Holly Carpenter has revealed how she and her boyfriend Jamie have supported each other through tough times.
The couple have been personally affected by cancer, as both their dads are currently battling a form of the devastating disease.
To honour their fathers and to raise funds for the Marie Keating Foundation, Holly and Jamie are now inviting the public to join them on March 17th for a 6am “Paddy’s Day Dip”, ahead of the 6:30 sunrise.
The couple are asking people to take a dip in a location near them, or join them virtually online.
Speaking exclusively to Goss.ie, the former Miss Ireland confessed: “I’m so proud to be doing the event and everything, but it’s difficult to be continuously talking about it in one big burst…”
“But we’ve managed to give it a bit of a positive spin with the fundraiser – it’s kind of made it like all a bit more lighthearted.”
“We kind of realised that we have so many friends far and wid, in Sydney and Amsterdam, and, you know, all over the world and we were like, it’d be amazing to get people involved wherever they are.”
“We were also kind of conscious that if we tried to do it in one location, we have no way of knowing how many people would turn up, so we were like it’d be great to just have loads of different pockets and groups of people around Dublin and the country to do it.”
“The idea for it came from Jamie’s dad’s love of sea swimming, and it’s remarkable that at his age, 89, that he still goes in, he was at one point going into the sea every day.”
“It’s something that’s been so good for his mental health over the years, and then recently he wasn’t able to swim as much when he wasn’t feeling well, but then this week he was in again, I think twice last week, and once this week, so it’s just amazing.”
Speaking about her own father’s diagnosis, she said: “I’m lucky that we have such good communication within the family, and we’ve made sure that Dad knows that he can be really honest with us about he’s how he’s feeling. I would never want him to think that he has to put on a brave face for us.”
“If he’s having a bad day we’re all there for him, and we can talk to him about it and we are the kind of family where we make a lot of jokes, and we all slag each other a lot, so we kind of have that as a coping mechanism.”
“It’s important to keep him upbeat and remind him that he will have bad days but regardless of that, we’re all gonna be here for him even if he’s not in the best form, we’re all just letting him go through it.”
Holly expressed how her and Jamie are both “in the same boat”, which has allowed them to better understand each other’s situations.
“It’s been really helpful that we’re both in the same boat and yeah it’s been quite a unique experience,” she said.
“I’d be there for him either way, whether I was going through it or not, but I think that it gives us a deeper level of understanding.”
She continued: “It’s kind of something that’s always in the back of either of our minds so I know that if I feel like he’s distracted or he’s not himself, I don’t think ‘oh what have I done,’ I just remember like, no, it’s probably just his dad that he’s worried about.”
Speaking about how cancer has changed their life, the 32-year-old admitted that their priorities have changed.
“It’s changed our priorities, of course, we still have things we can’t miss, like our friend’s weddings and stuff like that, but the minute we can move things around and make time we’re straight in the car on a Friday,” she said.
“I can go over to my mom and dad’s within half an hour I can just drive over, but his [Jamie’s] parents are all the way down and in Kinsale, so most weekends we’ve been down there with them,” she added.
“We’ve made so many memories even just over the last three years, we’ve so many photographs and done so many swims and it’s just been really good.”
When asked what she hopes to achieve from the fundraiser, Holly replied: “I think whenever I hear a personal story from people of what it is actually like day to day, and how they manage it, and how they come together as a family, I think it just makes people feel less alone.”
“I think before I would have read interviews from people who have a family member going through something like that and of course you’re thinking ‘Jesus, that’s awful, I can’t imagine what that’s like’, but now that I know what that’s like, if I read an interview like that, I’m practically in tears.”
Holly also revealed the amazing response she and her family have received from sharing their story online.
She noted: “Since we’ve started talking about it publicly, my dad has received lots of messages from other people who have or have had his condition, which is quite rare, and they’ve said that it’s been really helpful for them to see someone else with it talk about it and how they’re staying positive and managing their life.”
“It’s not something that I’d ever want people to feel alone about and to know that everyone can come together – I think just to give it that personal element.”
The model has been involved with many charities since her time on Miss Ireland in 2011.
Aside from the Marie Keating Foundation, Holly has also volunteered with Dog’s Trust for many years, and she highlighted how important giving back has been for her.
She revealed: “It’s definitely so important, I started doing it back in 2011 through Miss Ireland and it just feels amazing to be able to help them and actually make a difference.”
“I think there are a lot of influencers in this country who are really generous with their time and it can be kind of overwhelming sometimes when there are a lot of charities who reach out and want your help and you kind of have to be conscious that you can’t flood your own Instagram page with asking people for donations for various charities.”
“It’s good that I’ve chosen the ones that are really close to my heart, like Dogs Trust and the Marie Keating Foundation and I’ve stuck with them over the years. “
“There’s been other smaller charity things I’ve helped out with, but I think that there’s enough influencers to go around that if we focus on the things that really are close to our hearts then you can see people are authentically passionate about what they’re talking about,” she concluded.
Holly urged people to join her and Jamie for their Paddy’s Day Dip wherever they are in the world.
“We have so many amazing swim spots in Dublin we’re spoilt for choice and then obviously, loads of people have gotten into using plunge pools and cold showers and there are loads of ways people can get involved if they’re not near the sea.”
The former Miss Ireland also reassured people that they don’t need to swim lengths in the sea to get involved.
“I know some people are like myself and wouldn’t be a strong swimmers, so that’s why we kind of call it the dip, not swim.”
“Even if people are just walking into water up to their knees it’s so cold and that’s an achievement in itself. “
“Obviously, the swim that we’re organising is a sunrise swim on a bank holiday Sunday, and the Six Nations matches are on Saturday night so people might be a bit hungover, but it’s actually just the best cure if you are feeling a bit ropey.”
“We’re saying to people as well that if they miss the sunrise, they can still do it at any time of course.”
“It’s one of those things where whenever we go for a sea swim I’m getting out of the car frozen looking at the sea and not wanting to get in at all, but once you just dunk yourself you’re so proud and feel so fresh.
Holly quipped: “You can also get a nice little Instagram pic and a coffee afterwards.”
“The best part for me about the sea swim is after you’ve done it, it’s the feeling fresh vibes.”
To stay updated on the event, follow @Paddys_day_dip on Instagram and @mariekeatingfoundation. Share your Paddy’s Day Dip moments on social media using the hashtag #PDD24.
