This is a remarkably selfless act.
Dennis Tynan has been writing a poem a day since May 12 2017 to raise awareness and funds for Mental Health Ireland.
The Portlaoise man has raised €3,845 so far and hopes to reach his target of €5,000 before the 365 days are up on Saturday May 12.
For each poem that Dennis writes, he also contributes €3 of his own money, which means Dennis has personally given €1,095 to Mental Health Ireland.
A cause close to his heart
“Mental Health Ireland is very close to my own heart, and I’ve experienced mental health issues myself,” Dennis told LaoisToday.
“A good few people have came forward privately and said, ‘That poem you wrote, that really helped me.’
“I write my poems on things I’ve felt and experienced. That’s sometimes fairly hard to do but I just want to show peopel that you’re not alone.
“There is still a huge stigma around mental health issues in Ireland, it is still an elephant in the room in Irish society. If I have only helped one person by doing this then it would be worth it,” he said.
“To do this is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made,” he added.
So how does he feel to be finishing his year long journey?
“I’m dreading it in one way. It’s been such a big part of my life for the past year. I’m proud and sad to be finished at the same, it’s strange,” he said.
Dennis says he always had an interest in poetry, but it was only in the last few years that he began posting his poems on Facebook. He now posts each of his daily poems on his page here.
He managed to write his poems by setting aside half an hour each day to think of what he was going to write about.
Which is easier said than done, as he explains: “I leave home for my job in Dublin at 5.30am and sometimes don’t get home til 10pm, but writing the poems has never been a hassle to me.”
Dennis qualified as a general nurse before completing a Masters in Mental Health Nursing last year. He is now a working nurse in the Central Mental Hospital in Dundrum.
To find out how to donate to the ‘A Poem a Day’ cause, visit here.
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