A TRACTOR that has been powering Barry Browne’s farm, a stone’s throw from Cork Airport, was part of the driving force behind a successful tractor run which raised almost €50,000 for The Lung Transplant Unit in The Mater Hospital.
Barry’s Fiat 110-90, which featured in these pages before the run last October, has been a steady workhorse on the farm for over 30 years.
An ex-Bord na Móna tractor, the 110-90 was almost new when he got it, with the engine barely ran in with the clock showing 400 hours.
It performed admirably over the years before eventually being restored in 2023, when it was sent to John Quinn, Ballintemple where it received a full exterior and interior overhaul.
Tired mechanical parts were also replaced with parts sourced from Aidan Hurley, Minane Bridge, while a new set of tires finished the project.
Barry was diagnosed with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis over six years ago, but thankfully received a single lung transplant at the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, and is doing well since.
The tractor, truck, car and bike run was organised by Barry and his family, not only to raise funds for the hospital, but to raise awareness of the importance of organ donation.
A total of €47,432.74.
The Browne family have thanked everyone for their support and generosity in making the fundraiser such a success.
