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“My mother was a heroine who bravely fought to stop the spread of this virus,” said the grieving daughter of hospital worker Catherine Hickey.
Mechaela Whelan Hickey said her mother was fully dedicated to stopping the advance of Covid-19 while she was cleaning up at St. Luke’s Hospital in Kilkenny.
Her mother ended up being treated for Covid-19 at the same hospital where she had worked so hard to protect herself from the virus.
Catherine (51) and fellow St Luke health worker Jim Kenny (49) were the first two health workers in Ireland to die of Covid-19. Jim was “a true gentleman”. They died 24 hours apart in mid-April.
Catherine’s husband Joseph and her daughter told the Sunday Independent that they were “incredibly proud” of their courage and commitment.
“The people doing the cleaning in the hospitals did not get enough credit, but now they are getting the recognition they deserve. Every day they face this virus head-on,” said Mechaela (21). “My mother had a very big heart and cared a lot about others. I think she died trying to help other people,” he said.
Catherine herself was proud that the hospital department where she worked had obtained 99% cleanliness in a recent audit, her daughter said.
In her last communication with her family, Catherine calmly spoke on a FaceTime call from her hospital bed to tell loved ones to take care of each other.
She had been waiting for the birth of her first grandchild, a baby for her son Christopher and her partner Shauna. She had regularly shared her delight at the prospect of becoming a grandmother with her coworkers and spoke of the boy again on her last call.
Her husband Joe said that he and his wife were “best friends” from the moment they started dating together at the age of 19.
He met her when her name was Catherine Whelan and she worked at The Black Cat pub in Kilkenny. Joe lived on Lord Edward Street in the city, while Catherine came from Ballavarra, The Rower, a rural area of the county. When Catherine finished work on Saturday nights, after the pub closed, they went to a disco in Kilford Arms.
Joe worked long hours as a baker, starting to work at midnight six nights a week. “We’d be out on a Saturday night and I could fall asleep,” he said with a smile.
He recalled their happiness when they moved to their family’s home on Butt’s Green in the city the day Niamh Kavanagh won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1993.
“We did everything together and went everywhere together,” he said, recalling that Catherine was the one who booked all the family vacations. They traveled to Santa Ponsa in Mallorca for a family celebration commemorating Mechaela’s 21st birthday last year.
While Catherine was a great dancer, Joe said that dancing was not one of her strengths. Catherine loved reggae and country music. She was a huge fan of bands like UB40 and Big Country. She, Mechaela and Joe’s sisters enjoyed trips to the Kilkenny Country Music Festival in Gowran Park.
Catherine filled the family home in Butt’s Green with music and Joe remembered how his wife danced around the kitchen with a sweeping brush.
She was a huge fan of the Irish rugby team and loved to watch televised games.
Catherine worked for 12 years as a judge at the finish line at the local Greyhound Stadium. It was his job to make sure that the dogs received their correct locations at the end of each race.
Five years ago, she became a member of the home staff at Saint Luke’s Hospital. She worked hard and “wouldn’t do half a job” on any task, Joe said.
Mechaela said her mother became ill on the first Friday in April with vomiting and body aches, but that she had no temperature and had spoken to a doctor on the phone.
When Monday came, the vomiting had stopped and she went to work that night, feeling weak. She was sent home shortly after reporting to work. He was in contact with a doctor the following days and on Thursday he was tested for Covid-19 and the next day he was told it was positive. He was advised to be isolated at home and isolated in one room.
In the days that followed, he felt weaker and his breathing also weakened. Following the advice of her doctor, the following Wednesday, Joe took her to St. Luke’s Hospital.
“I roared crying as she left as I had a feeling we were not going to get her back,” said Mechaela.
Catherine telephoned from the hospital to tell Joe that she had pneumonia. He started receiving oxygen the next day and seemed to perk up.
But on Friday, he had the FaceTime conversation with Joe and Mechaela. “She was so calm. She said she loved us. I think she knew she was going,” she said.
Later, her daughter texted her to give her a boost, telling her she was loved and to stay strong. But, as night fell, Catherine was on a ventilator in intensive care and did not regain consciousness.
On Monday Mechaela, Christopher, Joe, and Joe’s sister Theresa wore protective clothing to visit Catherine. They were told the sad news that there was “no chance” of a recovery. “I was moaning like a soul in pain,” said Mechaela.
The distraught daughter later became angry at the imminent loss of her mother, but also realized that her mother had received “the best care.”
On Wednesday April 15, Mechaela and Joe were wearing protective clothing and gloves as they held hands to say goodbye. The fan turned off at 12.05pm. Mechaela said, “The priest was there and we said a decade of the rosary. His heart kept beating for another 25 minutes. I remember telling him it was okay to cross. He escaped peacefully.”
At the funeral home in New Ross, a few miles from the Whelan family home in Ballavarra, Catherine’s brother Sean organized the proceedings. Mourners included Catherine’s mother, Josie, her sister Nora, and brothers Declan and Pat and many other loved ones.
The hearse traveled from New Ross, through The Rower, Graiguenamanagh and Gowran before being greeted at Kilkenny Cemetery by an honor guard of St. Luke Hospital health workers wearing red and white roses. People practiced social distancing while watching from the road.
The day after her mother’s death, Mechaela received a phone call telling her that a test they had done several days earlier also showed that she was positive for Covid-19. The next day, Joe was informed that he was also positive. Fortunately, neither of them had become seriously ill.
The pain of Catherine’s loss continues. You will no longer dance around your kitchen with a sweeping brush. On the stairs there are two pairs of shoes, nobody has moved them. His hospital uniform jacket hangs in the same place.
Her daughter said, “Our mother was not a statistician. She died a heroine. She will always be our heroine.”
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