Limerick woman Mary Tierney’s Camino will raise funds for Limerick charities

Limerick woman Mary Tierney will walk the Camino raising funds for Limerick charities. In early 2023, Mary’s world was devastated by the sudden loss of her husband Tom

Limerick woman Mary Tierney will take on Spain’s Camino del Norte in a bid to raise funds for charities to honour the loss of two people close to her

Following the heart-breaking losses of her husband and father within a short period, Limerick woman Mary Tierney will walk the Camino Del Norte Bilbao to Santander to raise funds for two services close to her heart, Children’s Grief Centre and Milford Hospice.

In early 2023, Mary’s world was devastated by the sudden loss of her husband and father of her two daughters, Tom, and tragically nine days later Mary and her family mourned the loss of Mary’s father, Dermot. Writing on GoFundMe where Mary is raising funds for the two charities, she said, “Just over a year ago we very suddenly lost the centre of our lives, my husband & their daddy, Tom. With a simple and familiar kiss goodnight, neither of us knowing that this was to be our goodbye. Just nine days later we also lost my own dad and their amazing grandad Dermot (dobs).”

With an initial goal of €10,000, support has eclipsed that marker and the Limerick mother-of-two has seen more than €18,000 in donations with messages of support pouring in with one donation reading, “It is for a great cause and Mary and her family are such a loving and caring family, even though I don’t know them personally. But I follow their journey and it’s a tough one xx”

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Writing about the grief which followed, Mary explains the reaction to such a loss is very personal and it “quickly revealed itself as a need to talk” for her and her daughters.

She writes, “A person’s reaction to the loss of someone you never wanted or expected to ever live without is very personal you just do what your body tells you to do. For my girls and I, that very quickly revealed itself as a need to talk. I’m grateful for that but a willingness to talk and having the tools to do it aren’t one and the same.

“I have been attending grief counselling in Milford Care Centre Limerick for almost a year now and my girls have been wrapped in the protective arms of the Children’s Grief Centre Limerick. The support we have received from these services (now friends) is something words can’t describe.”

Mary hopes to give back to the groups who have helped them during this time of grief and loss by raising funds through taking on the Camino with friends.

She said, “I together with friends, will walk the Camino del Norte Bilbao to Santander in May.
I decided to do this initially to simply spend time in my thoughts with Tom & my dad but then saw it as a great opportunity to also raise funds for both of these tremendous organisations.”

She took a moment to thank people who would be able to support her fundraiser and any support people can offer; signing off with thanks from “Mary, Isabel, Julia Tierney x Daddy’s shiddle diddles”

You can donate here
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