Family raises £37k in name of Diarmuid

Diarmuid Frazer and his twin brother Cormac, P2 pupils at Ballymacward Primary School at the time, were involved in a road accident on March 26 last year.

The six-year-olds, from Glenavy, were rushed to hospital, where Cormac was treated for cuts, bruises and trauma, from which he went on to make a full recovery, but after two days in intensive care Diarmuid died as a result of serious head injuries.

His devastated family wanted to honour his memory in such a way that his loss was not in vain, and so mum Martina and the youngsters’ aunts, Bernadette Loughran, Karen Frazer Stockton and Joanne Jackson, launched the ‘Diarmuid Barry Frazer Fund Raiser’ in aid of the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children’s charity, ‘Helping Hand’.

Belfast Marathon runners and local businesses as far afield as Lisburn, Glenavy, Stoneyford, Moira and Belfast weighed in behind fundraising efforts centred on the ‘Never Forgotten’ Gala Ball at Titanic, Belfast in May.

“Our original aim in terms of ticket sales was approximately 200/250, maybe even 300,” said Diarmuid’s aunt Joanne, “and we dared to hope to raise in the region of £10,000.

“Our ticket sales soared to 438, which was just incredible, and to have such unconditional support on the evening was so overwhelming and for us unforgettable.

“As a result of this magnificent support we more than exceeded our expectations and raised a whopping £37,087.14 and there area still a few donations are coming in.

“Our hopes and dreams of creating an ‘unforgettable’ legacy for Diarmuid have been realised, so we would really like to take this opportunity to say a special thank-you to everyone involved . . . you know who you are and we hope you take this as a token of our thanks.”

Special thanks went to Mr Sadlier and the Ballymacward School community for “unconditional and sustained support”, to Paul Buchanan and colleagues of the Lámh Dhearg ,to the business community and local artists, for donating a variety of prizes

To all Joanne said: “You have contributed in making this ‘unforgettable’ legacy for an ‘unforgettable’ special wee boy...our angel, Diarmuid, so from the bottom of our hearts we sincerely thank each and every one of you.”

The Frazer family presented the funds to Helping Hand’s Nigel Kearney at Diarmuid’s Bench in the School Community Garden.

“This donation is a fantastic and fitting legacy for Diarmuid and will go towards making a difference to the little patients and their families of the Childrens Hospital,” said Joanne.