Meet Holly
Holly was born with half a heart.
To see her today, you might never imagine the open heart surgeries she had before the age of 3... or the heart transplant she went through at age 5.
But it’s because of friends like you that Holly has a place where her heart can belong. A place where she doesn’t have to worry that she isn’t fast enough or strong enough or that she doesn’t fit in.
At Barretstown she can just be Holly, filled with her own confidence and light. It’s a gift her family hopes with all their hearts you could give to a child with serious illness today – through your donation for the gift of time at Barretstown.
Because every sick child deserves the magic of camp. No matter how sick they may be...
Watch Holly's Story
The longest week
An infant’s heart is only as big as a walnut. Holly’s was half that.
Specialists told Holly’s family that the left side of her heart was so underdeveloped, it would never pump blood to her body the way hearts normally do.
If they couldn’t get her strength up to have open heart surgery that week, Holly had no hope of surviving.
She was so tiny, and it was only the first of three open heart surgeries she would need to stay alive.
Leaving the decision in their hands – with that broken heart that was half as big as a walnut – Holly’s surgeon tipped the scales in her favour.
He said, “God didn’t make people like me for no reason. I’ll do the surgery.”
It took eight long hours. But Holly survived.
The Last Option
The second open heart surgery carried Holly to the age of two, before she began to black out. In the ICU, her medical team broke the news.
Holly was in end stage heart failure. She was no longer a candidate for the third, crucial heart surgery she’d need to survive.
There was one option left. They would need to live in hospital, while Holly waited on a heart transplant list.
They chose to help her live.
When all was said and done, they would wait three years. Three birthdays living in hospital with Holly, and the birth of their second child Albie, the brother who would become her best friend.
Holly’s heart transplant took place at age 5. They had lived a lifetime.
Friends and superheroes
It’s generosity like yours to Barretstown that keeps the MedShed ready and available 24/7, bringing peace of mind that is truly invaluable. It’s a bright, welcoming mini-hospital supported by exceptional medical specialists – because of you, there’s never a doubt that help is nearby.
But as the Carroll's discovered on that very first visit, there is so much more.
Holly made a friend straight away, and the two were inseparable. Weeks and years spent in hospital seemed to melt away, replaced by laughter and the simple joy of being together.
Holly's family had heard about the magic of therapeutic camps, but as a parent they don’t think they fully understood it until they saw it unfold before their eyes.
The confidence she’ll carry
Holly and Albie absolutely loved the horse riding and arts and crafts especially.
To this day they still draw pictures of their Barretstown ‘horsies’!
What stands out most, though, is the change in them – the change you make through giving.
Young people facing lifelong battles like Holly’s can find everyday settings difficult to navigate.
Because friends like you make a place for her at Barretstown, she’s a different child there. At camp, the confidence she might miss in everyday life simply bubbles to the surface, and campers form bonds they don’t make anywhere else.
Hear from the Carroll’s - Jessica, Jamie, Holly, Albie, and baby Danny
Near the end of every camp, everyone gathers in the theatre to watch a video of the days just passed. Holly’s mother Jessica is not ashamed to say that she cried.
From the second Holly was born and their whole world changed... through the emotional rollercoaster of years not knowing whether she’d survive... when they did their best to live their lives as a young family even during three years in hospital...
Suddenly they were there together, Jamie, Jessica, Holly, Albie, and baby Danny, watching themselves from a different perspective on the screen.
Holly will always live with the risk that her new heart could reject her. She’ll need medications forever.
But she knows that at Barretstown, there’s a place where her heart can belong. That’s down to kind hearts like yours today, and the support you can send.
The Carroll's Letter``Thank you for taking the time to care. Please give for a child like our Holly this summer, if you can..`` - Jessica, Holly's Mum Donate Today
Sprinkle a Little Magic
Your support for Barretstown will give another seriously ill child like Marlie the chance to experience Barretstown's life changing Therapeutic Programmes.
Barretstown offers free , specially designed camps and programmes for children and their families living with a serious illness - supported behind the scenes by 24 hour on site medical and nursing care.
"Our little Marlie had five surgeries in the space of a month... without Barretstown, I don't know how we'd have coped"Jenny, Marlie's Mum
Sprinkle a Little Magic
Your support for Barretstown will give another seriously ill child like Marlie the chance to experience Barretstown's life changing Therapeutic Programmes.
Barretstown offers free , specially designed camps and programmes for children and their families living with a serious illness - supported behind the scenes by 24 hour on site medical and nursing care.
€10 million
Needed in fundraising for 2026
More than 125,000
Campers Served
14
Illness Groups Served
Barretstown is a registered charity (CHY10715) in Ireland, RCN 20027759 and is also a registered charity in the UK (Charity No. 1046648) and a registered charity in Spain (Registration No. 28-1373 and NIF G84459064).