It is never easy to be the bearer of sad news. After a noticeably short illness, we are extremely sad to announce the passing of Tina O’Connor the beautiful wife (his angel eyes) of Mark O'Connor, our wonderful Men’s Breast Cancer Ambassador.
Mark passed away in February of this year. To hear of Tina’s very sudden passing was a double-edged sword for us as she was equally as much a part of the breast cancer community as Mark was. Mark and Tina were to be VIP guests at the IBCPC festival in France and Mark had very recently recorded a lovely video for the organisers podcast “Waves.”
Apparently, Tina had a chest infection and when it would not clear she was sent into the hospital for IV antibiotics as pneumonia was suspected. The hospital did scans and tests which revealed that Tina had an aggressive and non-treatable form of lung cancer. It all happened over about 6 weeks, with the hospital admission 1 week before she passed.
Mark and Tina leave behind their precious son Dylan, who is a lovely and gentle young man. Mark and Tina brought Dylan everywhere to many paddling adventures over the years, primarily in Donegal, Cork, and Dublin. They were a very inseparable and loving unit, 3 best buddies.
It is a shock to all of us who knew and loved both Mark and Tina who were such a lovely couple. We are especially devastated for their only son Dylan who has lost his beloved Dad, mother, and family pet all in the past 7 months.
Vale Tina, we know Mark will be waiting for you with open arms and the biggest smile.
