'The pain of what happened is excruciating' - Couple on the tragic death of their two-year-old daughter and gruelling fundraisers in her memory
A farming family undertaking a £100k fundraising challenge have shared the heartbreaking story of suddenly losing their two-year-old daughter earlier this year.
On Sunday, January 26, two-year-old Eleanor Kavanagh and her big sister Fiona went to bed like any other night.
Her parents, Michael and Di, played, read stories, tucked them in, and sang the girls a lullaby.
The following morning, Di went into the girls’ room to discover the unthinkable had happened - Eleanor had passed away in her sleep.
It was later discovered that the two-year-old, who Di described as a "bright, happy, healthy little girl", had viral pneumonia.
Eleanor was buried at St Chad’s Church in Boningale, just south of Albrighton on the Shropshire/Staffordshire border. Before she died, the family was preparing to move to Oxfordshire for Michael’s new job as a farm manager.
Michael and Di said the uprooting of their lives away from their daughter’s resting place has added to their heartache.
To honour their little girl’s life, the couple have taken on two separate challenges to raise £100,000 for five charities.
Di completed a mammoth 330-mile bike ride from London to Paris in early September, and Michael will don his trainers on October 25 to run, non-stop, the 80 miles from the family’s home in Chipping Norton to Eleanor’s graveside in Shropshire.
“It is a parent’s worst nightmare," said Di. "When we put Eleanor down to sleep, there were no signs of a worrying illness, and there was absolutely no warning of our bright, happy, healthy little girl’s ill health.
"The postmortem results were returned 12 weeks later showing she had viral pneumonia.
“The pain of the reality of what happened is excruciating for us all, and the pain that we feel now reflects the love and memories we have of Eleanor and the love and joy she brought to our family.
"We are incredibly grateful for the final memories we have with our little girl.”
The Kavanaghs are raising money for five organisations, including 2Wish and Child Bereavement UK, the Midlands Air Ambulance, The Farming Community Network and St Chad’s Church in Boningale.
Michael said: “We have had so much love and support following our loss of our little girl, and we wanted to commit to these two challenges to honour Eleanor’s memory and give back to the charities who were there for us when we most needed the support.
“The focus on getting fit enough has also been very important for our mental strength and resilience to get through the most brutal period of our lives imaginable.
“The kindness of the people who work for these charities is breathtaking."
Those who would like to donate to Eleanor’s Challenge can do so online at givewheel.com/fundraising/9936/the-eleanor-challenge.
