Over the last few weeks, Twilight Walks in support of Marie Curie have taken place in Fermanagh towns and villages.

For the third year, members of the local communities of Belleek and Garrison paid tribute to loved ones and showed support for Marie Curie by taking part in the charity’s Twilight Walk on Friday, September 23.

An array of lanterns were lit and lined up along the bridge in Belleek by participants who then completed a short reflective walk. In the neighbouring village of Garrison, lanterns were placed in the Rusheen area.

These two Fermanagh events took place ahead of the main Marie Curie Twilight Walk in Belfast on Friday, September 30.

Speaking to The Impartial Reporter about the format of the Belleek and Garrison Marie Curie Twilight Walks, organiser Teresa O’Loughlin explained that ahead of the event, people gave a donation to Marie Curie for a lantern, decorated it and wrote on it who it was in memory of.

“Then we took the lanterns out on the Friday evening and we placed them on the bridge of Belleek, just before twilight. We lit them and then people walked the bridge,” she said.

Delighted to see new people attend this year’s event, Teresa added: “Every year new people are coming. You see the regular community but two [new] people came up to me and they said that they found it really emotional.

“We get the opportunity to do it in Belleek and Garrison and the beauty of it is, we get to remember everybody in our community,” she said, noting that she introduced the Twilight Walk to her local community three years ago to give those who weren’t able to attend the Belfast event a chance to take part.

Grateful for the help of local volunteers in making the events a success, Teresa said: “We had volunteers in Garrison and we had volunteers in Belleek, the two events ran at the same time.

“We ended up with about 70 lanterns on the bridge in Belleek and about 60 lanterns in Garrison.”

Talking about her personal connection with Marie Curie and the important work they do, Teresa shared: “My mum, she had end of life care, so I understand the value and the importance of Marie Curie, and the work that they do.

“Not only do they have Marie Curie nurses, but they also have bereavement counselling services and they have end of life companions. So if somebody is essentially alone in the world, if they don’t have family members, Marie Curie have volunteer companions who will accompany them until the end of life,” explained Teresa.

“The Twilight Walk is just a nice opportunity to give back to Marie Curie. They’re like a little group of angels that pop in and out of communities and their work is just really important.”

On the same evening as the main Belfast event, Friday, September 30, a Marie Curie Twilight Walk was held in Irvinestown at Castle Irvine Estate, Necarne. Members of the local community donated towards lanterns which, due to poor weather, were lit at Mahon’s Hotel Delany Suite before participants embarked on a short reflective walk at Necarne.

“A big thank you to all those who came to the Twilight Walk, to all those who donated and to all those who helped in any way,” said Aideen McGrade, one of the organisers of the Irvinestown event.

“We are all very blessed to have the wonderful care of Marie Curie. A huge thank you to all the nurses who work so hard and selflessly,” she added.

A total of £827.04 was raised from the Irvinestown Twilight Walk and £1,580 from Belleek and Garrison, resulting in an overall Fermanagh total of £2,407.04 to be donated to Marie Curie.