OFFICIALS facing complaints over a mega gravestone that sparked a walkout by parishioners say there is nothing they can do, we can reveal.
Donegal County Council confirmed yesterday that members of the public have raised complaints over cancer victim Charlie McDonagh’s giant tomb.
Decked out with county flags, it features carvings of the 21-year-old, his car, phone, sunglasses, Rolex watch, cologne and favourite tipple.
At 4.5metres, it is almost four times the 1.2metre maximum height permitted by guidelines for the cemetery at St Agatha’s, Clar, Donegal town.
Churchyard rules also discourage families placing any form of surrounds on a grave, which could include a stone perimeter for a plot.
A massive fundraiser by friends and family saw more than €150,000 go to purchasing local lad Charlie’s colossal headstone after he sadly passed away in March last year following a six-month cancer battle.
The Irish Sun revealed a number of parishioners are now boycotting the church amid outrage at the scale of the tomb, which spans three burial plots.
Donegal County Council said that while it was aware of complaints, it had no power to act over the grave of the local lad.
It said in a statement: “Local representatives and members of the community have been in touch with this office in recent weeks in relation to the matter but the issue remains outside the scope of the Planning Act.”
One local said guidelines say that no stone should reach more than 1.2metres and should include no surrounds.
“But those are the guidelines for Clar.”
One parishioner told us: “Myself and other parishioners are so upset by what has happened we decided to boycott the church in Clar and go to mass in Killmard or Ballintra. It’s a shame it has come to this.”
Martin McDonagh, Charlie’s father, said he knew the headstone had been “a shock to the town” but added: “If people go to Sligo or Cavan, Dublin, Cork, Limerick, where there’s 500 Travellers living in one place, you will see big stones like that.
"It’s our belief as Traveller people we should do that.”
He added that “from day one the plots were bought fair and square.”
Martin also said that he was not aware of any guidelines relating to the height of headstones.
He added: “I know if I died - and I would if I could swap places with Charlie, no question - well, I know people would do that for me. So there are people I will do that for and Charlie was one of them.”
From there, the family would learn he had cancer and watched as he fast became ill.
At first he responded well to treatment and there were hopes he would be home for Christmas.
But he didn’t get home until March last year, when he spent time visiting family and, in one of his final acts, arranging gifts for his parents as he returned to hospital in Belfast.
He sadly passed away soon after.
Martin and Kathleen, mourning heavily, have worn black every day since their son died in March 2023.
A shrine to Charlie takes up a sizable section of the kitchen in their Donegal town home, while a larger-than-life image of the lad dominates their living room.
Even his bedroom has been closed off, the door locked and room untouched since he died.
He also said the family have found it hurtful to know that not just their son’s grave but the late Charlie himself have been hit with abuse online.
Grieving hard for the hugely popular young man, Martin told us: “People can have their problems with the grave and they can say what they like about me, but the things being said about my son are not right.
“We see people calling it a ‘knacker’s grave’ and ‘tasteless’ and it’s very hurtful for us as a family.”
Martin said he would “do anything in the world” to have his son back and stressed that, in line with his culture, it had been important to create something out-of-the-ordinary for Charlie’s resting place.
Parish Priest Fr James Gillespie has not responded to our requests for comment.