Sister of slain Jason Corbett steers sailing course to help others through sea of mental health and addiction

Tracey Corbett Lynch photo: twitter.com

THE sister of slain Limerick man Jason Corbett is steering a course, offering sailing to help people through the choppy waters of poor mental health and addiction.

Tracey Corbett Lynch, whose brother was beaten to death during his alleged murder in North Carolina in 2015, is manager of the Limerick Mental Health Association (LMHA), which has partnered with Sailing into Wellness (SIW) to introduce the initiative.

The programme is targeting organisations working with clients in recovery and young people at risk, particularly people in marginalised communities.

Ms Lynch who continues to navigate her own journey through bereavement and grief following the loss of her brother, said: “It was once said that the cure for anything is saltwater, whether that comes in the form of sweat, tears or the sea. We are very excited about the potential for this new Sailing into Wellness programme, which makes recovery about living.”

“As an island nation we rarely look to the sea to help with our social and physical challenges. We are all equal at sea, together we face the same challenges, the combination of this and treating people with respect as equals provides a powerful environment for change.”

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The course will include groups of ten people who will set sail on board the vessel, Ilen, out of Foynes Port, Co Limerick in May and June.

“This is experiential learning in its rawest form; the benefits go far beyond those of learning sailing). We help to build the life skills which are lost in poor mental health, such as communication, self -confidence, resilience, self-esteem and being part of a team.

“It’s been proven that even being close to the sea stimulates the production of serotonin and dopamine, which is good for mental health,” Ms Lynch said.

The Limerick woman won custody of her brother’s children after their father’s killing and has encouraged both children Jack (16) and Sarah (14) – whose mother Margaret Fitzpatrick died in 2006 from an asthma attack – to attend counselling to cope with their loss.

In 2019 Sarah Corbett, who was 8 years old when her father was killed, wrote a series of books to help other children through loosing a loved one, while her bother has also performed songs to express his emotions.

Sarah’s Boogawooga Series has helped her process her own grief as well as “helping others process their story”.

“Writing is a form of therapy for Sarah to express how she feels about the experiences she has had,” Ms Lynch said previously.

Colin Healy, co-founder of SIW, said the sailing course was “a fantastic experience of an educational and therapeutic activity where we support our participants to overcome both physical and mental challenges in an environment that is both exhilarating and therapeutic”.

“We will take the participants out of their normal environment and into one which inspires and challenges. We are truly fortunate that this programme is part funded by the National Lottery funding which enables us to run a program on the sailing ship Ilen out of Foynes Yacht Club this year. We are fully insured, and all staff are garda vetted.”

“We can have 10 clients on board plus our crew under Level 5 restrictions and we have a full set of Covid protocols in place,” Mr. Healy added.

Bookings and deposits which will accepted on “a first come first served basis” can be made by emailing Tracey@Limerickmentalhealth.ie

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