Mayo organ donor families participate in service of remembrance and thanksgiving
AN estimated 1,600 people from across Ireland and beyond, including hundreds of families of deceased donors and transplant recipients, converged in the Church of the Holy Child, Whitehall, Dublin 9, for the Irish Kidney Association's 39th annual Service of Remembrance and Thanksgiving.
This unique service is an important occasion for remembering deceased loved ones who have in their death given the gift of life to others. It's an opportunity for grateful transplant recipients, their families and the wider organ donation and transplant community, including Organ Donation Transplant Ireland, organ donor coordinators and transplant coordinators, and other healthcare professionals, to give thanks and pay tribute to organ donors for their precious gifts of life.
The opening procession included fourth generation firefighter Ger Dolan, from Claddagh in Galway and stationed at Anglesea Fire Station in Cork city. Ger donated a kidney to his brother Jimmy in 2017 three months before his 18-year-old cousin Orla, from Mayo, tragically died and her family selflessly donated her organs, saving four lives.
Orla’s mother (Ger’s aunt) Dolores O'Malley travelled from Cross in Co. Mayo to participate in the service. Dolores carried the Book of Remembrance, the roll of honour in which Orla’s and other organ donors’ names are inscribed, to the altar.
The Jordan family from Bohola were also in attendance, remembering Stephen Jordan who passed away in December 2023 aged 42 years.
Families participated in all aspects of the service, which serves as a meaningful opportunity to remember their loved ones and honour the gift of life their donations have provided to others.
Leading members of Transplant Sport Ireland (TSI) in the symbolic Service of Light ceremony by lighting candles for the congregation to remember organ donors were the eldest and youngest member of the team who participated in the European Transplant Sports Championships in Lisbon this summer.
The service was recorded by Kairos Communications and will be broadcast on RTÉ One on November 17 at 11 a.m.
Becoming an organ donor is a simple process: carry a donor card, note your consent on your driving licence, or set up the organ donor app on your phone but most importantly share your wishes with your loved ones.
For more information on organ donation and the Irish Kidney Association, visit https://ika.ie/.