Search

15 Oct 2025

Mayo hotelier to walk from Cork to Cong in memory of his late wife

Managing Director at Ashford Castle Niall Rochford will raise vital funds and awareness for pancreatic cancer

Mayo man to walk from Cork to Cong for his late wife

Pictured: The late Stella Rochford with her husband Niall Rochford.

This month, well-known hotelier Niall Rochford of Ashford Castle will embark on a 12-day, 250km walk from Cork to Cong, Mayo, to raise vital funds and awareness for pancreatic cancer.

The Cork2Cong challenge was created in memory of Niall’s late wife, Stella, who was born in Cork and studied at UCC. Stella tragically passed away from pancreatic cancer in 2022, just 8 weeks following her shock diagnosis.

Starting on October 28 from Honan Chapel in UCC, Niall will follow a path that mirrors the journey of Stella’s life. From Cork City, he will make tracks to Limerick and Clare, where he and Stella met and welcomed their first child. He will continue to Galway, where their family grew, before finally arriving on November 8, in Cong, Mayo, the place they called home, and where Stella is now laid to rest. 

Niall is inviting members of the public, friends, and family to support him along the route, or to take their own ‘steps of action’, to help raise funds for Pancreatic Cancer Ireland, a new charity co-founded by Niall earlier this year.

Pancreatic Cancer Ireland, which was co-founded earlier this year by Niall, together with Rachel Duquesnois and Pamela Deasy, whose lives have been deeply impacted by the disease, and is supported by various leading medical experts, including Professor Aisling Barry, Radiation Oncologist and Chair of Radiation Oncology at UCC, as well as Professor Gráinne O’Kane, Consultant Medical Oncologist at St. Vincent’s University Hospital.

Speaking ahead of the challenge, Niall Rochford said, 

"This walk is deeply personal to me, and I know Stella will be with me every step of the way. Pancreatic Cancer Ireland was founded because we need more awareness of this devastating disease and, crucially, we need a rapid diagnosis centre here in Ireland. This challenge is about raising funds to make those goals a reality. Every donation, no matter the size, makes a difference, but if you can’t donate, please help us by spreading the word.

 “Ireland has an incredible spirit of community, and I’m looking forward to meeting people along my 250km journey. I know I’ll find strength in that support as I make this journey in Stella’s memory.”

To donate, visit https://www.idonate.ie/event/Cork2Cong

For more information on pancreatic cancer and to view the Cork2Cong route, visit www.pancreaticcancerireland.ie/cork2cong.

To continue reading this article,
please subscribe and support local journalism!


Subscribing will allow you access to all of our premium content and archived articles.

Subscribe

To continue reading this article for FREE,
please kindly register and/or log in.


Registration is absolutely 100% FREE and will help us personalise your experience on our sites. You can also sign up to our carefully curated newsletter(s) to keep up to date with your latest local news!

Register / Login

Buy the e-paper of the Donegal Democrat, Donegal People's Press, Donegal Post and Inish Times here for instant access to Donegal's premier news titles.

Keep up with the latest news from Donegal with our daily newsletter featuring the most important stories of the day delivered to your inbox every evening at 5pm.