Running last year’s Dublin City Marathon while undergoing cancer treatment Garda Rita Casey, who raised €22,300 for the Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation, was recently presented with the Mayo Person of the Year Award in recognition and honour of her achievement.
From Malin Head and now stationed in Charlestown, Co. Mayo, where she has been living now for over 20 years, Garda Casey ran the marathon while undergoing chemotherapy for brain and lung cancer. She had been diagnosed in 2021 and previously fought breast cancer.
The mum-of-three finds running a great source of stress relief, and with the assistance of medication, she completed the marathon in just four hours and four minutes. The Lord Mayor of Dublin, Daithí de Róiste, has presented Rita with a medal for running her fifth Dublin City Marathon last October under exceptional circumstances. She had received over 40 nominations for the medal.
Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation has been a huge support to Rita and her family since her diagnosis. Martina Jennings, CEO of Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation, said: “To undertake such a challenge and raise over €22,000 in the process, is phenomenal…. her donation will go a long way in supporting those with life limiting conditions.”
She added that the funds will ensure the best facilities and services will be provided to the patients and their families in Mayo and Roscommon. On behalf of the Foundation, she thanked Garda Casey for her fundraising efforts and wished her well as she continues her treatment.
Rita Casey, who was presented with the ‘Mayo Person of the Year’ award for 2024 by Mayo Association Dublin on International Women’s Day on 8 March, is pictured with Martina Jennings, CEO of Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation, following the award presentation at the Intercontinental Hotel in Dublin.
