The legacy of Lisa Orsi, the young Gaelic footballer from Derry who died in tragic circumstances in March last year, is inspiring other young people to live life to the full.
Lisa (pictured), from the Waterside area of the city, led a very active and full life, packing more into her 22 years than most people could even dream of doing in a much longer life time.
She had travelled the world and, at the time of her death, was working as a physiotherapist in Singapore with plans to return to university to study medicine.
She loved sports, and adventure and enjoyed experiencing other cultures.
She had been working as a physiotherapist in a Singapore hospital and died from a severe altitude sickness after collapsing following a volcano trek in Indonesia.
Just months before she died, Lisa was a member of the Singapore Lions’ Ladies team that won the Ladies Senior Cup at the 2014 Asian Gaelic Games in Kuala Lumpur.
Lisa’s dad, Dennis, is the driving force behind the Live Life Lisa Orsi Foundation, a voluntary organisation dedicated to Lisa’s memory.
Dennis has also been encouraging her friends to take Lisa with them on their travels.
“Lisa just loved travelling and after she died, I couldn’t bear to think of her not having any more adventures,” he said.
“As a family we came up with the idea of the ‘take Lisa with you’ Gaelic jersey with number 4, Lisa’s number on it and encouraged her friends to post photos of them wearing the shirt.
“Now we’ve a wonderful selection of photos of Lisa’s friends wearing the number 4 jersey from all around the world, places which I know Lisa would have loved to visit.”
Dennis added: “When Lisa died, her organs were donated so the jersey also has the organ donation logo as well as the symbol of the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust so not only is it keeping Lisa’s memory alive but it is also creating awareness for organ donation and the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust, a very worthwhile charity which has helped so many families.”
The Live Life Lisa Orsi Foundation, launched in June this year, aims to promote inclusion through participation in sports, in particular Gaelic games.
Mark O’Doherty, Development Officer with Doire Trasna GAC and chairman of the Foundation, said: “The idea is to encourage young people to go beyond their comfort zone and to develop new skills, both on and off the playing field; and to travel and experience other cultures.
“The Foundation is a fitting tribute to Lisa as it is helping to give other young people an opportunity to emulate her love of life and to travel and enjoy other cultures just like she did.”
Since its launch, the Foundation has raised over £65,000.
Next week, 50 players and mentors representing 10 Derry GAA clubs and one from Donegal, as well as a local youth training organisation will fly to China take part in the 2016 Asian Gaelic Games in Shanghai.
Mark said the Foundation has encouraged local GAA clubs to work together to achieve a common goal.
“This is a legacy project and one which we hope will grow year on year.
“We set ourselves an ambitious target of bringing fifty people to the Asian Games in our first year.
“It has been a steep learning curve for everyone involved but with all the local clubs pulling together for fundraising events, we have been able to reach our target.
“The senior ladies football cup at the Asian Games has been renamed the Lisa Orsi Cup and it would be great if we could bring it back to Derry!”
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