My Dad and always had a close bond.

On the 20th October 2023 I received a phone call sharing the devastating news that he had died suddenly and unexpectedly in Greece.

I started to ask myself many questions including:

•How do I tell my siblings and other family?

•Do we need to fly to Greece?

•Is it even possible to get his remains home?

Thankfully my Dad's partner Áine reached out to the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust. I was familiar with them, however I always thought of them as a cause that other people used and not our family.

The Trust gave us answers to our difficult questions and couldn't have been more helpful. They arranged my father's safe passage back to his hometown of Saintfield, County Down.

Since 2013, KBRT has repatriated the remains of over 1600 people back.

We would never wish this situation upon anybody however with the help of KBRT, significant challenges were removed. In my Dad's memory I am taking on the Connemarathon on the 21st April in the hope of raising some funds to support the Trust's work.