By Sarah Curran
A COMBER woman plans to take a dip for charity with a fundraising sea swim in honour of her late son.
Swimmers of all abilities are encouraged to take part in the fourth annual Dash for Dougie event held at Strangford Lough Yacht Club on June 21, at 4pm. All funds raised at the event will be donated to the RNLI.
Kim Armstrong began the fundraising event in memory of her son, Steven Dugan, who passed away in December 2022 after a sudden illness.
The event will be held a day before what would have been Steven’s 37th birthday and his 11 year-old son Xander will be in attendance.
Attendees are encouraged to wear fancy dress as they brave the waves and can enjoy a hot cup of tea or coffee as well as buns at the yacht club afterwards. Kim, who started cold water swimming during lockdown, laughed that while her son came to watch her brave the chilly open sea, he didn’t take a dip himself.
“I only started it when Covid hit,” she said. “I swam in the pool most days before that and I started cold water swimming when Covid hit and I have not been in the pool since.”
She continued: “You just feel great afterwards. You always say ‘should we do this’ going in, but you never regret it. “If I’m feeling down at all, we just swim. My husband says we swim for two minutes and talk for an hour – but sure that’s all part of it.”
Kim raises money for different charities with her fundraisers and said she was inspired to raise funds for the RNLI this year due to her love of cold water swimming.
She said: “Our RNLI lifeboats in Northern Ireland protect hundreds of communities through our 24-hour search and rescue service. They rely on the safest, most reliable lifeboats and modern stations to launch from.
“Northern Ireland’s unrivalled coasts and inland waters are valued by local communities and visitors alike, with millions travelling to enjoy them, and work on them each year but the water remains an unpredictable environment that can catch people out.
“People will always need the help of the RNLI and they will always be there to answer that call.”
The keen sea swimmer said she had been debating whether or not to run the fundraiser this year but felt so supported over the last few years that she decided she would, adding that it was a great chance to remember her son.
She said: “We always try to run it on the Sunday closest to his birthday. Last year it actually fell on his birthday.
“We normally do it at Millisle beach but because we are doing it for the RNLI this year it was suggested to have it at the yacht club.”
To support Kim’s fundraiser visit: https://www.justgiving.com/page/kim- armstrong-18?utm_medium= FR&utm_source=EM
