ANDREW MCGINLEY, the grieving father who lost all three of his children last year, has been forced to shut down a Facebook page created in their memory after it was targeted for vile abuse by trolls.
McGinley’s three young kids - Conor, Darragh and Carla – were killed by their mother Deirdre Morley at the family home in Co Dublin in January 2020.
Morley was found not guilty of their murder by reason of insanity following a trial last week.
Eager to keep the memory of his children alive, McGinley set up the page “Conor’s Clips” on Facebook, sharing videos, photos and other memories from their lives and time together.
These would include funny sketches and happy moments from the lives of Conor and his siblings Darragh and Carla.
However, in a cruel development, the devastated dad has been forced to close the page after receiving unnecessary and ignorant comments from online trolls.
According to McGinley, the remarks were “about me and my family from people who have no knowledge of mental health, our family or anything relating to life with mental health".
"They type with an air of confidence but when challenged by me they delete their posts,” he continued.
"Whether they post for 'likes' from fellow trolls, I don't know, but I think there are too many here that I don't find anywhere else. Therefore, I'm choosing to go."
Though McGinley was keen to stress he was made of “tougher stuff” and would not be affected too much by the comments, he felt it was the right move for his own wellbeing.
Conor’s Clips will still have a presence on other social media platforms like Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
McGinley is keen to use these pages not only to keep the memory of his family alive but also raise awareness of the various initiatives he has set up in their memory.
These include As Darragh Did, a charity established to encourage greater involvement in local community initiatives.
In addition to this, he has also setup Snowman for Carla, a colouring competition for his daughter who loved colouring “especially snowmen”.
