Maura’s record swim honours gift of life

A Walkinstown native has become the oldest person to swim California’s Catalina Channel after completing the gruelling crossing in honour of her brother and the organ donor who gave him a second chance at life.

Maura Twomey (pictured above), who is 70 and lives in Boston, Massachusetts, reached the Californian shore on August 17 after spending almost 16 hours in the water.

Her unofficial time of 15 hours, 45 minutes and 23 seconds is awaiting ratification by the Catalina Channel Swimming Federation.

The achievement also saw the former primary school teacher complete the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming, comprising the English Channel, the 20 Bridges Swim around Manhattan and the Catalina Channel.

However, the swim was about much more than records for Maura.

She undertook the challenge to raise money for the Irish Kidney Association after her youngest brother, Martin, received a kidney transplant from a deceased donor in June.

The siblings are members of a family of 14 who spent their early years in Walkinstown.

Martin (pictured above with his grandson Harry), now 60, lives in Douglas, Co Cork.

He had undergone dialysis for two and a half years after his kidney function deteriorated, but his experience of organ donation began with a devastating family tragedy.

Martin’s wife, Catherine, died from a brain aneurysm in 2023.

Her organs and heart valves were subsequently donated, helping other patients and their families.

Just six months later, Martin began haemodialysis treatment at Cork University Hospital.

Several family members, including Maura, offered to become living kidney donors.

Martin declined because he was concerned about the possible future consequences for anyone who donated.

He remained on the waiting list until the life-changing call finally arrived this summer.

“I know what it is like to be on both sides of organ donation,” Martin said.

“When Catherine died, knowing that her organs and heart valves were donated gave our family some comfort because other families were given more time with the people they loved.

“I hope my donor’s family can find that same comfort.

“I will always be thinking of them and be grateful for the gift they have given me.”

Maura said watching her brother’s health deteriorate while she was living across the Atlantic had inspired her to give the Catalina crossing a purpose beyond the sporting achievement.

“The generosity of donor families is extraordinary,” she said. “In the worst possible circumstances, they make a decision that gives somebody else a future.

“I wanted to honour that generosity and hopefully help other people who are waiting for that same life-changing call.”

The swim tested Maura to her limits. She began in winds of approximately 12 knots, with choppy water and swells that never fully settled.

During the closing hours, winds rose to around 20 knots, pushing her off course as exhaustion set in.

“Whenever I felt I had nothing left, I thought of Martin and everything he had endured through dialysis after losing his wife, and the incredible second chance his transplant has given him,” she said.

“That kept me going. I knew I had to keep putting one stroke after another.”

Even reaching the shore did not mark the immediate end of the ordeal.

To complete the crossing officially, Maura had to scramble onto the rocky coastline, skinning her knee in the process.

“After nearly 16 hours in the water, I think the skinned knee was the easiest part of the whole challenge,” she joked.

Maura began open-water swimming around her 50th birthday with a swim from Alcatraz.

She crossed the English Channel aged 59 in 2015 and completed the 20 Bridges Swim around Manhattan eight years later.

Martin said his sister’s latest achievement had filled him with pride.

“What she has done at 70 is incredible,” he said. “Knowing that she was swimming with my story in her heart makes it even more special.”

Maura’s fundraiser for the Irish Kidney Association remains open at www.idonate.ie/fundraiser/mauratwomey3