Mum whose husband and children died in crash urges families not to hide their love
THE woman who lost her husband and children in the Lough Foyle car tragedy has urged families not to hide their love from each other.
Geraldine Mullan lost husband John and children Tomas and Amelia on August 20 when the family car plunged into Lough Foyle in Co Donegal in a tragic accident at the end of a day out.
They were driving home to Moville from Londonderry when tragedy struck.
The date they died had been set aside by the family as the day they would walk the ‘Stairway to
Heaven’ — the name of the Cuilcagh Boardwalk Trail in Co Fermanagh.
“Originally we had planned to spend the day in Fermanagh at the ‘Stairway’. We wanted to do it. It’s poignant when you think of the words ‘Stairway to Heaven’. Unfortunately, that is what we were supposed to be doing,” she said.
But the weather was so bad they had to change their plan and the family opted to visit the indoor Brunswick Moviebowl in Derry instead.
As the only survivor, Mrs Mullan wanted to send a message to people everywhere to express their love for each other — and never take that love for granted.
She spoke of the family’s happy years filled with love, generosity and laughter.
“No words will bring my three loved ones back. If I can continue to carry that love for them, then, hopefully, their love will carry me. I need all the love I can to carry me forward,” she said.
Geraldine’s courage was on display last Monday when she spoke at their funeral in Moville, Co Donegal, and urged the congregation to “hug and kiss” their loved ones when they arrive home and to tell them how much they mean to them.
The tragedy happened on a rainy, windy night when their car crashed at Quigley’s Point and became submerged upside down in the stormy waters of Lough Foyle.
John (49), the owner of a garden centre in Moville, Tomas (14) and Amelia (6) died in the accident. Geraldine (45), a nurse manager at Letterkenny University Hospital, suffered fractures, bruises and cuts.
She was unable to save them and struggled to survive in the foaming waters until she was finally rescued.
She is receiving care at her home from relatives and friends, including her parents, Mautie and Margaret Connaughton, who travelled from Williamstown, Co Galway.
Geraldine said: “Cherish every moment you have with your loved ones because in a minute all that can change. That would be the essence of my message.”
Geraldine feels so grateful for the day John entered her life. They would chat for seven or eight hours and she did not want the conversation to end.
“John was my true love and my soulmate and my best friend… I’m very lucky. John showed me what love was,” she said.
After the tragedy, Geraldine was informed that Amelia was found in her brother’s arms. She said: “That gives me great comfort to know that.
“It breaks my heart have them.
“He was looking after her right to the end.”
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