220km walk in memory of children and babies

A WALK spanning over 200km from Tuam to Cork city is hoping to honour the memories of the children and babies who passed away at two Mother and Baby Homes.

The 220km three-day commemorative walk - ‘From Tuam to Bessborough With Love’ - will go from the site of the former Tuam Mother and Baby Home to the site of the former Bessborough Mother and Baby Home in Blackrock in Cork city, from Friday, August 21 to Sunday, August 23.

Led by a Mayo woman, Anne Fahey Ronayne from Hollymount, the walk is being done in partnership with the A Little Light of Love Team, who had been carrying a lantern from Jack’s Old Cottage in Islandeady, near Castlebar, to the Tuam Mother and Baby Home remembrance site every November from 2020 until it closed last year to allow for the ongoing forensic excavation of the Tuam site.

Anne Fahey Ronayne completed a challenge of climbing Knockma Hill a total of 796 times from January 2023 to July 2025, in honour of the 796 children and babies who died at the Tuam Mother and Baby Home.

“From Tuam to Bessborough with Love is more than a walk. It is a promise that these children will not be forgotten,” said Anne.

“As we walk the 220km, we will speak every baby’s name aloud, together with their age and the day they died. We want every child to be acknowledged, remembered and honoured."

Throughout next week's walk, participants will carry the Little Light of Love lantern. The lantern represents hope, love and the enduring belief that every baby and child deserves to be remembered with dignity.

Members of the public are invited to join or support the walkers along the route as they pass through various towns and villages between Tuam and Cork city.