A FISHING fundraiser held in honour of two Irvine pals who passed away during lockdown has raised over £2,000 for charity.

Scott Glass and Stewart Gibson were best friends, with Scott even being Stewart’s best man at his wedding.

But during lockdown, Scott passed away aged 52, and Stewart died aged 44, both due to natural causes. Their deaths came less than a year apart.

Another friend of the pair, Martin Haggerty who is also from Irvine, recently decided to hold a charity fishing event, in honour of the his two mates. He was assisted in organising this by Dean Anderson and Carson Gibson.

On August 27, over 50 people were in attendance at the Waterfront Fishery near Coylton in an event that raised £2,220 for their selected charity.

Martin explained the fundraiser to the Times, saying: “ Both guys lived for fishing and loved to spend many days and nights at the river or travelling Scotland visiting fisheries.

“So it seemed fitting that we chose a day of fishing so that their friends and families could come together and share memories while raising funds for charity.

“The event itself was a huge success, with the amount raised exceeding all our expectations.”

The money raised on the day was donated to the Ronald McDonald House, a charity close to everyone’s heart due to another family friend of Scott and Stewart.

Martin continued: “The Wilson family who were close friends of Scott and Stewart, were able to use Ronald McDonald House while their son Zak was receiving treatment at Yorkhill Children’s Hospital.

“So it was an honour for us to raise much needed funds and help raise awareness for such a worthy facility which helps bring families together while their children are in hospital.”

The event itself was well supported, with many local businesses playing their part, as well as the great attendance from friends and family of the pair.

Martin commented: “ I would like to thank the Western Gailes Golf Club for kindly sponsoring our event and Colin Pang from Waterfront Fishery for the first class hospitality provided to us on the day of the event.

“And a thank you to each and every person that supported our fundraising through buying raffle tickets and donations.”

The amazing fund-raising effort was concluded with a cheque presentation of the final amount raised for the Ronald McDonald House.

This was handed over by Martin Haggerty, Carson Gibson, Martin’s daughter Madison Haggarty, Zak Wilson, Zak’s father Steven Wilson and Dean Anderson (main picture from left to right).

Congratulations to all involved from the Times team!