“Forever grateful” – Family of Galway man who died on Everest thank supporters

The family of Galway man Kevin Hynes, who lost his life while part of an expedition on Mount Everest, have said that they are “forever grateful” for the support they have received since.

Kevin Hynes (56), who was originally from Newbridge in Galway but lived in the United Kingdom for many years, died while descending from the 8,843m high Everest on May 24.

The experienced mountaineer was part of a group of people summiting Everest with 360 Expeditions, for whom he worked.

The Hynes family created a gofundme page not long after to raise money to “keep his legacy and passions alive through supporting local charities which help young people to develop their skills and encourage them to follow their dreams.”

Erin Hynes recently posted “Firstly, Mum, James and I would like to thank you very much for your generous and thoughtful donations that have been received over the last few weeks in memory of my Dad.”

“We cannot express enough how your thoughts and actions have provided us with comfort during this time which we will be forever grateful for.”

The family said that in the long term they hope to set up a charitable trust in Kevin Hynes’ name, but in the meantime are working with The Childhood Trust to ensure that donations go to worthy causes.

“The Children’s Trust Charity will soon be making their first grants from my Dads in memoriam fund to Solidarity Sports and US Charitable Trust of £5000 and £1250 respectively to fund their Summer Programmes for disadvantaged children that starts in a couple of weeks’ time,” Erin Hynes said.

She added that, by using the grants received through gofundme to incentivise further donations, the two charities have already raised £28,263 (€31,672).

“We will donate the remaining balance to grant and support these 2 projects for their Christmas initiatives later this year.”

Solidarity Sports works with over 100 at-risk children with unstable home environments helping to increase their confidence and ensuring they feel loved and protected.

Beyond just sports, children working the charity also engage in arts and cooking activities.

The US Charitable Trust supports young people from lower-income households who might not have had the chance to experience anything outside of the neighbourhoods they’ve grown up in.

Their summer programme helps young people to have outdoor experiences in the countryside they might never have otherwise got the chance to enjoy.

“We will continue to provide updates relating to our work with the Trust and would like to thank you all very much for your ongoing support,” the post ended.