Andrew Brown, a Dublin man now living in London, is planning to run from Galway to Dublin in memory of his father who passed away in late October.
The run will take place over four days, from January 8 to 11, and will also act as a fundraiser for Cuan Mhuire – an organisation very close to the Brown family’s hearts.
“Unfortunately, I lost my dad in October, and my dad volunteered for the charity I’m running for quite a lot, but he also was affected by alcoholism, which is something Cuan Mhuire helps with,” Andrew said. “Alcoholism as a disease receives quite low funding in general and to some people it isn’t seen as a disease – so there’s a lot of misconceptions with it, which is really one of the reasons I wanted to do a run as well.
“I wanted to do something in memory of my dad, raise some money for charity, do something positive around his life and remember him in a positive way. I know he really enjoyed volunteering for these treatment centres, and he spent three years at one of the treatment centres. That meant quite a big deal to him.
“I’m starting the run at my auntie’s house, my dad’s sister’s house, which is near Ballinasloe in Galway and ending it in Balbriggan, where I’m from and where my dad was a councillor and we lived.”
The late Seán Anthony Brown.
Andrew’s father, Seán Anthony Brown, lived many different lives as a teacher, solicitor, and a Fine Gael Councillor.
“My dad was a great guy,” Andrew said. “He was a teacher for most of his life, then he was a solicitor… He was quite into politics too, he was a councillor for Fine Gael, and he also managed to become Mayor of Balbriggan. He was a funny, funny guy, he always had humour around him, he was always up for a laugh and yeah, quite into sports as well. He loved coaching me rugby back in the day. That was definitely a big thing for him as well.
“My dad and I were really close. We would literally call each other every single day, through the highs and lows. We have unbelievable memories together. He brought me to my first rugby game… We did so much together. He definitely had a massive influence on my life and a really good teacher as well, like really good with disadvantaged kids. Even at his funeral, people came up to me saying how he helped their kid who might have had an intellectual disability or something. He definitely had a very good knack with kids.”
Even though the run is to fundraise for addiction treatment centres, Andrew said he believes a huge part of the run he is doing is to tackle the stigma around poor mental health as well.
“There are two sides to this run, really,” Andrew said. “Even though the charity is supporting recovering from addiction, I do think that is my dad had sorted his mental health out, the addiction wouldn’t have come, if that makes sense? But yeah, my dad’s best years were definitely after attending the addiction centre. While, unfortunately, it never lasted forever – he would have a brilliant year or two and then maybe slip again – they definitely give valuable support. They’re so friendly in Cuan Mhuire, they create such a welcoming environment in these centres. And there’s not much funding there, they don’t get much government funding. It’s quite a neglected service all around.
“With addiction and alcoholism – there’s no easy fix to it. It’s the same as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). For some people, treatment centres don’t work for them at all. But they give you the tools to help yourself. None of the treatment centres or AA groups are perfect, but I do think Cuan Mhuire is the only recovery centre in Ireland that is affordable and attainable to most normal people.”
Andrew Brown as a child with his late father Seán Anthony Brown.
With the loss of his father so fresh and the weather this time of year so awful, you would think Andrew is mad to be running such a long distance in January, but his choice of timing is special.
“Everyone has been asking me, ‘Why the hell did you choose January?’,” Andrew laughed. “But the main reason is that my sister is home from Australia for Christmas, and I really wanted her to be able to partake in the run. Unfortunately, she missed out on the funeral, so this is another send off for my dad in a way, while doing something positive. I also just don’t absolutely love running long distances, so I’d rather, in maybe a stupid mindset, just get it done. But the main reason is my sister being home, 100pc.”
The support for the run has been “unbelievable”, with brands even offering to sponsor Andrew.
“The support has been absolutely unbelievable,” he said. “Friends, family, anyone I’ve talked to in any walk of life, they’ve reached out to me. I’ve had hotels saying they will put me up for free along the run. VitHit offered to sponsor the run with drinks, and they’ve sent us out buckets of drinks, electrolytes, anything we needed. So, the support in terms of businesses and stuff… even my company has been incredible. They’ve given me a fundraising boost and also just flexibility around work.
“My mates and the lads from the rugby club at home, they’ve been great. It feels like a real sense of community. I’m definitely grateful to be from Ireland when stuff like this happens, which obviously is incredibly sad, but I feel like communities really do pull together in Ireland and I think we’re lucky to be Irish and have that in Ireland. I’m living in London as well, so it’s been hard and different in terms of organising stuff, but the response has been incredible. It’s been really motivating while I’m on these long runs.”
The support doesn’t stop with donations, either, as some of Andrew’s friends will be joining him for sections of the run.
“I have my two best mates joining me for a day each,” Andrew said. “And then I have my college mates coming out for runs, my work friends from London flying over. I have my dad’s brother running 20km. Family, friends, whoever – you name it, they’re running with me. I won’t be stuck for people to run with me. My sister is going to start the first 20km and end the last 20km with me. So, that’ll be nice as well I feel, like ending it with her and starting it with her, it will be very nice.”
Andrew Brown during training for his 200km run.
The run will take place over four days, with the goal of running 50km each day.
“There’s no like time limit – it doesn’t have to be done in a certain time, running at a certain pace… there’s no rules as such,” Andrew said. “It’s just getting the distance done in four days and the finish will be in Balbriggan Rugby Club, which is where my dad coached, and it means a lot to me.”
With Andew confident that his aim of hitting €10,000 in donations for Cuan Mhuire will be achieved, the Dublin man said it will be “very emotional” getting to present that money to the charity.
Andrew Brown with his late father Seán Anthony Brown.
News in 90 Seconds – 29th December 2025
“My work generously offered to donate quite a large amount as well as what has been raised in the GoFundMe, so it will hit the €10k mark,” Andrew said. “It’ll be brilliant. Even getting to reach out to Cuan Mhuire with that kind of money… They’re such a small charity and they know my dad so well, it will mean so much. I know my dad would be happy looking down if we can help.
“€10k is going to go a long way for them. Even if it can help just a handful of families that are dealing with this… because it is a horrible disease and it does affect so much more than the person dealing with it. Yeah, it would be quite emotional if we do hit the target and get the run done. I’m confident I’ll be able to smash through it.”
You can donate to Andrew’s GoFundMe for Cuan Mhuire – here.