Fota Island golfer David Howard is raising money and awareness for Cystic Fibrosis Ireland as part of their 65km for 65 Roses challenge this month and he has put his own little twist on it.
Howard, the reigning East of Ireland champion has Cystic Fibrosis and is attempting to complete the 65km challenge on the golf course and is documenting each round of golf on his various social media channels.
“I’m trying to track it and let people follow along online so they can keep on top of the progress. I have nine kilometres done out of 65 and uploaded so I need to keep updating,” said Howard who really is defying the odds in becoming a full time golfer having previously thought it impossible after seeing the low life expectancy for someone with CF.
Howard was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis aged just seven had a childhood plagued by prolonged hospital stays and medication. But the Cork man is winning his battle and recently quit his career as a mechanic to pursue golf and thanks to the advancements in medical science it has been a dream come true so far.
CF is a disorder that affects your lungs, digestive system, and other organs, leaving you susceptible to frequent lung infections and breathing difficulties, all of which can naturally make sustained physical exertion challenging.
As well as being an ambassador for people with CF, Howard is a huge advocate for mental health having descended into psychosis during the pandemic when he was just 21 – which doctors feared he would not recover from.
Now 26, Howard is thriving and became a major champion and an Ireland international last year. He has stressed the importance of documenting how he copes with living with CF in his videos during the 65km for 65 Roses campaign for the month of February.
“Some people are running, walking and cycling. I said I would put my own twist on it, I am a keen golfer you could say! If I do 65km of golfing and raise awareness and raise funds for something I am pretty involved with having got cystic fibrosis myself so this is something that would directly benefit the community of people with cystic fibrosis which would be a huge bonus.
“I’m going to try and do snippets of what is involved with having cystic fibrosis along the journey and give a personal account of how it impacts me. There are different variants and everyone with cystic fibrosis doesn’t have the same mutation or same side effects, it’s a broad disease.”
What Howard has achieved on the golf course is simply inspirational. His preparation for golf events is a lot more than just making sure he has his clubs and enough clothes for the week.
Taking medication is vital and the advancements made in that area have helped him chase his dream.
“Personally I have different medication in the morning, evening and modulators and I have to take medication when I eat so on the course I have to remember to have my medication with me before I have my snacks. In recent years my health has been a lot better due to the advancements in medication and that goes down to the research being done so I’m just trying to do my bit and give back.
“It can be tough when I am travelling to play events abroad and I need a 10kg suitcase just for my medication! To me it’s my normal but yeah there is a lot of planning and organising in it and remembering to keep on top of medication and treatments when I’m away.”
The Ringaskiddy native has described golf as his saving grace both for his physical and mental health so it makes perfect sense that he would take to the fairways during this challenge.
“The golf part is enjoyable and the challenge itself is enjoyable. The social media bit takes a lot of time to keep people updated. It’s good to be involved and it’s just about raising awareness and if I can do that by doing something I really enjoy that’s a bonus.”
The link to donate to David Howard’s fundraiser can be found HERE
Or you can visit the link on David’s Instagram – davidhowardgolf.
€1,485 has been donated so far.
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