A memorial bench for Kieran ‘Lally’ McColl was installed on the canal towpath in Stone on Saturday (6th September).
Kieran’s friends and family had raised £2,000 to purchase the bench, but hit problems earlier this year when the Canal and River Trust objected to its planned location next to where Kieran had been tragically found in the canal near Weavers Lane. Kieran, who was 21, drowned after falling into the canal while on his way home from the funeral of Connan McLeod in May.
The CRT said the bench would have caused an obstruction on the towpath. But with the help of a local landowner, whose field backs on to the towpath, and the approval of Stone Town Council, some hedgerow was removed to allow the bench to be installed in a safe position. The bench arrived by narrowboat on Saturday. All photos by Joshua Cope.
Friends and family of Kieran have also raised over £10,000 for epilepsy charity Gemma’s Ray of Hope over the last few months in a magnificent fundraising effort in memory of Kieran. There will be a big finale to their fundraising efforts on Sunday 21st September with a family fun day at Stone Cricket Club. We’ll have all the details on the site very soon.
