Dip a Day for Jack and Jill

Our beautiful daughter Muireann was born with severe Hydrocephalus in July 2000 and sadly the doctors told us that her condition was a terminal but were unable to tell us how long she would live. The social worker in the hospital came to visit and suggested that with the help of The Jack and Jill Children’s Foundation and the consent of the team in The Rotunda Hospital we might be able to bring her home to be with her family. We had never heard of this charity before and were a little reluctant to agree but we needn’t have worried. From our first interaction with our liaison nurse Cathy, we knew that we all (and especially Muireann) would get the most professional and compassionate care and we are so glad to have had this help as it was a very daunting prospect – bringing a terminally ill baby home from a hospital not knowing how much time we had. In the end we had 4 very short but very special weeks with Muireann. All our family & friends came to visit. Her brother Darragh (4) sisters Ciara (6 ½) and Aoife (2) were able to be with their little sister as we tried to make our family life as normal as possible.

This would not have been possible without the help of Jack and Jill especially Cathy and the nurses who became part of our daily lives. They took the most precious care of Muireann and helped us come to terms with her inevitable passing and when that time came, we knew what to expect and what signs to look for. As such when the time came early on the morning of August 25th, I was able to hold her in my arms in the comfort of our own home and we all said goodbye. I can’t even imagine what it would have been like had she been in hospital……

Some days after she passed a card arrived saying ‘We will see you in all things beautiful’ and so Stars, Ladybirds and Stargazer Lillies are where we now see Muireann. We celebrate her birthday each year and anyone who has me on social media knows I will always share (as will my family) any posts by the Jack and Jill Foundation looking for nurses to care for babies like Muireann. In July 2021 to mark what would have been her 21st birthday we had a charity swim of 1km in Portmarnock and it was a huge success.

We will forever be grateful to Jonathan Irwin and The Jack and Jill Foundation who made it possible for us to be a family at home with our little star Muireann.