A BANDON teenager used the milestone of her 18th birthday to raise thousands of euros for a suicide charity.

In lieu of presents Kara McCarthy decided to set up a fundraiser for HUGG, Support After Suicide contributing almost €6,000 to the organisation by walking 180km in one month.

HUGG West Cork is a branch of the national charity set up by Fiona Tuomey in 2017 following the devastating death by suicide of her 11-year-old daughter Milly.

Fiona searched for a support group but found none existed.

HUGG now provides peer support to those bereaved by suicide.

Kara’s kind gesture was inspired by her own experience of loss and what she described as ‘incredible support to my family over the past few years’ from HUGG.

Sadly she lost her aunt Eilís to suicide almost three years ago. And tragically Kara’s classmate Anne also took her own life.

Kara raised €5,650 and said she was blown away by people’s generosity.

She told The Southern Star: ‘I got big donations from Arkil and Randal Óg GAA Club so a special mention to them.’

She said the loss of her ‘beautiful’ aunt Eilís ‘completely turned my world upside down’.

‘Eilís wasn’t just my aunt, she was a Mom to my cousin Maggie, a fiancé to my uncle Niko, a sister to my dad Noel, my aunt Louise and my uncle Kevin, a daughter to my amazing grandparents Oliver and Bridget and one of the brightest lights in her friends’ and families’ lives.

‘She was always so proud of my cousins and I, always talking about how excited she was to see us grow up. I know without a doubt she would have loved to be celebrating my 18th birthday alongside us.’

For Kara’s grand-aunt’s 60th birthday, Eilís organised for herself, her sister Louise, and Kara to walk 60km to mark the occasion.

Kara decided to walk the 180km leading up to her birthday in Eilís’s memory ‘and to honour the lives of so many others lost too soon’.

She described her fellow student Anne as ‘a beautiful and smart girl who affected so many and who I know would’ve loved to have been at the party.’

HUGG provides suicide bereavement support groups and other services to help reduce the heightened risk of further suicides the bereaved may experience – which is believed to be ten times higher than other deaths. For more see hugg.ie.