There was a hugely poignant gesture at the start of Killarney’s Darkness into Light fundraiser in the early hours of this Saturday morning when the flickering lights of 14 small candles – one for every year of his all too short life – illuminated in front of a simple sign that read: Nathan, you will never be forgotten.
Pictures: Konrad Paprocki
An estimated 4,000 people turned out for the annual tribute to young Nathan O’Carroll who was just 14 years of age when he died by suicide on December 16, 2007.
The incredibly well supported fundraiser dedicated to his memory has already raised hundreds of thousands of euro to help fund the work being undertaken by Pieta and the almost overwhelming success of this year’s event will add significantly to that.
Lanterns flickered and danced in the sky and rows of Darkness into Light candles lit up the starting point at Killarney Racecourse where people started gathering from 2.00am for the official start of the 5k walk two hours later.
The moving event, organised by Nathan’s parents, Denis and Marie O’Carroll, and their family and friends, wound its way through the national park and there was a great sense of community and spirit of togetherness as Killarney paid tribute to one of their own, a bright and fun-loving young boy whose life ended far too prematurely.
“We come together as a community to remember our loved ones lost to suicide but also in solidarity and to raise awareness about suicide and self-harm, showing there is always light after dark,” said Nathan’s mum Marie.
She and her husband, Denis, work extremely hard and with enormous passion to create awareness, particularly for the benefit of young people, and to highlight the annual fundraiser to help prevent other families from suffering the same fate as they did.
Nathan never suffered from depression and didn’t show any sign of mental health issues and he was always happy, fun-loving and energetic.
Since 2011, the teenager has been fondly remembered every year by thousands of people who turn out to support a Darkness into Light walk in his memory which has raised tens of thousands of euro for the cause.
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