AN EPIC fundraising run in memory of the late beloved son of a west Clare family has made an impressive €45,000 for a number of charities.
Ailish and John McMahon lost their son Cormac in May 2019 and wanted to do some good in his memory by raising much-needed funds for charities.
The four charities to benefit will be The Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation, LauraLynn Ireland’s Children’s Hospice and Bumbleance, the official Children’s National Ambulance Service.
The event, dubbed 4 10ks 4 Cormac saw John completing four 10-kilometre runs in just one day, four hours apart; something he achieved with flying colours on May 15 this year.
Last week, the family handed over the proceeds of the fundraiser at West Clare Sports and Fitness, with the successful campaign raising over €45,000.
The final figure came both from online fundraising through a account and a sponsorship cards sent out around west Clare, including Cooraclare, where John is originally from and works as a teacher, and Lissycasey, where the family lives.
John said: “We put out cards to local shops, post offices and credit unions, and they brought in great money, nearly €14,000.
“The older people coming into those places who wouldn’t be so used to online banking supported us with their tens, and their twenties and their fifties, which was great to see.”
The McMahons chose the charities to which the funds are going because of their involvement in Cormac’s life.
LauraLynn and the Jack & Jill Children’s Foundation both sent specially-trained nurses to their house to allow Ailish and John to go to work and meet the needs of their two other children, knowing Cormac was being taken care of.
Because Cormac had to spend a lot of time in Crumlin Hospital on Temple Street, the Bumbleance provided a way for the parents to be with their son without having to drive him all the way twice a month.
Some of the proceeds of the event also went to West Clare Sports and Fitness in Cooraclare, of which the family are members.
John continued: “There are excellent facilities there; on a Wednesday night you could have 70 or 80 children training for cross-country. So many children benefit from it, and I often train there myself after work – I find it great for the head. When I came up with the idea to do the four 10Ks, that was where I did them as well.”
John explained that during Cormac’s life, the opportunity never arose to give back to the charities that had given the family such wonderful help, and the pandemic also delayed any progress towards this fabulous display of love and athleticism until this year.
When deciding how best to honour his son’s life and the people who made it a little easier, John realised he had to create an event that was a bit unique, to bring in attention and funds from people that may not have known Cormac or the family.
John told The Clare Champion he has always kept himself in reasonable shape; when he started preparing for this event in November he was able to run a single 10K already.
But there was still some hard training to be done.
He added: “It was a matter of building it up and minding myself. In the weeks coming up to it, I would maybe do 10K on Friday evening, another on Saturday morning, another that evening and a fourth on Sunday.
“Then I’d take a day or two off just to recharge. Knowing your own body and what it can endure is the most important thing.”
John and Ailish’s other children, Diarmuid (14) and Caoimhe (10), were delighted to get involved in anything done in memory of their much-adored little brother, going so far as to complete the second and last 10Ks with their father.
“It was an emotional day in one sense, and a great one in another. It was fantastic feeling to have them with me on the day, after raising so much money for all these wonderful charities.
“We want to say a huge thank you to everyone who donated and did their part alongside us, we cannot say enough in the way of thanks.”

by Conor Clohessy