The parents of tragic new mum Nicola Kenny, who was killed in a horrific crash on the M8 near Cashel in September, have revealed how caring for their daughter's four month-old baby is helping them to cope with their loss.
Nicola, from Thurles in Tipperary, was en route to Dublin's Temple Street Children's Hospital to visit her newborn baby girl Lily Rose, who had been rushed there with a high temperature following her birth the previous day, when the tragedy occurred.
Accompanied by her mother Ann, the 26-year-old was in the back seat of the car driven by her aunt, Irene Whelan, when the family pulled over to the hard shoulder so Nicola could take a call from the doctors. It was good news; Lily Rose was well enough to be transferred back to Tipperary General Hospital.
Within minutes, a truck has crashed into the back of the car and Nicola was killed.
Ann was treated for injuries to her arms and shoulder and continues to receive physio. Nicola's aunt was also badly injured. The driver of the truck, a man from Armagh, was arrested at the scene.
Speaking to the
Irish Independent about facing into their first Christmas without their beloved daughter, Ann and Nicola's dad Paddy said the festive season was Nicola's favourite time of year.
"We don't really have the heart for it now but we will do something for Lily Rose and her two cousins." said Ann.
Both grandparents have given up their jobs to look after their precious granddaughter, who is thriving despite her difficult introduction to the world.
"It still doesn't seem real. We're dealing with it as best we can, and Lily Rose keeps us occupied," Ann told the newspaper.
"She's like a daughter rather than a granddaughter in many ways, and she's very like Nicola.
"Everyone has been very supportive. Nicola's friends and her colleagues in Tesco where she worked, and everyone in the town, are great, as well as Pat's sisters and our neighbours. There is no shortage of offers of babysitters and help."
It's been a difficult year for the Kenny family, but there is a happier time on the horizon; Nicola's brother Paddy Jnr and his partner are expecting a baby in March.
"The new baby and Lily Rose will be very close in age so they will grow up together and she will have a playmate," Ann told the newspaper.
In the meantime, the family are making sure there is plenty for Lily Rose to remember her mother by.
"People we don't know and never met have been sending us cards and letters. Pat goes through them but I haven't had the strength to read them yet. They are all in a box and I will go through them one day," she said.
"We also have a box of memories of Nicola to give to Lily Rose when she is older. Nicola was so looking forward to being a mammy, she loved children."
Images: Colin O'Riordan. Interview: Irish Independent
