Room To Improve widow reveals tribute to late husband with daughter he never got to meet
The widow of a Sligo dad who never got to meet his daughter revealed that he chose her name, and the lovely tribute to him that she bears.
Orla McDermott tragically lost her husband Dominic when she was six months pregnant with their little girl to an aggressive form of cancer and in their final weeks together planned out the lives they should have had together.
Their heartbreaking story resonated with viewers across the nation when she appeared on Room To Improve in January as she worked with Dermot to create the dream home, she and Dominic had planned to build.
Now speaking to Ray D'Arcy, Orla remembers receiving that awful diagnosis that changed everything for them.
'They told us that they realised Dom had cholangiocarcinoma, better known as bile duct cancer, and there was no treatment. It was too far gone. Basically, he should just go home to me and the kids.
He was given three months initially but their remaining time together ended up being much shorter.
'... So once again, [we were] totally devasted thinking, "God, Dom's never going to meet our baby.'
'So as soon as we got home, I contacted Sligo Hospital and said: "Look, we need an ultrasound straightaway. We found out we were having a little baby girl.'
Once they knew the sex of their baby, they were able to settle on a name and it was Dominic who chose the name, Eden.
Orla picked the middle name 'Dominique' as a tribute to him.
Dominic died hours before his 39th birthday a week after moving into hospice care and their last days together were an emotional rollercoaster.
'We cried every night together. We knew that was the end of our time together.'
She admits that it's hard not to be bitter sometimes when she sees couples who have had much longer together.
'Why did it have to happen to us? You try not to be bitter, but you do look at older couples going around and you think, "God, they got 50 years together. It's not fair.'
As Orla revamped her home on Room To Improve she kept Dominic's favourite room just as he liked it. A GoFundMe page has been set up to support the family here
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