A group of motorbike enthusiasts travelled from Dublin to Wexford at the weekend to raise awareness around suicide and to encourage people to talk.
The group, Saoirse Le Cheile, stopped off in a number of villages along the way before making their first in the Model County in Bunclody where they gathered in the square just off the Mall.
One of the most inspirational moments of the event came when Jackie Fox addressed those in attendance. Jackie’s daughter, Nicole took her own life after years or relentless physical and verbal bullying which also transferred online. Jackie led a campaign for enactment of new laws against online harassment which ultimately became known as ‘Coco’s Law’. She spoke on behalf of the support group, HUGG (Healing Untold Grief Groups). After briefly outlining her own story in relation to her daughter and said: “I lost my beautiful daughter Nicole as a result of bullying, physical abuse and online abuse. They beat her up at every opportunity they could but that wasn’t enough for them, they decided to go online and they attacked her every single day and not once did she ever answer back,” she said.
Ms Fox said that after Nicole passed away she had two options: to “leave this world and join her or do something about it and I fought to make online bullying a criminal offence, called Coco’s Law”. She said that after she lost her daughter she didn’t know what she was going to do and the she discovered HUGG.
Ms Fox highlighted how much help she received from the organisation and said: “With HUGG you can get so much support.” She said it’s an organisation that works to support people bereaved by suicide and it’s aim is to establish branches all across the country including Co Wexford.
“If anyone is bereaved by suicide who needs a support group they can reach out to them online at HUGG.ie and you will be dealing with people who have gone through the same thing as you,” she said.
While there isn’t currently a group established in County Wexford, Ms Fox said that’s the aim and people are being trained at the moment.
Commenting that life without her daughter was “gut-wrenching and devastating”, Ms Fox said that through the support she received she found that it “is ok to laugh and it’s ok to smile while still missing Nicole” and she then encouraged anyone who has experienced suicide bereavement to reach out because there is support out there.
You can read the full article in the Enniscorthy Guardian here: https://www.independent.ie/regionals/wexford/news/bikers-ride-into-wexford-to-raise-awareness-around-suicide-41984784.html