Pictured are Nathan Hanley and Cara Maguire at their placement in Business in the Community.
On 2 May 2015 we tragically lost our close friend and fellow student, Cara Maguire, during our final year of study at St Mary's University College. Before her death, Cara and I had agreed to participate in the “Color Run” at the end of August 2015, simply as a fun day out, and as a goal for her to work towards, in regards to taking exercise and working towards a healthier lifestyle.
Following her passing, her closest friends and I began to discuss ways to keep Cara's memory alive, and it was decided that we should hold on our commitment to enter the Color Run as a group. The intent was to use the day to achieve a positive outcome, especially as such an event paralleled the colourful and creative aspects of Cara's personality. In addition, we also decided that we could use this event as a final get-together before embarking on various post-graduate and Masters courses.
After discussing our idea with her family, we opened a Virgin Money Giving page to raise money for the NSPCC, a charity chosen by Cara's parents. The final team that participated in the event consisted of St Mary's BA Liberal Arts degree students: Dorrena Canavan, Gráinne Coyle, Rachel Kearney, Catherine Dunleavey, Alex McGurran, Rebecca McClean and me. We were joined by Cara's sister, Andrea Maguire, and other members of her family, as well as some of our own friends and family.
The event itself was a great success filled with many laughs, memories and heartfelt goodbyes. In completing the run, we raised over £1,000 in Cara's name. We would like to thank St Mary's for all their support during a very difficult and confusing time for us all, as well as their continued support following these events. Cara would have been so proud and appreciative of all involved and of our endeavour to keep in touch with each other in the future.
Written by Nathan Hanley
(Nathan Hanley was the 2015 recipient of the St Mary’s Chengelo Award for Community Service.)