Cathy O’Connor laughs at the suggestion that she is a runner. “I wog!’” she exclaims. (Translation? Walk/jog.)

“I’m the one who is just heaving, saying: ‘Go towards the lamppost – then you can stop!’”

Still, on 27 August, Cathy will lace up her runners in Dublin’s Phoenix Park for Breast Cancer Ireland’s Great Pink Run in association with Avonmore Slimline Milk. It will be her second time to tackle the 10K to raise money for breast cancer research and it’s an event that’s close to her heart.

“You might pass by a group of women who’ve got a picture of a friend of theirs and you don’t know if that person has passed on, or where they’re at,” she says.

“It’s humbling in a way to be part of that, because it’s this extraordinary event where women and men come together to do something for the greater good and to make a difference – and how privileged are we to be able to do that?”

It’s not the first time that the well-known stylist with the distinctive silver stripe has pushed past her comfort zone for Breast Cancer Ireland, previously taking part in a Mind Your Selfie campaign and a Strictly Come Dancing fundraiser. But it’s clear that the pharmacist’s daughter from Clonskeagh is not one to shirk from a challenge, having learned at an early age the importance of seizing life with both hands.

This was in many ways due to the almost unimaginable loss of all three of her brothers before she was 20: her brother John passed away just weeks after his birth due to complications, Kevin was killed in a motorcycle accident, while Gerard died in a car accident.

“It’s like a bomb goes off in your life, repeatedly,” she acknowledges gently, adding that in many ways, the emotional shrapnel can still scar.

“As I grow older, I think: ‘Well, I’ll never be an aunt,’” she gives as an example. “It never stops. It never stops.”

However, she stresses that “everyone’s got their story” and that experiencing loss at an early age has turned her into a “seeker”.

“I would have a very strong spirit and a very curious mind and I absolutely believe that life is magnificent and we were born to have magnificent lives and to experience extraordinary moments. That’s absolutely the case,” she says

“So any chance, I go towards the light. Any chance, I take the opportunity. I’m very grateful for many things that are in my life and those moments don’t pass me by.”

She’s In Fashion

And in a way, that open attitude led to her current career. Cathy actually worked behind the scenes in TV, including as producer/director on RTÉ’s Off The Rails, before she was encouraged to start styling on screen about 20 years ago.

“‘Are you crazy?’” she recalls of her initial reaction to the suggestion. “And then again, it was one of those opportunities. I just thought: ‘Come on Maisie, get over yourself and do it.’”

While Cathy still has a slot on RTÉs Today Show (though admits she has never actually watched herself on TV), much of her work today involves style workshops nationwide as well as personal shopping.

She strongly believes that many Irish women have been made to feel irrelevant by the world of fashion, especially as they get older.

“Because I came to this career late in life, it seems to me that fashion only talks to the young,” says Cathy, explaining how even entering a high street store can be daunting.

“It’s really loud music, more clothes than you know what to deal with and you get into that dressing room that, honest to God, a 12-year-old girl wouldn’t be able to get into, and you’re going: ‘I now feel bad about myself,’ and that should never be the case.”

She is adamant that women should not be “put in a box” and assigned a twinset and string of pearls just because they reach a certain stage in life and, through her styling, aims to make the aspirational accessible – at any age.

“[Age] has no relevance. You could have a 20-something who it’s game-over for and you can have someone in their 50s and they’re going: ‘I’m still embracing life.’ And yet it’s in the ‘box’,” she says.

“It’s all about individuality. How the hell can we be put into target groups? We’re all individuals.”

Finding Your Tribe

The same goes for matters of the heart. Having never felt the pressure to get married, Cathy became engaged in 2013, but when that relationship ended, one of the things that most hurt was how certain friends pulled away.

“One of the things I found really devastating was about five really close friends of mine disappeared,” she says. “Literally nowhere to be seen.”

While she still had a strong network of supportive friends, however, Cathy decided to get proactive and meet new people to navigate the next chapter in her life. She believes that women should not feel isolated just because they chose a different path other than marriage or having a family.

“There are a lot of other people like you out there and, again, it’s just about getting proactive. Don’t stew in it. Just get out. Just Google it. There’s meet-ups of every sort, whether you like going to galleries, you like walking – anything,” she says, explaining that as our lives change, there is “always another tribe to join”.

“Because otherwise, it can make people feel a little bit isolated and a little bit like they’ve missed out on the relationship, the marriage, the kids. And that’s just never the case. It’s just never ever the case,” she emphasises.

“It’s just about different choices that people make, and your choice will be supported no matter what.”

The same goes for keeping an open mind – and heart – to finding love again in the future.

“Because again, I think there are just so many people out there who are doing the same, who want the same thing – all you need is one,” smiles Cathy, who believes that a “courageous heart” is the most important attribute. “I think love is the greatest adventure,” she says, “and if you embrace it, it will take you to fantastic places you couldn’t experience in any other arena.”

Running for a cause

And it’s that same spirit that will see her through the Great Pink Run later this month, so why not join her tribe?

“It doesn’t matter what pace you do: just the fact that you are there matters, just the fact that you do that is everything,” she says.

“There’s great excitement on the day, there’s great camaraderie and you know, by just having done that, people’s worlds are going to be better. You’re actually making a difference in a very real way.”

With the closing date for entries extended to 15 August, there is still time for runners of all levels, ages and abilities to sidle up to Cathy O’Connor for Breast Cancer Ireland’s Great Pink Run with Avonmore Slimline Milk in the Phoenix Park, Dublin on 27 August. Whether you’re setting your sights on the chipped 10K challenge or looking to have fun with the chipped 5K family run, join upwards of 6,000 fellow runners, all dressed in pink, in support of Breast Cancer Ireland and the race for a cure.

Sonia O’Sullivan will lead out the Great Pink Run for the third year in a row, while Avonmore Slimline Milk race ambassador, RTÉ’s Lottie Ryan, will be there to inspire those new to the event. CL

For more information and to sign up for Breast Cancer Ireland’s Great Pink Run with Avonmore Slimline Milk, log on to www.greatpinkrun.ie. All funds go to Breast Cancer Ireland’s pioneering research and awareness programmes nationally. Entry is €27 for over 18s for both the 5K and 10K events, including finisher’s medal. The T-shirt is €10 extra.