The cheque was presented by the Moody Family John, Karla and Gemma to Our Lady’s Hospice representative Ann Julian
Family raise €20,000 for hospice in memory of their mother Lorraine
A Clondalkin family who raised €20,000 in honour of a loved one said that they plan to continue to fundraise for Our Lady’s Hospice in Harold’s Cross.
The Moody’s of Monastery, Clondalkin raised €20,000 for Our Lady’s Hospice and Care Services in memory of wife, mother and grandmother, Lorraine, who passed away after a short battle with gastric cancer.
The fundraising began as a coffee morning in the Moody household after the month’s mind mass.
It soon became more with a range of fundraising activities done over the past few months to honour Lorraine and give back to the hospice, as well as a way for members of the family to confront their own grief.
Daughter Karla said: “I’m proud of the amount that we’ve raised. It’s given my Dad [John] a real focus – that’s kind of been his main focus.
“Different generations deal with things in different ways, but it’s definitely been a way for him to keep focused and to keep motivated through his grief…
“…I think it’s shown him how loved my Mam was, and just seeing the amount of money and how the community have rallied around him and supported him, I think he feels very proud and he’s delighted that that many people have stepped up in honour of my Mam.”
The annual Christmas celebrations in the local estate was done in aid of the hospice in Harold’s Cross this past year.
Tommy Marr was singled out by the family as a key part of the celebrations every year, having set them up three decades ago, and a special thanks was given to Marr and Francis Timmons for their help in this year’s festivities.
An idonate page was set up for the Christmas fundraiser and had the family very close to their total before they hit their goal of €20k at the beginning of February and then presented the cheque to Our Lady’s Hospice in Harold’s Cross at the end of the month.
Karla said that the staff at the hospice were brilliant but that they were dealing with a lack of facilities compared to the public demand, with only a 38-bed unit to work out of and 30 of those fit for use.
“My mom was waiting for a couple of days from the time that the decision was made that that’s where she wanted to go, and we were waiting for about four or five days for a bed to become available.
“And I suppose when you’re not knowing how many days you have, it’s just awful to think of families whose loved one wants to pass away in Harold’s Cross and, unfortunately, there isn’t a bed for them.”
Lorraine’s daughter stated how the staff would go above and beyond to provide for patients and their families, with private courtyards and an always open kitchen allowing space and flexibility in schedules.
Karla said that her mother fought a “very short, but intense illness” in gastric cancer, which had set off in March of last year and saw her in hospital by the next month.
It took five weeks for her diagnosis to be confirmed, and the family were told that a full recovery would be expected.
Lorraine completed her first round of chemotherapy and was expected to have surgery to remove her stomach and rested at home before the surgery on July 24, 2025, but the preliminary PET scan changed things.
“He basically pulled the plug on the surgery three days before it was supposed to happen, and told us that it was palliative, and if she accepted palliative chemo, she might have about a year.
“So, that was obviously a very difficult day. One of the worst days of the whole thing. She said that she would accept the palliative chemo, because she never refused any of the treatments.
“She would have done anything to get an extra week.”
The situation worsened with further complications before Lorraine was admitted into the hospice and passed away at the end of August after a week in the hospice.
The Moody’s have gone above and beyond to remember their matriarch and the community has rallied behind them.
They wish to thank their neighbours in Monastery for their help throughout the fundraising process and their grief, and Karla stated that she does not expect the work to end there, with the Mini Marathon later this year cited as a potential opportunity to continue.
“I do think as well like that, because we raised so much money in such a short amount of time, I can’t see that being the end of the fundraising.
“Like, I can’t see that being the end of the fundraising, either, to be honest, like there’s, I think there will be more opportunities, yeah, for us to do different things.”
In 2025, Our Lady’s Hospice and Care Services provided care to 5,331 patients through 700 staff and 400 volunteers.
They stated that they need to raise a minimum of €5.5 million each and every year to ensure that they continue to provide their services at Harold’s Cross, Blackrock and Wicklow.
To make a donation to Our Lady’s Hospice and Care Services, visit their personal donation webpage and fill out the form, call on 01 491 1072 or email fundraising@olh.ie.
