Family tragedy behind Moate fundraiser later this month

The tragic passing of three members of an extended Moate family in less than four weeks earlier this year was the catalyst for a major fundraising event that is due to take place in the town on September 12 next.

An outdoor Country Music Festival will take place in Don’s bar in Moate to raise funds for the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust (KBRT) which aims to allievate the financial hardship of bereaved families repatriating the bodies of loved ones back to Ireland after they have passed away abroad in tragic or sudden circumstances.

The Burke family from Clara Road in Moate never thought they would have to call on the service provided by the trust until they received news that their son, Michael, who lived in Liverpool, had passed away unexpectedly.

Poignantly, Michael, who was 43 years old, passed away on the day his aunt, Carmel Duffy from St Manchan’s Terrace in Moate, was being buried, and less than four weeks after his own father, Sean, had also unexpectedly passed away.

“We honestly didn’t know where to turn to when we heard about Michael,” says his uncle Aidan Higgins, who lives in Mitchell’s Terrace in Athlone, and whose sister Dolores (Burke) was already reeling from the shock of her husband, Sean’s unexpected death on January 11.

“We found out that Michael had died on the day his aunt Carmel, who was his father, Sean’s sister, was being buried, so you can imagine it was a terrible time for the whole family because we had just buried Sean less than four weeks earlier,” recalls Aidan.

Faced with having to pay for two funerals in the space of a month, as well as dealing with the shock of such an unexpected series of family bereavements, someone mentioned the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust, and Aidan Higgins says from the moment they were contacted “they looked after absolutely everything, all the arrangements to repatriate Michael’s body back to Ireland, all the paperwork, dealing with the Embassy, airlines, everything, they were just amazing".

The body of Michael Burke was repatriated to his family within two weeks, and Aidan Higgins said the extended Burke, Duffy and Higgins families are “totally indebted” to the Kevin Bell Trust for the efficiency, sensitivity and professionalism.

“We were very anxious to organise some sort of fundraising event as a means of saying thank you to the trust, which is how this Outdoor Country Music Festival idea came about,” admits Aidan.

Through his work as a DJ and owner of wedding events company, Infinity Wedding Services, Aidan Higgins made contact with a number of country music artists to see if they would be interested in taking part in a music festival.

“The response has been phenomenal, so we are appealing for a big turnout at Don’s Bar in Moate on Sunday, September 12 next from 3pm to 6pm for an afternoon of music, song and fun, with all proceeds going directly to the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust,” he says.

Among the artists taking part on the day are Olivia Douglas, Alex Roe, TR Dallas, John Molloy, Seamus Moore (aka The JCB man) among others, so a great afternoon of entertainment is guaranteed for all. Tickets for the event can be purchased online at www.ticketstop.ie and are priced at €10 plus €1 booking fee, and the organisers of the event have also set up a GoFundMe page called Outdoor Country Music Festival where donations can also be made.

“The entire family will be forever indebted to the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust for all their assistance to us in a time of such great need..,” says Aidan Higgins.