‘It might be a step too far, but I’ll try’: Elle sets sights on Malin to Mizen run

Elle O’Sullivan McCarthy plans to run from Malin to Mizen next year to raise funds for a cause close to her heart.

“It might be a step too far, but I’ll try,” says the determined mum-of-two.

She has a good track record: in 2011, she ran from Cork to her native Ballvourney.

After much fundraising and support from her community of Ballyvourney, she travelled to Kenya to build a home for 21 children called Naomh Abán House, accompanied by Abán Riordan, Dan Desmond and Gary Lynch from her home village.

In 2023, she ran from Cork to Ballyvourney again, to raise €10,000, and travelled to tribal villages in the Indian region of Odisha, distributing food packs, clothes, shoes, medicine and toys. She has also run from Dublin to Cork.

The direction in Elle’s life changed at the age of 21 when she travelled to India and lived in an orphanage with 600 children for six months in Osidha.

“The children couldn’t speak English, I couldn’t speak much Odia, but children are just children at the end of the day. We formed such a bond. I adored them. If children are from Ireland, India, Japan, it really doesn’t matter; they just want fun and games.

“What amazed me was that they had very little; they were sleeping on a concrete floor, but they were so happy all the time. Their courage and resilience inspired me,” she said.

Elle returned home and began fundraising and she returned over the next few years with truckloads of supplies such as mattresses, mosquito nets, medicine, clothes etc.

She has been a fundraiser and aid worker for the past 23 years in India and Africa, and started working with the HOPE Foundation in December, 2023, as Corporate Engagement and Fundraising Officer.

“I feel like I waited 20 years for my dream job. I am so passionate about HOPE and the work they do. It was set up by Cork woman Maureen Forrest. To date, the Hope Foundation has helped more than 3.2 million children and their families living in slum communities in Kolkata, India. HOPE currently run 60 projects on the ground in Kolkata covering areas including education, healthcare, child protection, and emergency response. I don’t believe any child should be walking the streets anywhere in the world alone, fighting for survival,” she said.

When she started with HOPE, she realised with the best intentions in the world that delivering supplies isn’t the solution; they don’t last.

“It’s temporary. Education is the path out of poverty. From the age of two, children living in slum communities are supported to attend creches, which are situated inside the slum communities. It’s more accessible for their families. The children are supported all the way through school with the child sponsorship programme, and afterwards they can attend the HOPE Life-skills courses which helps them get qualified in their chosen career. They can go on to set up their own business and support themselves and their families.

“There’s the HOPE Hospital, the HOPE night round mobile medical unit, protection homes. It’s unbelievable when you get there, and see the work being done on the ground. The simple things like a child with a backpack heading off to school with a smile on their face are just magic. They have a fighting chance to be whatever they dream to be in the world,” she said.

Elle was recognised at this year’s Network Ireland West Cork Businesswoman of the Year awards. She first joined the organisation in April, 2025. “I had heard good things about it, so I went along to see what it was about.

“What I love about Network Ireland is the support and encouragement everyone gives each other. You walk in, and you are welcomed with open arms.

“It’s a place where you’re encouraged to achieve your dreams, big or small, and they are with you.

“I wasn’t with Network Ireland West Cork that long and I was doing a fundraiser for HOPE running from Dublin to Cork. When I got to the finish line, the members were there waiting for me at the finish line. On a cold Sunday evening at 7pm they stood at the County Hall in Cork waiting for me. It just amazed me that they would do that. It’s not band of brothers, it’s band of women, who have your back and you have theirs. I love it.”

Winning this year’s award for Advanced-Career Employee “was amazing. Honestly, I didn’t expect to win, but the support and words of encouragement when I won just blew my mind. Sometimes, in charity work, you feel a bit invisible. You’re asking for help all the time, annoying people, maybe. I’m not sure many people are excited to get an email from me!

“But this gave me belief in yourself and in what you’re doing. You feel like maybe you can achieve anything,” she said.

And that includes running Malin to Mizen next year.