Memorable 'Jump for Kieran' event raises over €45,000 for charity

A group of 25 family members and friends of Rosemount's Kieran Dunican have completed a daring challenge in his memory - and raised over €45,000 in the process.

This Friday, September 8, will mark one year since Kieran's untimely passing, at the age of 41, from sudden cardiac death.

With that anniversary approaching, Moate native Linda Dunican (nee Heavin), Kieran's wife and the mother of their young boys, Luke and Ollie, organised a skydive fundraiser in aid of the Irish Heart Foundation.

The event was made public in July and immediately began attracting huge support in the communities of Rosemount, Moate, Horseleap, Tubber, and beyond.

Kitted out in Irish Heart Foundation 'Jump For Kieran' t-shirts, the participants set off by bus from Moate to Clonbullogue airfield in Offaly on the morning of Saturday, August 26.

The weather conditions on the day were always going to determine whether or not the skydive could happen - and Linda said it wasn't looking too promising at first.

"The weather that morning was looking a bit dodgy and, to be honest, our chances of getting to do it were 50-50.

"There needs to be very little cloud and no rain, and the wind has to be at a very low rate as well, so it wasn't looking too hectic at the start."

At the airfield, the group was given a briefing and safety talk and then it was a waiting game to see if the weather would clear for take-off.

Linda was due to be the first skydiver on the day and, at around 12.30pm, some blue patches began appearing in the sky which meant she was offered the chance to go first in a plane with some others who had been booked in ahead of the 'Jump for Kieran' group. She wasn't sure at first whether to go up on her own, but she then decided to go for it.

"It was generally 4 or 5 in a plane together, along with 4 or 5 instructors, because we were doing tandem jumps with someone attached to you. We headed up, got to about 12,000 feet, and then jumped from 12,000 feet!"

The experience, she said, was "absolutely incredible... probably the scariest thing I've ever done, but exhilarating at the same time."

The scariest moment came when the door of the plane opened. "You feel that gust of wind, and you have to slide up towards the door, and sit on the edge of the plane with your legs dangling outside of it.

"You're looking down at nothing other than clouds. Then it's literally, 1, 2, 3, head back, and you're gone! You don't know where you are for a few minutes. That's the real scary part!

"You freefall for about 40 seconds, and then the instructor pulls your parachute at 5,000 feet, and you parachute and glide down the rest of the way, which was absolutely amazing."

Thankfully, the improved weather conditions meant the other 24 skydivers then got to head up in groups for their respective jumps.

"The last two people of our group to jump went at about 5pm. So it was a really long day but we all got to do it, everybody went, and none of us backed out!

"There was huge support there for us in Clonbullogue. In addition to my family, and the extended Dunican and Heavin family, there were loads of friends and neighbours. So many came to support us, and I can't thank people enough."

That Saturday evening, the group gathered at Don's Bar in Moate where, as Linda put it, "we celebrated, talked, laughed and cried."

With some donations for the Irish Heart Foundation still coming in, the total amount raised has not yet been finalised, but it has exceeded €45,000.

"I'm really proud of what we've achieved, and proud of everyone who got behind this and everyone who jumped with me," said Linda.

She expressed her gratitude to Nikki O'Callaghan, of Sip Coffee Garden in Ballymore, who provided food for the group on the day, and to Darren Doyle who captured photos of the event. Linda also wished to thank Rohan Transport for providing the bus to and from Clonbullogue.

The participants in the skydive in memory of Kieran Dunican were as follows: Paul Boland, Jonathan Keenan, Brian Downey, John Campbell, Keith Coleman, Eugene Costello, Damien Boland, Conor Fox, Gemma Lowry, Anne Keenan, Sue Buckley, Linda Dunican, Roisin Coffey, Niall Boland, Billy Berry, Sean Berry, Thomas Berry, Peter Dunican, Orlaith Coleman, Laura Cummins, Lisa Heavin, Ger Heavin, Elaine Heavin, Ryan Heavin, and Sam McCabe.