By 
A CARRICKMORE family who tragically lost their father to Covid-19 at the beginning of the pandemic have raised more than £25,000 to thank the “amazing” nurses who looked after him during his final days.
Father-of-seven Declan Grimes sadly died in the Critical Care Unit at the South West Acute Hospital, outside Enniskillen, in April last year.
Mr Grimes, (61), who was a husband to nurse Sheila, had spent almost a month on a ventilator in intensive care, and his family were unable to be with him during his illness because of the coronavirus restrictions in hospital.
To honour his memory family members held a fundraiser in December 2020, initially planning to raise a total of £5,000 by hosting a ‘Sledathon’.
This unusual charity effort involved pushing a weight representing a sled a specified distance within 15-minute time slots over 12 hours.
The aim was to push the sled the equivalent distance of a full marathon – 26 miles in total.
However, so many local people got involved with the fundraiser that the organisers managed to complete a virtual distance of 105km and raise a hugely impressive total of £25,454.49!
The cheque was presented to staff from the South West Acute Hospital ICU team earlier this month by members of the Grimes family.
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