Downpatrick woman’s 500-mile pilgrimage

Downpatrick woman’s 500-mile pilgrimage

11 January 2017

A RETIRED Downpatrick schoolteacher’s plan to undertake a 500-mile pilgrimage in Spain has fired the imagination of other local hikers.

Carol Toner will travel the Camino Way this summer in memory of Sister Clare Crockett who died in a South American earthquake last year.

Sister Clare was killed while trying to evacuate children from their school in Playa Pietra in Ecuador where she had been teaching guitar.

Her body was recovered from the rubble of the school building with two other members of the Home of the Mother religious order.

Carol was so inspired by the story of Sister Clare, who was originally from Derry, that she has pledged to complete the pilgrimage in her memory late next summer, while raising money to rebuild the school lost in last year’s quake.

After announcing her decision to launch the solo fundraiser, Carol has been surprised to be approached by 10 other people from the Downpatrick area keen to join her for sections of the walk with many admitting the pilgrimage is on their “bucket list.”

Carol said she was delighted by the growing support and happy to welcome along anyone else on the walk who would like to help towards the reconstruction of Sister Clare’s school.

Moved by the young nun’s death, Mrs Toner said she felt an affinity with the young woman, who was also a teacher.

She was impressed to hear how she followed a vocational calling when a young woman, foregoing her childhood dreams of becoming a famous actress to instead become a missionary sister.

Carol said Sister’s Clare image stayed with her when she undertook a small part of the Camino Way last year, leading to her decision to do the full six week walk for the destroyed school in Ecuador.

Already in training to prepare to walk 25 kilometres per day for 42 days, she said she was looking forward to returning to the Camino family.

“The last time I went on my own but I met two women on the plane from Cork who asked me to walk with them, which I did,” she said.

“We met two others from Newcastle on the way and a few others who became our Camino family. We stayed in the same hostels and ate together, walking through beautiful rural Spain during the day.

“It was something very different and people do it for different reasons, whether it is to achieve something physical, for a spiritual journey or even out of curiosity.

“Once you do it, many people are drawn back again and again.”

Carol is now beginning for fundraise for the trek, with proceeds going towards the reconstruction of a school in Playa Prieta.

A teacher at Our Lady and St Patrick Primary School for 34 years before her retirement two years ago, she said she was delighted the school had agreed to support her effort as well as an offer of support from St Macartan’s Primary School, Loughinisland.

“It is great that local primary schools have come on board and I would like to hear from anybody else who would like to join us,” she said.

Anyone interested in joining Carl Toner on the Camino Way or in fundraising for the reconstruction of the school in Ecuador is asked to email ctoner58@icloud.com or telephone 07738 174343.