Dungiven family raise funds for charity in memory of beloved son

The heartbroken family of a Dungiven man who took his own life last year have raised thousands of pounds for local charities in his memory.

Rosemary and Liam Moore, along with their family members, hosted a pool competition in memory of their son Cathal, who died in November 2025.

The event, held in Cathal’s local pub, The Pot Bar, near Drumsurn in January, saw a total of £3,925 raised. 

The funds was split between two charities - PIPS Suicide Prevention and AWARE NI while Derry lad Ethan Gardiner, who lives with Type 1 Diabetes and is currently raising funds to get an assistance dog, also received a generous donation.

Earlier this month, the Moore family met again in The Pot Bar to hand over the cheques to the charities and to Ethan’s mum.

“Cathal was all into pool and The Pot was his local bar so that’s why we held it there,” explained Rosemary.

“We raised £3,925 and it was split evenly between the three groups.  The money was raised through donations on the night and also through an auction which was held.

“We chose the PIPS and AWARE charities because of what happened to Cathal and also because they aren’t government funded and they rely on donations.

“They run programmes for people with mental health problems.  They also offer counselling.  How they differ, compared to some of the other suicide prevention groups, is that they don’t have a time limit.  As long as you need them, they will continue to offer those services and it’s all free of charge.”

Cathal’s family now hope to turn the pool competition into an annual event in an effort to keep their beloved son’s memory alive.

The 39 year-old dad-of-two’s death on November 2 came as a massive shock to his family and friends.

Just hours earlier, Cathal had enjoyed a family meal to celebrate his father Liam and son Darragh’s birthdays.

“We were all out that night.  It was his son’s birthday and Liam’s birthday.  There is a two day difference between their birthdays and every year we always went for a meal at Quaywest in Derry,” explained Rosemary.  

“That night was no different. We were all out for the meal and he was joking and laughing.  The following Thursday was his son’s formal and he had organised the car to take him to his formal and said he was coming to get pictures taken with him.  He was laughing and joking to me saying don’t forget next year I am the big 4-0, there will be a big party then.  We all bid our farewells at the end of the evening but three hours later, that was it.”

Cathal, who Rosemary and Liam described as someone who was ‘always the life and soul of the party’, ended his life in the house which he had lovingly renovated.

“He had a wee house just behind ours.  It was stables and he renovated it all into the most beautiful wee house.  He did every bit of it himself, except the plumbing work, and he had it like a wee palace,” continued Rosemary. 

“We thought he was going to his partner’s house after the meal that night but what we didn’t know was that he had come back to his house.  We were in bed and his partner raised the alarm and we went up and got him there.”

The tragedy is the fourth to hit the Moore family - the couple lost their eldest son Christopher, aged 19, in a road traffic collision back in 2001.  They also lost two other sons, Shane and Joseph - one to cot death while the other child was stillborn.

“I can’t describe it (the loss of four children) - it’s just in a different league,” said Rosemary.

“It’s not something we will ever get over, you learn to live with it just.”

Cathal’s father Liam believes his son’s suicide was a ‘spur of the moment’ act.

“His death has just left our family and his friends devastated.  He would have always been the first to condemn the likes of suicide.  It was definitely a spur of the moment thing,” he said.

“It (suicide) just destroys your life.  You just haven’t the same desire to do anything any more.  I do a bit of farming but I just don’t have the same interest in anything.”

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Rosemary continued: “Cathal was always the centre of attention, so lively and always laughing.  He enjoyed his sports, especially hurling, pool and darts, and he loved dancing, particularly jiving and he lived for his two children, Darragh and Fiadh.”

Cathal, a plasterer by trade and a former hurler with Kevin Lynch’s in Dungiven, was very close to his brothers Gavin, Dean and John-Paul and his only sister Caoimhe, and Rosemary says his death has also changed their lives.

“It’s so sore on the family, on his brothers and his sister.  His sister Caoimhe was so close to him and she is taking it so badly.  It just destroys everybody’s lives,” she said.

“We wouldn’t want any other family to go through the pain and suffering that we are going through.”

The Moore family hope that by speaking out that it will encourage others who may be feeling suicidal to reach out for help.

“Reach out to somebody, anybody,” said Liam.

Rosemary added: “It (suicide) has become so common at the minute, particularly among men.  I don’t know whether it’s because they don’t want to act weak but mental health issues are not a taboo subject any more, although some men may think so.

“If you are feeling low, sit down and talk to someone for maybe ten or 15 minutes and the problems might not seem just as bad.”

Rosemary says the lack of funding for support services for mental health in the North West area is ‘absolutely horrendous’ and she would like to see change.  

“People are going out there looking for help but they aren’t getting the support that they need,” she said.

“It’s the government that needs to be offering more support for people out there.”