Family of 'strong and amazing dad' to raise funds for charity in Great Limerick Run

DEDICATING a run - which will see around 14,000 people participate - to a “strong and amazing dad” is what two of his six children are doing.

The Regeneron Great Limerick Run is being dedicated to “a great Limerick man”, the late John ‘Johnny’ McDermott, of Gouldavoher, Dooradoyle, by his daughter Sarah Allison and son David who are participating in the run on Sunday.

Johnny passed away after a “hard-fought illness”, making him blind and wheelchair-bound, in March, aged 73. A GoFundMe page has been set up in his memory. All proceeds will be going to The National Council for the Blind of Ireland (NCBI).

Challenging themselves by doing the run in memory of their late father, Sarah said: “We felt that it was the perfect event to fundraise, to run the Regeneron Great Limerick Run, in memory of a great Limerick man.

“Dad was an avid charity fundraiser throughout his working life, donating to so many causes over the years that we lost track of them. This will be his final donation to charity, which is why we are raising as much as we can in his name.

“We only learned the extent of his support after his passing, when we were approached by people that he had helped in some way. His passing has left a void for so many people.”

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Over 130 donations have been made to the GoFundMe page so far, amounting to over €5,000. Johnny had ill health over the last five years. He will be fondly remembered by his wife Phil, children and grandchildren. “Blindness took a big toll on him - it was something he struggled with right up until the end, having lost the ability to see his wife of 48 years, children and grandchildren.”

However, his daughter Sarah said that “losing his sight and being wheelchair-bound didn't stop him from living”, as she said that he discovered “a new way of seeing and experiencing life”. “His sense of humour and ability to laugh and have the craic is something that can only be described as amazing given his deteriorating health.

“No matter the situation, Dad had a tremendous ability to find the lighthearted side of things and he used humour as an instrument to take everything in his stride.

“He showed extraordinary strength in battling a debilitating illness that took both his sight and his mobility and never let it show how hard his life had become,” Sarah said.

Believing that their dear dad Johnny will now be able to look down upon them from above this April 30 during their fundraising endeavours, Sarah said: “The Regeneron Great Limerick Run will be the first he'll be able to see, and the first he'll be able to run with us.”

The decision to choose an athletic event to fundraise for NCBI was an easy one. Sarah reminisced: “Dad was a very fast runner back in his day.

“We have memories of him racing us on the beach and none of us were ever able to beat him, and this was something Dad used to love to tease us about - no doubt he will beat us again on April 30, too.”