A 12-YEAR-OLD boy from Garrison, Co. Fermanagh has raised more than £1,970 for the Air Ambulance NI Charity by cycling around his locality over the month of March.

Ryan Graham, a student at Enniskillen Royal Grammar School, set himself a 100-mile cycling challenge in aid of the charity.

Ryan and his family have a special connection to the helicopter emergency medical service, following the sad passing of his cousin, Neil Graham, in 2018, after an agricultural accident that the Air Ambulance NI team attended.

Speaking about his virtual fundraising event, Ryan’s mother, Wendy, said: “It is such a vital service to have in Northern Ireland, and especially for rural Fermanagh.”

Ryan soon quickly surpassed his initial 100-mile goal and then set a 183-mile target – the distance from Garrison to Lisburn, where the Air Ambulance NI base is, and back again.

Ryan completed the 183 miles on April 3, and raised £1,970 for NI Air Ambulance.

Wendy said: “It’s so easy for people to donate and leave a message of support to Ryan via his [fundraising] page. He checks the messages and the total daily."

As well as doing his fundraising challenge, Ryan has also signed up to become the 111th member of Junior Club AANI – a membership programme for people under the age of 18 to support the charity.

Speaking about Ryan’s support, Damien McAnespie, Area Fundraising Manager for the charity, said, “I want to thank Ryan and his family for supporting Air Ambulance NI, not only in his cycling challenge but also signing up to be one of our treasured Junior Club AANI members.

"Since July, 2017, the medical team have been tasked to more than 2,054 calls, of which 95 were to County Fermanagh – the team simply could not fly without support like this, so thank you, Ryan.”

You can still donate to Ryan's fundraiser by visiting www.justgiving.com/fundraising/wendy-graham9 . For further information on Air Ambulance NI, see www.airambulanceni.org.