Joan O’Callaghan is 77 years old, lives in Donabate and is a cancer survivor. However this story is not about cancer but about her determined effort to raise money for frontline healthcare workers during this Covid crisis. The mother of three and grandmother of two had been trying to keep fit since three operations on her back and shoulder last year. Joan said “In an effort to keep fit I had been going up and down 24 stairs in my apartment block daily. Having read what Captain Tom did in the U.K. I realised I could probably raise some funds for our frontline healthcare workers here. I liked what Tom Keogh from Keogh Crisps and www.irelandthanksyou.ie was doing to say thank you to our wonderful frontline health careworkers so I contacted him.To date with my “one woman challenge” I have gone up and down 29,464 stairs and have raised € 4300.”

Joan says she now has a link on that site and can gauge who has donated because all such people have to do is put the word steps after there name ie: joebloggssteps, then she can see how much has been donated because of her efforts. Meantime the former principal of St Andrews School in Malahide will continue to walk up and down the steps in her apartment block to raise money for those who are putting themselves at risk every day to ensure the health and well being of us all.

Well done Jane, keep up the good work and remember go to www.irelandthanksyou.ie and give what you can in support of Jane’s efforts for those who are caring for us all.