Rita Casey chosen as Mayo Person of the Year 2024

The remarkable courage and strength of Charlestown woman Rita Casey has seen her chosen as the Virginia Gallagher Mayo Person of the Year award for 2024. The Mayo Dublin Association announced Rita as the winner of the prestigious award last week.

The citation for Rita's award read as follows:

“A native of Malin Head in Co Donegal, Rita (nee Doherty) has been living in Charlestown for over 20 years. In September 2017, Rita discovered a lump in her breast aged 43, and a confirmation of breast cancer led to months of gruelling treatment and chemotherapy.

“Rita never complained, and despite losing her hair, she became a positive role model for her three young daughters and the women in Charlestown on how to approach the biggest battles of life. She tried to keep running to help her mental health at the darkest times, even taking part in her second Dublin City Marathon while in remission. She also continued to work in her job in An Garda Siochana.

“Running has always been Rita’s release and despite her cancer diagnosis, she was instrumental in forming the East Mayo Athletics Club in Charlestown, where her passion for running extended to the community. The club now has over 200 members from grandparents to young children and promotes family running encouraging families to join in various 5/10km and pop-up races across Mayo. This club now organises the Colm Horkan Memorial race each year, in memory of her great friend, colleague in An Garda Siochana and neighbour, Detective Garda Colm Horkan who was tragically murdered in 2020.

“The past two runs in Charlestown have attracted national and international reach with virtual runs taking place across the globe and in turn has raised over €125,000 towards the building of the Colm Horkan Memorial Pitch and walkway. Plans are underway for a 3rd Memorial Run in May 2024. “Rita has also represented the club and ran in multiple Dublin City Marathons, half marathons in Achill and across Mayo raising funds for cancer charities as both her parents also died from cancer.

“In May 2020, Rita returned from one of her runs and collapsed by her front door. She was taken to hospital where they discovered her cancer had returned, and she was tragically told she had stage four inoperable brain and lung cancer. Rita had multiple brain tumours and she also had multiple tumours in both of her lungs. The battle Rita faced was truly insurmountable.

“She endured the most horrendous treatments of radiotherapy and chemotherapy, no one would ever believe that this woman would be able to walk 50 metres again, let alone complete a training regime and contemplate another marathon. No matter how sick she felt her motto was ‘Hit me with it, if it will help me live for my family’. Rita is married to former Mayo footballer John Casey and they have three daughters, Ava-Mai, 16; Kayleigh, 14 and Jenna Eve, 10, and her family means the world to her.

“Rita was eventually placed on a drug treatment trial and gradually became stronger again. Despite her new normal of having chemotherapy every three weeks for the rest of her life, she started to walk and eventually jog and worked tirelessly to regain her fitness and stamina to do short runs again. As Rita became stronger and her love of running enabled her to not let her stage four terminal diagnosis define her, she decided on the off chance to enter for the Dublin City Marathon one last time in October 2023. She wanted to do what she could do to raise awareness and raise valuable funds for the Mayo Roscommon Hospice who had been supporting her and the family since her second brain and lung cancer diagnosis. She set out to raise €500 but in the end raised a staggering €22,300 for Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation. She also ran the marathon in just over 4 hours and was the recipient of the Lord Mayor of Dublin medal which is presented to one runner out of the 22,000 participants.

“Rita may have been born a Donegal woman, but Mayo has been her home for over 20 years and she is a worthy recipient for The Mayo Person of the Year.”

Rita will be presented with her awards at a luncheon in the Intercontinental Hotel in Ballsbridge on March 8. Details can be found at https://www.mayoassociationdublin.com