a day ago
Brother of tragic boxer John Cooney on running half-marathon for organ donation
The brother of boxer John Cooney, who tragically died after being injured in a fight, is running a half-marathon and raising funds for charity to 'make him proud'.
The 28-year-old boxer from Galway died in February of this year, a week after a bout against Nathan Howells at Ulster Hall, Belfast. He suffered an intracranial haemorrhage and sadly didn't make it.
His family were devastated by the loss, but found solace in the fact that John was able to donate five of his organs. The boxer's brother Aaron Cooney told the Irish Mirror: 'We were able to donate all of his organs due to it being a brain injury.
'Being able to do that showed us as a family what it is like to be able to give someone a second chance at life. It truly is a wonderful feeling. So I knew I'd love to do something to raise money for organ donation.'
The 22-year-old will run the Belfast half-marathon on September 21 with his pals. They are doing it in honour of John and are raising funds for the Strange Boat Organ Foundation. The charity aims to raise awareness of the importance of organ donation and offers support to donor families and loved ones.
Aaron continued: 'When my brother passed away a big life goal of his was to run a marathon, but with being a professional boxer it was hard to find the time to do the training while doing such a large sport and event.
'So when he passed I knew I wanted to do something big to commemorate his memory. The Strange Boat Foundation is based in Galway and has a commemorative park in Salthill, which is one of my brother's favourite places.
'He used to go for a lot of runs on the promenade and they have a little park dedicated to people who have passed away and donated their organs. It's a beautiful and peaceful park.
'At the moment, we are trying to get a bench for John in there. So when I found I could do the fundraiser for that charity, I knew it was the right direction.'
Aaron has set up an online fundraiser on GoFundMe, and as of Tuesday €600 of his €1.6k target has been raised. His family are passionate about raising awareness for organ donation, as it gave them 'a positive in so many negatives'.
He added: 'We knew that five people were given the chance at a second go at life and a healthy life. We always said whoever got his heart was going to live forever because it was such a strong beating heart.
"Knowing that part of his body is living on helping other people gives us a lot of peace. We got a letter saying his heart went to a 45-year-old man, one of his kidneys to a young girl.'
It will be the 22-year-old's first half-marathon, and he will be thinking about his older and dearly missed brother for the 21.1km. While John is remembered by many for his determination in the ring, his little brother says he was so caring and kind to everyone he met.
Aaron said: 'The main thing is how hardworking he is. What a lot of people don't know is that while he was a pro boxer he was also working four days a week in a barber shop in Galway city and he owned his own barber shop while trying to create his pro career.
'There was always one thing people said- whenever they got their haircut that no matter how deep into his training he was and how tired he was, he was still the same really nice, caring person and always wanted the best for everyone.
'I try to live in a way that would make him proud.'
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