Blessington Woman Running Dublin Marathon For Kidney Charity

Alana McMahon is raising money for the Irish Kidney Association that has supported her family since her father was left in kidney failure.

Alana McMahon will run the Irish Life Dublin Marathon on Sunday, 25th October, for the Irish Kidney Association (IKA).  The charity has supported her family since her father was left in kidney failure.

Her dad, Mark McMahon, spent three weeks in hospital in February, including eight days in intensive care, after a serious bout of sepsis damaged his kidneys. The 52 year old now attends dialysis twice a week at Beacon Renal in Tallaght. He is close to being accepted onto the transplant waiting list.

30 year old Alana, originally from Blessington and now living in Dunlavin, says her Dad's whole life has been turned upside down:

"He went from being healthy and working full-time to having to give up work and completely change his way of life."

This will be Alana's second marathon. Hot weather forced her to walk half of her Manchester debut last year. "This time, I have an extra reason to keep going. Every mile will be for Dad and for the IKA."

Her fiancé, Stephen Kitt, a goalkeeper with Blessington GAA Club, will be cheering her on, and she hopes her dad will be well enough to walk her down the aisle at her 2028 wedding.

Want to support Alana's fundraising campaign? Here's the link to her FUNDRAISING PAGE