Covid-19 nursing home deaths remembrance event to be held in Cork and Dundalk
About 300 people are expected to attend the event in Cork, which starts about 2.30pm, before a 3pm candlelight vigil in the New Marina Park, Monahan Road, near Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Picture: David Creedon
The Remembrance Day event for those who died while in care during the pandemic will be held on March 18 beside Páirc Uí Chaoimh in Cork and in the Square in Dundalk, Co Louth.
More than 2,000 people are expected to attend the events, both in person and online.
Many of them will be families who lost loved ones in nursing homes.
One of the reasons organisers Care Champions is holding the two candlelit vigils in Cork and Dundalk is because they are the counties with some of the nursing homes hit hardest during the pandemic.
They decided to go ahead with their own event because none of those involved with organising the National Ceremony of Remembrance and Reflection on March 20 had contacted them until last week.
There was a fear nothing would be done to specifically commemorate the estimated 2,100 lives lost in the country's nursing homes during the pandemic, and other care settings, so they went ahead and organised their own.
About 300 people are expected to attend the event in Cork, which starts about 2.30pm, before a 3pm candlelight vigil in the New Marina Park, Monahan Road, near Páirc Uí Chaoimh.
The candlelight vigil in Dundalk town square starts at 2pm.
Families taking part are asked to bring along a photo of the loved one they lost and it will be put on display during the vigil.
The candle lighting ceremonies will be screened live on Care Champion’s Facebook page, which will cover the events from 11am to 7pm.
Anyone unable to attend is asked to contact Care Champions and send them a photo.
— Care Champions Ireland (@CareChampions2) March 5, 2022
Families who have confirmed they will be attending are coming from Longford, Roscommon, Cork, Tipperary, Louth, Monaghan, Kerry, Wexford, Dublin, Maynooth, Westmeath, Laoise, Meath and Waterford.
