Mayo disability campaigner Avril Greham remembered as a trailblazer for inclusion
Avril Greham, a Ballina woman who spent her life making the world more open, accessible and kind, has left a lasting legacy for inclusion in Mayo and beyond.
Mayo and in particular Ballina are in mourning today as the sad news of Avril Greham’s passing is shared.
The much loved disabled and human rights activist shattered stereotypes and leaves a lasting legacy for inclusion.
Avril Greham was a Ballina woman who spent her life making the world around her more open, more accessible and more kind. Mayo has lost a campaigner, a volunteer, a speaker and a friend.
Born with arthrogripposis multiplex congenita, a condition that affects the development of the joints before birth, Avril never allowed it to define the limits of her life.
She grew up in Ballina, supported by friends and by parents who, in her words, never treated her any differently and ensured she took part in every area of life. She was always clear about where the real barriers lay.
As she once explained, the challenge was the physical environment, and “it was the environment that was disabling me.” It was an insight that shaped everything she went on to do.
At 18, she moved to Dublin alone to study at UCD, living on campus at a time when support for disabled students was sorely lacking. She later built a career as a civil servant, bought her own home in Ballina and became a driving force in the town’s community life.
Her volunteering was remarkable in its range. Senator Mark Duffy called her “the beating heart of community life in Mayo”, and the list of groups she gave her time to bears that out: Ardnaree GAA, Darkness into Light, the Ballina Community Clean Up, the Ballina ONE ACT Drama Festival, where she was the committee’s dynamic social media voice, and Ballina Autism Friendly Town.
She was a sports fanatic whose warm smile was familiar to many at Ballina Braves games.
As a founding member and chairperson of Mayo Disabled Persons’ Organisation, Avril made a defining contribution. Her words on its launch sum up her life’s work: “For too long, decisions affecting disabled people have been made without us... Our lived experience matters, our voices matter.” She brought that lived experience to her work as a speaker, an EDI facilitator, a digital content creator and a human rights activist, and she did so with positivity, optimism and a can-do spirit that those who worked with her will never forget.
Those who knew her describe someone vibrant, intelligent, bubbly and, above all, great fun. The Ballina Autism Friendly Town committee spoke of an “Avril-shaped space” in their group that can never be filled.
In a glowing tribute to their “devoted friend”, the committee remembered Avril as “a strong voice for equality and inclusion, a tireless champion of accessibility and someone who never stopped believing in the power of making a difference. Avril was a woman of great strength, positivity and determination, with an unwavering belief in the rights of all. She worked tirelessly to break down barriers, shatter stereotypes and empower others to create a more inclusive world. Through her advocacy and her commitment to helping others, she made a lasting difference to so many lives.”
“When people talk or ask about disability and living a full life.. This lady showed how it’s done. A hero who left a lasting impact on us all”, Pádraig O'Hora, former Mayo GAA star and disability activist, wrote.
It was her company that those in Ballina ONE ACT Drama Festival will miss most, they wrote that "those who were privileged to have met her, spent time in her company will know the vacuum her passing leaves. She was vibrant, intelligent, bubbly and most of all great fun.
Avril was a truly unique person who touched the lives of those around her.”
Ballina Town Football For All described a trailblazer and staunch advocate whose legacy lives on in the barriers she helped break down.
She leaves behind a world that is more accessible, more connected and more included because of her. Our deepest sympathies go to her mum Deirdre, her brother Julian, sister-in-law Lia, her nephews and niece, and all her family and friends.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a hanam dílis.