Foxrock and Rathmines families complete Great Ethiopian Run, raising vital funds for Orbis Ireland’s sight-saving work

Seventy-eight Irish volunteers have just completed the Great Ethiopian Run in Addis Ababa, raising vital funds for Orbis Ireland’s sight-saving work as the charity marks 20 years in operation and more than €1,000,000 raised to fight avoidable blindness in Ethiopia.

This year’s volunteers brought together two Dublin families who took on the challenge of running the 10km through the street of Addis Ababa.

Jody and daughter Becky Walshe, from Foxrock completed the run together, however Jody first travelled with Orbis to Ethiopia in 2011, returning again in 2013, 2015, 2018, and 2022.

This year he was joined alongside his daughter Becky to complete his sixth run.

Speaking on his experience Jody Walshe said: “A friend talked me into it the first year, and from that moment I was hooked, to see the work Orbis does on the ground is incredibly humbling.”

Avril Whelan and her daughter Annie, from Rathmines, completed the run for the first time this year, but their connection goes back to 2010, when Avril’s husband took part in the same event. Their daughter Annie was just one year old at the time.

Now, fifteen years later, Avril and Annie are travelling together to see the work that first inspired their family’s involvement.

Speaking on her experience Avril Whelan said: “It feels like everything has come full circle.

“To see the place my husband spoke so passionately about, and to share that experience with our daughter, is incredibly meaningful.”

Since 2008, Orbis Ireland has brought over 650 participants to Addis Ababa for the run and for visits to life-saving eye care projects in southern Ethiopia. Together, supporters have raised over €1,000,000 for Orbis’s work. The Great Ethiopian Run is Africa’s biggest road race, attracting more than 50,000 participants.

The event carries special significance for Orbis Ireland, as over a third of children in Ethiopia are affected by trachoma, a blinding yet completely preventable eye disease.

An estimated 1.2 million Ethiopians are blind and a further 2.7 million have a visual impairment.

All funds raised contribute directly to Orbis Ireland’s goal of eliminating this disease and restoring sight in some of Ethiopia’s most rural communities, which the group visited following the race.

Reflecting on the weekend, Clare O’Dea, Chairperson at Orbis Ireland, said:

“This annual trip is not only crucial in raising funds but also in showing supporters our vital work in Ethiopia. We are proud and humbled that the hundreds of people who have travelled with Orbis over the years have together raised over €1,000,000.

“On behalf of everyone in Ethiopia whose lives have been changed thanks to their generosity, stamina, and endurance — thank you.”