Zoe's big run for Darragh

Never thought I would say these words out loud but here we are – I will be running the Women's mini marathon on 2nd June 2024 in Dublin and I would love if you could join me! And my reason why is Darragh, my beautiful boy.

A little over a year ago, we were thrust into a world we wish we didn’t even know existed when our beautiful boy Darragh was diagnosed with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy at the age of eighteen months. We really didn’t see it coming, and our hearts have been broken in a way we didn’t know possible. DMD is a degenerative muscle wasting condition, and while we live in hope, presently there is no cure. Darragh has severe muscle weakness which will progress, and as we watch our son achieve all his milestones a little later than most, we will likely have to watch as he loses them too.

With this in mind, we want to achieve some things over the next year, and that’s where we need your help. We want to create a home suitable for Darragh’s changing needs and give him a space where he is not limited by his surroundings. A home that he can get around with ease and be just like his two sisters Ellie and Katie. We want to see that infectious smile creep onto his little face by bringing him away on a little holiday later this year. We want to watch him potter around on his feet, and soak in the memories of him walking and standing beside us and the girls. And lastly, we want to provide support for other families who have received the same diagnosis as Darragh. Financial support in the early days of diagnosis is invaluable, whether its to bring the family on a trip or afford the parents some time together to go for a meal or in our case buy and build multiple pieces of flat pack furniture!

We know trying to achieve all of this through one go fund me is a challenge, and we have modest expectations. But we do hope with your help we can get started on the goals we have set out. Life has a different meaning for us since Darragh was diagnosed. We wish we could take this one for him, all we want is for our boy to be happy and have the same life experience as his sisters and peers. They say it’s an ill wind that blows no good, but I have to say we are struggling to see the good in this one! So, we are trying to make a start, a start to moving in a more positive direction, and we would love if you could support us in any way – Thanks.

Zoe, Gordon, Ellie, Katie and of course the main man, Darragh x