Midlands fitness coach raising marathon funds for IKA

A Midlands fitness coach will honour the memory of her mother-in-law from Offaly when she participates in the Irish Life Dublin City Marathon on Sunday, October 25.

Bríd McGill is running the 26.2 mile distance in memory of Clareen native Josie McGill, a transplant recipient who had hereditary kidney disease. In the process, she will be raising funds and awareness for the Irish Kidney Association (IKA).

Bríd, 40, will run the distance just one day before the second anniversary of Josie’s death on October 26 2024.

A Portlaoise native, mother of two, Bríd (nee Keegan), is a well-known fitness coach of 20 years and a primary school teacher.

She is currently taking a year away from teaching to develop her passion for fitness through her successful Reformer Pilates business in Portlaoise, which she established more than a year ago and which now has a team of six.

Bríd's mother-in-law Josie lived with Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD), a hereditary condition which has affected several members of the McGill family.

Bríd’s husband Dermot also has PKD, although it has not progressed to the point where he requires treatment, while two of Josie’s sisters also underwent kidney transplants.

Dermot is monitored twice a year by nephrologist Dr. Eoin Bergin at Midland Regional Hospital Tullamore and takes particular care of his health through diet, exercise and lifestyle.

Josie spent almost ten years attending for dialysis treatment at Tullamore Hospital three times a week before receiving a kidney transplant in 2016. The transplant was a great success and gave her eight additional years with her family, including precious time with her two grandchildren, Frankie and Jodie.

Bríd says the family remain hugely grateful for those extra years, made possible by a deceased donor.

“We’re very grateful for the transplant Josie received and the extra years it gave her with her family. After all the years she spent travelling to hospital for dialysis treatment, she never complained. She was an inspiration to all of us," Bríd said.

Josie’s health deteriorated over the year before her death. Although her transplant kidney continued to function, she developed a number of other health issues and eventually died from sepsis, aged 72.

“I’m running the marathon and fundraising for the IKA in memory of my mother-in-law. She was an advocate of the IKA and would be very happy to know that funds were being raised for them.

“The IKA supports kidney patients and families like ours, and the work they do is incredibly important, particularly for families living with hereditary kidney disease.

As PKD is a hereditary condition, other members of our extended family may develop end-stage kidney failure, so I’m very happy to be running the marathon for the association," Bríd added.

As a way of giving back, the McGill family has supported the IKA for many years.

In 2019, Bríd, Dermot, their two children and Dermot’s cousins Grace and Trish Harrington from Belmont, took part in the IKA’s Run for a Life, a family fun run.

The event was particularly significant for the family as Grace and Trish’s mother, Veronica, also had PKD and had passed away just a few months before the race, aged 64.

For Bríd, the Dublin Marathon will be more than a personal sporting challenge.

“I want to honour Josie’s memory, support the IKA and raise awareness of PKD and the impact of organ donation," Bríd concluded.