"I'm astounded!" - Midlands man whose lawnmower breaks down raises over €1k on Gofundme

A Laois man living on a disability allowance who cannot afford to replace his broken lawnmower has been overwhelmed by rapid support after launching an online appeal, helped by his Twitter (X) followers.

Joey Dempsey, 58, lives alone in a little cottage in Castlecuffe, Clonaslee beside the Slieve Bloom mountains, where he tends his garden and also cuts grass for his elderly neighbours.

He shared his eventful life story, and his surprise at already hitting over halfway to his target, with the Leinster Express / Laois Live.

"I'm a Dubliner, I bought this cottage 24 years ago. This is actually the house where the Offaly Rover was written. It was the holiday home of the late Frank Sweeney. It has quite a large garden. Gardening is my passion and I'm blessed with having a beautiful space," he said.

Joey Dempsey's lovely garden.

Joey has been bravely overcoming difficulties all his life.

"I grew up in state care for the first 16 years. I have 13 brothers and sisters that I've never met. I only found out two years ago that nine of them live in Dublin. 

"I went to school in south Dublin and I became a chef. I ended up managing hotels, and I lived in 15 countries. I ran a restaurant in Dingle for nine years. I even was a teacher in America at one time.

"I now have a functional neurological disorder, I have issues with my nerves in my legs receiving messages from my brain. I also have diabetes and Grave's disease which affects my thyroid. Day to day you wouldn't think there is any side effects but there are some days I can't walk from the front door to the chair," he said.

"I have fantastic neighbours. I'd be lost without them. I have an alarm gadget. It makes me feel safer living on my own in rural Ireland with health issues," he said.

Joey's lawnmower gave up the ghost last week.

"With the cost of living, every single cent counts. I am lucky that I don't have a mortgage any more, but I am on disability week to week. You could say I'm asset rich, cash poor. Any emergency like this, or if my washing machine broke, I wouldn't have known where to even look. It's a serious problem for many people, not just me.

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"I said I'd give a gofundme a try, a friend helped me to set it up. I am astounded at the reaction. I set it up yesterday and I put it on Twitter. I don't even know most of the people who donated. I might have 3,500 followers but I don't know who they are. People talk about how toxic Twitter can be, but I've only come across decent people," Joey Dempsey said.

He set a target of €600, to cover the cost of a new self-drive lawnmower, within a day it has reached €367. See the gofundme page here.

"If I raise more than is required, I commit to donating anything extra to my local Community Centre. Thank you for any donations, no matter how small," the Clonaslee man said.