE than £4,000 has been raised for a church in the Newtownstewart area that is in need of major repair.

The impressive amount was reached after Newtownstewart Parish embarked on a fundraising walk at the weekend in aid of St Eugene’s Church at Glenock.

A regular initiative, this time the destination for the sponsored ‘Walk for Glenock’ was Lough Derg, because Newtown Parish has a direct link to the famous sanctuary.

The link is the River Derg, which flows out of Lough Derg at the north-eastern point and meanders about 24 miles until it reaches the River Mourne at Milltown, one mile on the Sion Mills side of Newtownstewart.

Down the centuries, the Derg was a lifeline for several monasteries, not least the monastery of St Eugene of Ardstraw. Accordingly, Fr Roland Colhoun suggested to his parishioners that they follow the course of the River Derg, as the ancient monks did in their currachs, from end to beginning, from Newtownstewart to Lough Derg.

On the day, a group of parishioners and friends of Glenock gathered at the mouth of the Derg (on the A5 at Milltown) and in a convoy of nine cars, drove ‘upstream’, following the river as closely as the roads permitted.

About an hour later, the group arrived at the source of the River Derg where it flows out of the north-eastern point of the lake. The lake and river and trees make it a very picturesque scene.

PILGRIM WALK

Next on the agenda was the Pilgrim Walk, five miles of guided tour around a portion of the perimeter of the lake.

It traces the steps of the medieval pilgrims who made their way to Lough Derg on foot. The walk was opened as a tourist attraction 25 years ago in 1997.

There are 11 islands on Lough Derg, the most famous being St Patrick’s Purgatory, the centre of penance since the time of St Patrick.

However, the group of parishioners didn’t cross to any of the islands.

The goal was to walk the shore of the lake with a professional guide.

It proved to be a splendid outing with favourable weather, ideal for the outdoor picnic and the prayers of the intrepid pilgrims from Newtownstewart.