Father of girl with rare heart condition takes on 24-hour challenge to raise funds for Children’s Health

“Cycling is nothing compared to what these children are going through,” said a father who will undertake a 24-hour cycling challenge to fundraise for Children’s Health Ireland.

Luke Birrell, from Ballyfermot, went through the “most amazing feelings” six weeks ago when his daughter was born.

However, his life was “turned upside down” when he found out she was born with Ebstein’s anomaly, a congenital heart defect (CHD) which affects one in every 100,000 children.

She was taken into the ICU shortly after birth and will have to undergo complex treatment, surgeries, and ongoing care throughout her life.

“My main goal now is to raise as much awareness as possible, get the message out there and help provide care for children,” said Luke, who is going to challenge himself with a 24-hour straight cycling session as a way to represent CHD’s difficulties.

Luke will use an exercise bike in his family home in Drimnagh, starting on Sunday, December 22.

He is a trained cyclist and already did 12-hour challenges, but this is going to feel different as it’s a cause “close to his heart.”

“It will be especially difficult at night, at 2am or 3am when your body clock knows you should be sleeping.

‘But I believe the pain I’ll feel won’t be anything compared to what children with heart defects go through every day, or children with any other disease.”

A few weeks spent at the Children’s Hospital in Crumlin opened Luke’s eyes on how many conditions affect children and how many brave, tireless parents are by their side.

“I look at the world in a different way now,” he said.

“My wife and I were in pain, seeing our child sick and knowing we couldn’t do anything about it.

“Then I started meeting so many incredible parents going through the same things.

“Their resilience is not talked about enough and inspired me to raise money for vital research that can fund life-saving surgeries and improve care for these children.”

Besides the cycling challenge, Luke will be fundraising at the Ashleaf Shopping Centre in Crumlin on Saturday, December 21.

He raised nearly €4,000 to date on a benchmark of €10,000, and all revenues will go towards CHD research.

“Every donation, no matter how small, can make a difference. All kids deserve a chance to live healthy, happy lives.”