An Irish man with scoliosis is walking from the Mater Hospital to Offaly in memory of his late dad.
Gary Farrell, who is a founder of Scoliosis Ireland, is hoping to raise €5,000 for The Mater as his dad Peadar received treatment there up to his death last month. Peadar had Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis which caused him to rely on additional oxygen and he was on a lung transplant list.
On July 19, Gary will begin walking 86km from The Mater to his family home in Offaly while carrying his dad's oxygen bottle on his back. Speaking to Dublin Live, Gary said his father received "fantastic care" and he wants to give back to the hospital.
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He said: "He had been looked after in The Mater for the last couple of years and he was up there for four weeks before he passed away,. He was very familiar with the staff and nurses up there and they gave him great care before he passed away."
Gary will undertake the challenge next month and said fundraising has been "incredible" so far.
He added: "On July 19 I'm walking from The Mater to my dad's house in Offaly with his oxygen bottle on my bank. It's the equivalent of two back to back marathons. I have some fantastic support. The reaction has been incredible so far, we're about 40% there with the donations already.
"We only launched it about eight days ago so it's brilliant. There's so many fantastic names coming on board."
You can donate to the fundraiser and find out more here.
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