A CHANCE encounter by Labour election candidate Evie Nevin while canvassing in Dunmanway led her to an extraordinary connection with her biological father whom she’d never met.
Adopted at 12 weeks old, Evie had traced her biological connections 16 years ago, and found out that her biological father Billy had tragically died in a car accident when she was just five.
When canvassing in Dunmanway one of the first doors Evie knocked on was Jerry Murphy’s, and as they chatted, Evie discovered he was from Kanturk, like Billy.
‘I looked at Jerry and thought he’d be about the age Billy would be if he were alive today. So I asked him, would he have known him,’ she said.
‘Jerry’s eyes widened as he processed the question and wondered how could this woman from West Cork know a guy who died in 1992 from Kanturk?’
But it was what she learned next that left her speechless: ‘It turns out that not only had he known Billy, but they had been childhood friends and neighbours. Jerry’s memories flooded back—he shared some stories from his and Billy’s childhood. And then, learning that Jerry had seen Billy the night he died – it was such an amazing and emotional experience,’ Evie reflected.
Since that encounter, Evie and Jerry have become allies and Jerry proudly supports Evie’s election campaign.
‘Sometimes, destiny knocks on our doors when we least expect it!’ said Evie.
