A Portlaoise mother-of-two who is terrified of flying and heights will face her fears head on by doing 10,000 ft parachute jump on Sunday morning in memory of her late father.
Claire Dunne is confronting her fears to raise funds for the Intensive Care Unit in St. James’s Hospital in memory of Peter “Moscal” Dunne.
The Portlaoise woman will be at Clonbullogue Airfield at 8 am on Sunday morning to take on the challenge.
She said her daughters Caoimhe (14) and Sarah Kate (8) will be there to support her.
Peter was a well-known prison officer in Portlaoise for over 30 years and did charity work in the past, prompting his daughter to do likewise.
She is raising funds for a room to be provided in St. James’s Hospital where families can gather for some privacy and comfort, when a family member is in ICU, particularly if they have to travel.
This is an issue which is particularly important to Claire and her family, after their own experience.
Her father spent weeks in hospital, after being taken ill suddenly. He had been transferred from Portlaoise to St James’s Hospital bud sadly never made it home.
The Dunne family received the news that their father might not make it through the night and had no-where to go in the hospital.
Awful
“It was awful. I can remember us just hanging around the corridor with nowhere to go,” she said.
Some of their families had to sleep in cars in the car park on occasion and when they did get a room to stay in, about 12 family members had to cram into it.
“We weren’t the only people affected this way. There were other families going through it. There was no privacy at all,” she said.
It was obvious from the first night they arrived that the situation was life and death.
“It was about 3am in the morning and I didn’t know what to do. There was another family there in a similar situation and we were just trying to console each other,” Claire said.
“I would just like to help so other families don’t have to go through that,” she said.
Around €190,000 was needed to provide the family room and facilities, but now just €19,000 is required.
Last year, Claire raised €4,000 for another ward her father was treated in at St. James’s.
Claire has had hypnotherapy in the past to try and help her get over her fear of flying.
Panic attack
“I went away with my dad for his 60th and he swore he would never get on a plane again with me. I had a full-blown panic attack and my dad and an air hostess had to console me,” she said.
Certainly, Claire is taking on possibly the biggest challenge she could with the parachute jump.
She has received great support from family and friends although many have questioned her fundraising choice. “They do think I am absolutely crazy,” she said.
Crazy or not she is certainly raising money for a good cause. You can support her fundraising here.
SEE ALSO – All of Friday evenings GAA results
