Four peaks challenge fundraiser in aid of Sunflower Children's Hospice in Mayo

One third of employees from across JJ Rhatigan will come together on Friday, October 9 to take on four of Ireland’s best-known mountains in one day, raising vital funds for Sunflower Children’s Hospice in Castlebar.

The ‘4 Peaks Challenge’ will see teams from across the company tackle Carrauntoohil, Diamond Hill, Croagh Patrick and the Sugar Loaf, covering approximately 33 kilometres of mountain terrain collectively in a major company-wide fundraising effort.

From the 501-metre summit of the Great Sugar Loaf to Carrauntoohil, Ireland’s highest mountain at 1,039 metres, the challenge will bring together colleagues from JJ Rhatigan’s construction sites and offices across Ireland. Depending on the location, the challenge will take between two and eight hours to complete.

JJ Rhatigan, one of Ireland’s leading construction companies, employs more than 450 people across Ireland and the UK. The company is fully supporting the initiative, giving participating employees the day away from their usual roles as well as additional resources, transport and coordination required to make the challenge possible.

With offices in Galway, Dublin, Cork, London and Sligo, and construction projects operating across the country, the challenge will bring together colleagues who may not ordinarily work alongside one another.

The effort extends far beyond those taking to the mountains. While some teams tackle the four peaks, other colleagues will coordinate and support fundraising activities in the lead-up to the event.

Sarah O’Donohoe, chief people officer at JJ Rhatigan, said: “4 Peaks is about much more than climbing four mountains. It is about colleagues from our projects and offices across the country coming together and creating awareness about the Sunflower Charity and raising vital funds for the cause. We are very grateful to our colleagues for putting their time, energy and determination behind a cause that means a great deal to us.

“Sunflower Children’s Hospice has a particularly strong connection with JJ Rhatigan, and many of us understand the difference this facility will make to children with life-limiting illnesses and their families. That has created a real sense of purpose behind the challenge.

“Initiatives like this really demonstrate the strength of the culture we have at JJ Rhatigan. “When colleagues come together behind something they believe in, this creates incredible energy and generosity. We are enormously proud of everyone taking part and, most importantly, we hope our collective efforts can make a meaningful contribution towards bringing Sunflower Children’s Hospice closer to opening its doors.”

The fundraising challenge comes as plans progress for Sunflower Children’s Hospice in Castlebar, which will provide essential care and support for children with life-limiting illnesses and their families across eight counties on the western seaboard.

Funded by Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation, the project will be the first children’s hospice to be built outside Dublin and the first of its kind to be constructed in Ireland since 2011.

A site has already been secured in Castlebar, with the Government and HSE committed to supporting clinical governance. The latest costings put the total build cost at approximately €20 million, with €9 million raised to date.

Martina Jennings, CEO of Mayo Roscommon Hospice Foundation, said: “I want to thank JJ Rhatigan and their teams all over Ireland for coming together to support this very important project.

“They are climbing mountains, something that parents of children with life-limiting illnesses face every day as they travel to Dublin to get the specialist support their children require.

“When the doors of Sunflower Children’s Hospice open in Mayo, those families will have less of a mountain to climb. They will have less distance to travel, access to vital specialist care closer to home and the support of a children’s hospice in their own region.

“We are incredibly grateful to the team at JJ Rhatigan for taking on this challenge and helping us get one step closer to making Sunflower Children’s Hospice a reality.”

The 4 Peaks Challenge continues a strong tradition of JJ Rhatigan employees using their skills, time and teamwork to support communities.

In 2025, JJ Rhatigan employees and supply-chain partners came together through RTÉ’s DIY SOS to help transform the home and lives of a family in need, while JJ Rhatigan’s UK team has previously undertaken a major fundraising challenge in support of a hospice in the UK.

The 4 Peaks Challenge brings that same spirit of teamwork and fundraising to Ireland, harnessing the collective efforts of JJ Rhatigan’s people to support a project that will have a lasting impact on children and families.