Icy advent challenge in grandparents' memory

A Ramsey man has swapped out his advent calendar this year to take on 25 cold water dips in memory of his grandparents.

Shaun Kelly has been taking to the island's beaches and rivers for 24 days to raise money for Hospice Isle of Man and mental health charity Isle Listen.

He said both his grandmother, in 2023, and grandfather, in January this year, attended the hospice in their closing days.

"What those guys do is absolutely incredible" and after the death of his grandfather he wanted to "give something back", he said.

"The care and dedication from the staff up there is just above and beyond.

"To make them feel so comfortable in their later hours in life, it's just something that needs to be appreciated."

Making sure the service could continue and deliver for future patients was the "motivation to get out there everyday", he said.

The advent aspect of the challenge was also important to him, as at Christmas the need for hospice staff did not end.

Taking on the daily dips in December had presented some challenges, Mr Kelly explained, the weather chief among them.

"The weather has 100% been the toughest thing to negotiate," he said, adding: "Not only the wind and the rain and the storms that have happened, but also the daylight hours I get to squeeze into a work day."

The father-of-two also works full time 9am to 5pm, so he said he often had to find a spot on his lunch break.

"It has been hectic to be honest, I've not made it easy for myself," he joked.

Despite that he has not visited the same place twice and said he enjoyed discovering new gems on the Manx coastline.

He said: "There's magic in some of the calm days and the quiet locations on the beaches.

"It's quite fulfilling to know that amongst all the chaos in life you can go and find those quiet places.

Mr Kelly plans to do his final dip on Christmas Day on the south stone pier in Ramsey with several of his friends.

It would be a nice way to bring together his "close network of friends".

The 31-year-old has also completed the three peaks challenge and an endurance challenge in Scotland, where altogether he has raised more than £10,000 for the hospice.

In this latest endeavour he hopes to raise £2,000 for the two charities.

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