b
y Aoife McLoughlin
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MORE than 200 people in Limerick were tattooed with colourful butterflies on Sunday in a special tribute to little Lola Nagle who lost her life to meningitis last April.
The charity tattoo event was held in memory of the 18-month-old, and to raise funds and awareness for the potentially fatal illness.
Five tattoo artists at Limerick’s All Star Ink studio worked for more than 15 hours while people queued around the block to receive their tattoos and donate money towards the ACT for Meningitis charity.
On Tuesday evening, Ross Nagle, father of little Lola and owner of All Star Ink Studio posted to his Instagram and Facebook accounts that donations raised on the day had reached €19,535.
ACT for Meningitis chief executive Siobhan Carroll, who attended the event, said: “What a phenomonal day, where the wonderful people of Limerick queued for hours to support the Nagle family and join them in remembering their precious Lola. We are so proud and humbled to be part of such a special day.
“Hundreds of meningitis awareness cards were distributed to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of meningitis. We want to thank Ross and Ruth and all their family and friends for a day that we will always remember. A butterfly tattoo now means so much more to so many people. #Agiftfromlola.”
By this Wednesday afternoon, donations had exceeded the €20,000 mark and continued to pour in as people from across the city and county dropped their contributions into the studio.
All Star Ink will also run an online auction of tattooing equipment and prints in aid of the charity. As the studio cannot take donations over the phone, they are encouraging people who wish to donate to visit www.actformeningitis.ie and click on the ‘Donate now’ button.
