Sinead Moodie, A gentle, caring and wise woman

What would such an accolade mean to Sinead? Well, let me answer in HER words how I think she might respond.

Firstly, I know she would applaud the DFNI initiative just as she applauded WiTR+.

After attending an International Women’s Day event themed ‘Overcoming barriers for women in the workplace’ event at Swansea Arena in 2025, Sinead wrote:  “One of the key discussions was around childcare and elderly care, both of which still predominantly fall on women. How can employers make it easier for women to return to work and support women who are caring for others?“

In a prescient comment, she added, “There is still a huge stigma in society about what is often referred to as ‘women’s issues’. Periods, the menopause and conditions such as endometriosis need to be more widely discussed and de-stigmatised, which would allow employees to feel able to speak to managers when they need additional support at work.”

“I aim to put this into practice and encourage any employees to feel open to discuss any health needs with me and reach out if they need support. I also pledge that if a woman, or anyone, in the workplace ever reports discrimination to me I will listen, believe and support them.”

Note the self-effacing tone. Sinead preferred to laud colleagues rather than herself. “I am blown away by how many talented people I work with. Everyone is so smart and skilled; perfectionists at their jobs who work harder than anyone I know. And yet they are still so down to earth and modest, they never boast or act as if they are above others. If you ever need help with something everyone will raise their hands to help you. They will never belittle you; instead they lift you up.”

But Sinead also lifted others up. Totally non-judgemental, she preferred to see the virtues in everyone and not the negatives noted by others (including me, who she would often gently put in my place). In a poignant foretelling of what was to come, she declared her pride at our CSR programme. “We have raised and donated huge sums to cancer-related causes such as The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity, which is especially important to me after seeing family members fight this horrible disease.”

Who was to possibly think she would be forced to fight this wretched brute of a disease so soon afterwards herself?

And now, a revelation. In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, Sinead was pregnant with her first child, Carys. I had devised a project (ultimately uncompleted, alas) called ‘Children of 2020’, in which I asked parents who were expecting children amid the worst global health crisis in a century about their aspirations for their offspring.

Sinead replied: “As unlikely as it seems, there are reasons to be hopeful that this terrible crisis can lead the way to a brighter future for the world, which our child will be able to enjoy. Far from establishing a new norm of social isolation, perhaps the crisis will re-establish a sense of community which has seemed to develop before our eyes in recent weeks and which many believed had been lost in modern society.”

“This gives us hope that when faced with global catastrophe we are, as a species, capable of the type of collective action required to combat global problems which had previously seemed insurmountable, such as climate change.”

“In the end, although we have a number of fears and concerns about the current crisis, we are so happy we have the birth of our child to look forward to this year and appreciate all the positive messages we have received from loved ones reassuring us that things will get better.”

“The world may change, and we may have to adjust to a society where things aren’t quite the same, but we can’t wait to meet our son or daughter, safe in the knowledge that we can face any challenges together.”

Today, that daughter, Carys, followed by her sibling Iwan 18 months later, face the challenge of  taking on the world without the guidance and love of their ‘Mammy’, Sinead. That is an unspeakable tragedy.

I have been proud of Sinead since she – my first-born of four – came into this world on a balmy summer’s day in Christchurch, New Zealand, on New Year’s Eve, 1984. In the words of that lovely song Beeswing by acclaimed English songwriter Richard Thompson (covered so very memorably by his great Irish peer Christy Moore), Sinead was “a rare thing, fine as a beeswing. So fine, a breath of wind might blow her away.”

A ferocious typhoon, not a wind, ultimately did blow her away. But it neither blew away her memory nor her legacy. I remain as proud of Sinead and blessed for her life, even more so, in fact, than I did those four decades-plus ago. And via #KickCancerThon and the generous DFNI accolade, that pride grows in tandem with the grief and love I will feel each and every day of my existence.