Castlebar fundraiser nets thousands for breast cancer charity
Former participants of Casting for Recovery UK & Ireland, the unique breast cancer fly fishing programme, have raised over 5000 Euros for the charity via a fashion show held at the TF Royal Hotel & Theatre, Castlebar, Co Mayo on 6th May. View a photo gallery of the evening here. Joanne Lowe is the brains behind the idea and wanted to help Casting for Recovery UK & Ireland having enjoyed a retreat at the Mount Falcon Hotel at Ballina, Co Mayo, last year. Joanne got together with fellow Mount Falcon participants and sold 800 tickets for the fashion show.
Casting for Recovery provides fly fishing programmes at idyllic retreats around the UK and Ireland. Any woman who has experienced breast cancer is eligible to apply to attend a retreat (with medical clearance from their doctor). Retreats take place over two-and-a-half days and all accommodation, meals, counselling, and professional instruction are provided at no cost to participants. Trained female medical and counselling staff and fly fishing instructors are on hand at all times, the fishing tackle and appropriate clothing is provided by Orvis UK and financial backing is given by Countryside Alliance Ireland.
Fly fishing is a gentle exercise which requires no strength and is exactly the sort of exercise in which recovering breast cancer patients can participate safely. Fly fishing also offers those on retreat a chance to reflect and escape in tranquil surroundings. Casting for Recovery was founded in the United States in 1996 and has since helped over 3,500 breast cancer survivors. In the UK and Ireland it began in 2006 and over 160 women have now been through the programme over thirteen retreats.
The UK and Ireland Programme Co-ordinator is Sue Hunter, who recovered from breast cancer to become an international gold medallist fly fisher. Sue said “We feel very humbled that Joanne and the ladies felt passionately enough about their time on retreat to want to help us in this way. The fashion show was a tremendous evening enjoyed by all, and everyone at Casting for Recovery is grateful for this incredible contribution. Casting for Recovery retreats are unforgettable and have their own brand of magic, and thanks to the efforts of Joanne and her team we will be able to run further courses to enable more ladies to experience the programme for themselves.”