A couple that set up a major charity in honour of their son who died from a rare form of cancer has said the help it has given other Irish families has ensured his death was not in vain.

John and Jayne Glynn set up the Gavin Glynn Foundation after their son Gavin died from a rare form of cancer known as Rhabdomyosarcoma in 2014.

Gavin was originally diagnosed in March 2012 and it quickly became apparent that he would need to travel abroad for treatment.

On The Pat Kenny Show this morning, John Glynn said the family as left to organise and pay for all their travel and accommodation – all while going through one of the scariest experiences a parent can imagine.

After Gavin finally passed away in October 2014, they decided to establish the foundation as a way to give something back to all those that supported them through the illness and to ensure other families would have the support they need when the worst happens.

He said the foundation supported 32 families who were travelling abroad for cancer treatment last year – and has already supported 30 families so far this year.

As a result, he said the charity ensures Gavin’s passing has not been in vain.

Great to have the opportunity to discuss The Gavin Glynn Foundation and childhood cancer awareness this morning on @PatKennyNT this morning.

Niamh and her son Josh also in studio telling their story and how @AerLingus
amazing crew and 80 volunteers are now helping all the… pic.twitter.com/NIIFHlykp7

— The Gavin Glynn Foundation (@TEAMGAVINGLYNN) August 30, 2023

“We got so much help and Gavin’s passing taught us so many things about life,” he said.

“About love and about happiness and about positivity.

“That’s what we are continuing on is the positivity and love for actual life. That is shown through all of the stories that families publish and share with us on our website and social media pages.

“It would be great for people to just go and read those stories because they are testimonials from the families themselves and what they show is how their children are diagnosed and what we are seeing is a lot of late diagnoses in children.

“That is what we are actively trying to get now. Get children diagnosed an awful lot quicker. Get sent to the proper people like Crumlin and Temple Street to get to see the consultant so they are diagnosed quicker and hopefully, their outcomes will be a lot better.”

Childhood Cancer Awareness Month

John said the charity needs around €500,00 a year to support all the families that come to it – and because it is solely run by himself and his wife, every penny goes directly to the families.

“Myself and my wife Jayne fully understand what the families are going through and not only do we look after all the financial and logistics of going abroad, we are on hand 24/7 to look after the families,” he said.

“I am in constant contact with all of the families that go overseas making sure they are OK. The same until they come back and even further onwards.”

Gavin Glynn Foundation

Also on the show, Niamh Forrester said the foundation supported her family throughout her son Josh’s treatment in Germany for a rare tumour that appeared on his neck as a young child.

Niamh said the foundation organised everything for her – including getting a second opinion before travelling.

Through her work for Aer Lingus, Niamh said she was very familiar with the Dusseldorf airport she would be flying to with Josh – but that made the situation all the more difficult

“I found that part extremely hard,” she said. “Even though I actually used to operate the Dusseldorf flight, just coming into the airport was the hardest thing ever.

“Just coming up the escalator where I would normally come into work, I just thought my knees would go from under me.

“Just having all of that organised for me [was incredible]. They set us up in an apartment, they had all the transport arranged, I didn’t have to think about that part. I just can’t … I mean look at him now.”

Donate

To learn more about the Gavin Glynn Foundation and to donate this Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, you can go to tggf.ie.

You can also read direct testimonials from the families the foundation has supported here.

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