Beginner’s Pluck
Bébhinn’s lifelong ambition was to work with the poor. After college she went to Peru and worked in an orthopaedic clinic, then, after a stint as a supply teacher in Ireland, she joined McKinsey in London, working as a management consultant.
She met Alastair Ramsay there, they married and moved to Rio, where Bébhinn worked with an NGO. Next came a Masters in Social Policy. They had two children, and lived in London until 2007 when Alastair died.
Who is Bébhinn Ramsay?
Date/place of birth: Feb 3, 1976/Dublin.
Education: Colaiste Íosagáin. UCD International Commerce with German.
Home: Brazil. The Island Of Florianopolis.
Family: Sons Tom, Liam and Eoin.
The Day Job: Running ARCH. “I’m in the fourth and final year as chairwoman. I’m gradually making the charity self-sustainable.”
Hobbies: Walking.
Favourite Writers: Milan Kundera; Dervla Murphy.
Second Novel: “I’d like to do a Pilgrimage in South America, one that paves the way from the Atlantic to the Pacific. I’d love to do a week here and there, and write about it.”
Top Writing Tip: First, writing has to come from the soul. Then it has to become technical.
Web: www.alastairramsay.net
THE DEBUT
Love’s Last Gift. Hachette Books Ireland, €14.99; Kindle, €10.48
In May, 2007 Alastair Ramsay died, suddenly, following a fever. A widow at 31, Bébhinn felt she’d lost everything, including her faith in life. Love’s Last Gift follows her through the grieving process, as she looks for healing and life’s meaning.
Bébhinn walks the Camino de Santiago, she tries a Buddhist retreat, and she starts a PhD at Oxford University, before deciding to start a charity in Brazil. The Alastair Ramsay Charitable Trust works with children and families in poverty.
“I kept a monthly blog for the foundation. And in 2009 I started to write the book. It poured out. I gave it to 20 people and a friend contacted the publishers.”
The Verdict: A memoir of grief, and the overcoming of devastating loss, this inspiring book is full of love.
Interviewed by Sue Leonard
