€44k donated in Clodagh's name

CALLS 686 phone local domestic violence service in one month

Over €44,000 has been donated to a local domestic violence service in memory of the late Clodagh Hawe and her three young boys Liam, Niall and Ryan.

The funds were raised by the Cavan Lighthouse organisation in the wake of the family’s horrific murder at the hands of husband and dad, Alan, at their Castlerahan home back in August 2016. The money was bequeathed to Tearmann specifically to support local women and their children suffering abuse in the home.

“It’s an amazing amount of money raised and a credit to all those involved in helping raise it. A huge thank you too to Jacqueline and Mary too for thinking of us, for engaging with us, and for making sure the money is used to support families experiencing domestic violence in Cavan and Monaghan,” said Siobhan McKenna, manager at Tearmann Domestic Violence Service.

Ms McKenna made the comments after receiving the cheque, which was made out at Virginia Credit Union last week. The presentation ceremony was attended by members of the Cavan Lighthouse Committee, as well as school teacher Clodagh’s surviving family - mum Mary Coll and sister Jacqueline Connolly.

The sum, €44,122.92, will be used specifically, as per a signed agreement between Cavan Lighthouse and Tearmann, ‘to aid the essential emotional and physical needs of women and children in distress’ living in the two counties, where government bodies do not already offer said support.

‘These funds are not to be used by any government body to replace ongoing funding for much needed domestic abuse services’, the agreement further states.A separate bank account is to be set up by Tearmann in the names of Clodagh, Liam (13), Niall (11) and Ryan (6) with a confidential bi-annual statement to be provided to Mary Coll in order to show where funds have been distributed.

A bank account at Virginia Credit Union will remain open in the names of Clodagh, Liam, Niall and Ryan to continue to support the fund.

To put into context, funding to Tearmann in 2018 amounted to €264,000.

Ms McKenna believes the donation could be an important step towards re-evaluating domestic violence supports, moving away from a more traditional institutional outlook, and towards adopting a more holistic approach.

Art therapy for children emerging from violence in a domestic setting is one such outlet for the funds, suggests Ms McKenna. “We have to start looking at new models of support - anything really to help these children overcome the difficulties of living in a home where domestic violence is prevalent. Those scenarios can have a massive impact, and it is shown that, the earlier you give support, allowing children to process what’s happening to them and around them, the better the outcome,” she explained.

Speaking to the Celt, Jacqueline Connolly said the family were happy to see the money go to such a worthy cause.

She said the work that Tearmann does to support women and their families in the locality is remarkable, and praised the “humanity” and understanding shown by Siobhan and her staff to those approaching the local charity for help.

“There is so much that families need that the government does not provide support for, essential things that we feel families suffering domestic abuse could really benefit from, and would, most importantly, hopefully have a lasting positive impact as well,” says Jacqueline.

The funding was initially been earmarked to assist in providing for a dedicated refuge in Cavan-Monaghan for women and their families fleeing domestic violence. However the Cavan Lighthouse campaign has been overtaken by more recent developments. This includes an audit by Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, to establish what additional requirements are necessary and where, in particular accommodation for DV victims.

The agency has accepted an “unevenness” exists in the availability of specialist emergency accommodation around the country.

The Istanbul Convention, a human rights treaty of the Council of Europe signed by Ireland opposing violence against women and domestic violence, specifies a minimum number of refuge spaces available for a particular area or population.

Already Tusla has engaged with stakeholders in the Cavan/Monaghan area, among them Tearmann, about developments in this regard.

“We see there is certainly a need for Cavan and Monaghan, there is certainly a need for Sligo-Leitrim. All along that Border corridor, there is no refuge. But we need to look at and consider if refuges are the proper model going forward,” suggests Ms McKenna.

“It’s important that once [women leave an abusive environment] that they continue to live their lives. Institutions are a thing of the past as far as I’m concerned. Whether that’s though private rented accommodation instead or what have you, but you take responsibility for yourself and children so that they’re no longer victims long term. Yes there is huge anxiety, issues around safety, but those are issues we can offer support for, while women themselves set about moving forward with a brighter future in mind.”

Tearmann recorded a worrying spike in cases during the Covid lockdown period.

While the offices were shut due to health restrictions, Tearmann continued to offer support to women suffering domestic violence over the phone. In just one month, Tearmann volunteers fielded 686 individual calls - an average rate of 43 per day.

There were days also when Tearmann supported upwards of seven women attending court.

Last year the court service reported a 10% increase in the number of DV applications, with 20,500 cases.

The annual report of the Courts Service also showed a jump of 30% in the number of interim barring order applications.

“There certainly was a huge increase in the number of women coming forward. We weren’t able to see them one to one but we did give support over the phone,” said Ms McKenna of the lockdown supports.

But despite the shocking statistics, the service manager is none-the-less heartened by the level of community support for victims of domestic violence, and heaped praise on the gardaí, the courts service and judiciary in dealing with such matters quickly.

“[Gardaí] supported a great many families who they knew were living in danger, and called to see if they were okay.

“This is where the community started to reach inwards, and instead of being something which is quite often hidden behind closed doors, I think it gave those suffering from abuse the confidence to say ‘enough is enough’ and step out from that,” she concluded.

Pic above: Members of the Cavan Lighthouse Committee- Carmel McDermott, Melissa McDermott, Paddy Smith, Fiona Walshe- and Clodagh Hawe’s mum Mary Coll, present the cheque for €44,122.92 to Siobhan McKenna, Manager at Tearmann Domestic Violence Service outside Virginia Credit Union last week.