Paul KeenanDr Mary Redmond, founder of the Irish Hospice Foundation, was sustained through her terminal illness by the strength of her faith, her son has revealed.
Speaking at a gala dinner in honour of his late mother on October 21, Patrick Ussher said that when she received the devastating news of cancer, she decided to “surrender her fears to God and to live”.
“She focused her energies instead on doing things that were meaningful to her spending time with her family and friends,” Patrick explained. “Writing books and deepening her faith and especially practising Christian meditation something that she learned about shortly after her diagnosis.”
Spirit of joy
He added: “This practice gave her an internal strength but also a simple spirit of joy in the sheer fact of being alive. I could see the resolution develop in her that no matter how hard life was both physically and emotionally being alive was nevertheless worth every second.”
Dr Mary Redmond set up the Irish Hospice Foundation in 1985 after the death of her father. At that time, Ireland was home to just three hospices, a number Dr Redmond felt should be expanded to offer valuable care for all in need.
Also present at the October 21 event was Taoiseach Enda Kenny who said of Dr Redmond: “All the way through life you meet people who stand out and they make a mark for whatever reason. There’s something about them that makes a difference to you and that’s what I felt about Mary Redmond when I met her for the first time.”