Brother's horror crash and a grandfather's battle with Parkinson's inspire friends to climb Ireland's 32 peaks in aid of charities

Philip Stewart and Chris Forsythe annually fundraise by taking on different mountaineering challenges and this year they decided to embark on the 32 county high peak challenge.

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Philip explained: “This means we will be hiking to the highest point in all of the 32 counties in the whole of Ireland over one long weekend. We will start in Co. Mayo and finish in Co. Donegal. We will cover over 180km on foot and climb more than 10,250 metres in elevation.”

The pair are doing this daredevil feat in aid of Brain Injury Matters and Parkinson's UK.

Philip, who is originally from Saintfield but now lives in Co Armagh with Lurgan girl Eimear and their son Rudi, has been involved with Brain Injury Matters charity since his brother suffered a car crash when he was 17.

Philip was just 11 when his brother James suffered catastrophic injuries in the crash which left him paralysed, disabled and with a severe brain injury to his brain stem completely ended his footballing career. “It changed his and our lives forever,” said Philip.

"He died 3 times at the scene and had a very long list of injuries and he was never meant to survive. We had to go up and say our goodbyes 3 or 4 times which was very tough but it is an absolute miracle that he is still with us today and doing things we would never have imagined.

"This charity (Brain Injury Matters) has helped him more than we could ever imagine and completely changed his quality of life and are still doing so on a weekly basis.”

Supported by his partner Eimear, who works in a nursery, Philip, who works in a Powder Coating business says he has always been into sport having played for a number of football teams growing up, including a spell at Crusaders FC. He also plays cricket and got trials for youth Ireland Cricket when he was 14.

"I fell in love with hiking and running around 6 years ago and knew that was the way I wanted to raise these funds by doing something I love,” said Philip.

Philip’s friend Chris is joining him on the adventure and is raising money for Parkinson’s. Chris’ Grandad started suffering from the illness 11 years ago.

“He was actually the first person to ever take Chris into the Mourne mountains and teach him to appreciate the natural beauty that the mountains provide. Chris' Grandad has deteriorated quite rapidly the last few months which is giving us both the drive and determination to try and take action and make a change for the future of the individuals and families who will suffer with this illness.”

Philip explained that, as well as an online GoFundMe page, the pair are seeking a number of sponsors to help with fuel for driving around the whole of Ireland and also for food and nutrition as they will be eating a lot of food between each county. Sponsors will be added to their training gear and social media posts.