Five young Irish ladies will don their running shoes in three different time zones across the globe on Saturday, 10th October for the virtual VHI Women’s Mini Marathon. They are undertaking the challenge to demonstrate solidarity in support of a cause very close to the heart of one of the friends, Sarah May, which is to raise organ donor awareness and funds for the Irish Kidney Association.

The friends will synchronise their watches to undertake the run at the same time from their locations in Abu Dhabi, Melbourne, Kildare and Carlow. 

They have already raised in excess of €1000 through their Just Giving fundraising platform  https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/sarah-may19

Wearing their bright yellow running t-shirts with Irish Kidney Association branding, Sarah May and Lauren Stewart,  both from Brownshill, Carlow, will set out running their 10km distance on home turf. In their neighbouring county of Kildare, friend Maeve Howe will be sporting the same bright IKA tshirt when pounding the roads in her native Athy. Running for the cause in 'the land down under' will be Mona Mullins, also from Brownshill, who is working as a nurse in Melbourne while her friend Eva Balfe, will be jogging along under the warm sunshine in the Emirates capital of Abu Dhabi where she lives and works as a teacher.

Four of the friends had been classmates since they were children attending Bennekerry National School in Carlow and continuing together right through Secondary Level at St. Leo’s College.

Sarah May who works in Human Resources for a Dublin based software company has been working remotely since Covid 19 lockdown. Sarah was just 16 years old when her father Paul, who was Advertising Manager with the Carlow Nationalist newspaper, passed away in 2008. Three decades previously, the father of two, had received a diagnosis of end stage kidney disease progressing to dialysis treatment in 1984 when he and Sarah’s mother Pat joined the Carlow branch of the Irish Kidney Association (IKA) and became active members as they found the organisation very supportive. Pat was elected to the national board in 2001 and she became National Secretary in 2007 before taking up the two-year tenure of National Honorary Chairman in 2009.

No doubt influenced by her late father and her mother, Sarah has also aligned herself closely to the Irish Kidney Association and has taken a week out every summer, with this year being the exception, to travel as Team Writer with Transplant Team Ireland, when they compete at World and European Transplant Games events on alternate years. She is a very popular member of the Team’s panel and carries out the demanding role reporting team members’ results, their successes and sharing their inspirational stories, which she carries out with great aplomb, while helping to spread awareness about the success of organ donation.

Sarah said, “I’m delighted my friends are supporting me by running in the first ever Virtual Vhi Women’s Mini Marathon which was to take place earlier this year. A huge positive is that because it is virtual it can be done anywhere in the world and it’s a fun way to connect with my faraway and closer to home friends while supporting the Irish Kidney Association which does great work in advocating for kidney patients and their families as well as promoting the organ donor card. I want to thank all those people who have supported the fundraiser so far and hope they will also consider organ donation and let their friends and family know their wishes.”

Organ Donor Cards can be obtained by phoning the Irish Kidney Association on 01 6205306 or Free text the word DONOR to 50050. You can also visit the website www.ika.ie/get-a-donor-card or download a free ‘digital organ donor card’ APP to your phone.  

The public can also support the work of the Irish Kidney Association and can Freetext KIDNEY to 50300 to donate €4. Texts cost €4, Irish Kidney Association will receive a minimum of €3.60. Service Provider: LIKECHARITY. Helpline: 076 6805278. They can also donate through the Irish Kidney Association’s website https://ika.ie/make-a-contribution/