Volunteer sticks his oar in for SCIAF

A SCIAF volunteer will be hoping for calm waters on Friday, during Volunteers Week, as he takes on a fundraising challenge to kayak the length of Loch Ness.

Michael Rainey (69) from Dumbarton has been a supporter of  SCIAF for more than 30 years, but has played an even more active part since retiring from his job as depute head at St Peter the Apostle High School in Clydebank.  

Michael said:

“As a volunteer with SCIAF an ordinary day for me could be visiting a local primary or high school, explaining their humanitarian work around the world. We have various games and activities to illustrate this, depending on the age of the pupils, but I immensely enjoy all the different stages.

“Friday will be a little different, as I paddle from Fort Augustus to Lochend Beach, Inverness and hopefully raise lots of money for this cause which is very close to my heart.”

Michael is a keen kayaker, having been in the water since a teenager.

He said:

“I’m hoping to be in the water for 8am and not sure when I will finish – it depends on the weather and conditions on the loch.

“The Loch Ness event is an event that’s been kicking around for a few years but getting the time to train and to organise the logistics has finally come together this year. I have paddled the distance before but that was in 2014, a normal day trip would be around ten miles so paddling over 22 miles in a day is a challenge.”

Michael has volunteered for SCIAF in various forms over the last thirty years, whether that be in my Parish, in Schools or just taking part in various sponsored events.

He said:

“I have always been inspired by the way SCIAF put Catholic Social Teaching in to practice, focusing on work in the developing world. The aid projects are always about making people self-sufficient and able, to not just survive but, to thrive long after we’ve gone home.

“It’s following Christ’s call to ‘love your neighbour’ – it’s a call we all respond to in different ways. It can’t just be nice soft words; it has to mean something. It needs action to back it up.

“I’ve spent a lot of my working life helping youngsters engage in events that raise money for SCIAF and have always advised them to do something that they enjoy, so I guess I’ve taken my own advice. I’ve kayaked all my adult life, it’s something I enjoy, watching wild life whether it is birds, seals or even having a pod of dolphins swimming around me.

“SCIAF is a superb vehicle to help me put my faith into action – and that’s what I will be taking on this challenge on Friday!”

To support Michael in his venture, please visit his JustGiving page.