Marathon priest raises money for Syria

Fr Gerry Campbell ran Dublin marathon for Trócaire

A Co. Louth parish priest beat his own personal record when he ran the Airtricity Dublin City Marathon on Monday in aid of Trócaire’s Emergency Appeal for Syrian refugees.

Fr Gerry Campbell (pictured), based in the parish of Kilkerley and Trócaire’s representative in Co. Louth, joined 14,500 competitors on the 26 mile race and came in at a time of 3 hours, 33 minutes.

This is the priest’s third Dublin marathon and he told The Irish Catholic he was delighted to beat his last finish by two minutes. “I looked up the Psalms for my chip time and Psalm 33, 3 is about singing the song of the Lord, so it is very much about rejoicing,” he said.

Fr Campbell said images of the crisis in Syria and prayers from his family kept him motivated during the gruelling course, and he also appreciated the cheers from the crowd, which included Milltown parish where Fr Philip Bradley and the parish team cheered on the runners outside the church in front of the sign “Let us run with perseverance, the race marked out for us”.

You can still sponsor Fr Gerry Campbell on: www.trocaire.org/sponsor-me/gerrycampbell/dublin-marathon