MY LIFE IS FANTASTIC
MY LIFE IS FANTASTIC
By PAULINE REYNOLDS
From life behind a mask to the pages of a glamorous magazine - Donna-Marie McGillion is finally banishing the horrors of the Omagh bomb.
This remarkable young woman has survived against the odds and defied the Real IRA monsters, intent on murder.
For three and a half years, she wore a clear Perspex and metal mask 23 hours a day, to help heal the skin grafts on her disfigured face.
But now, she appears in the glossy, upmarket Cosmopolitan, radiant in a stylish blue outfit and beaming with confidence.
The scars are still slightly visible, but her pain now seems only skin deep.
She reveals her true feelings, in a moving interview in the December issue.
"My life is fantastic now - I'm married to a man I love, have a little girl I adore and can't wait to celebrate Christmas," says this inspirational 26-year-old.
Such was the extent of Donna-Marie's injuries, that she was only identified by the engagement ring, given by fiance Garry, now her adoring husband.
She had suffered third degree burns all over her body and a priest read her the last rites three times.
Donna-Marie gives a very honest account of the terrifying first moment, when she held a mirror to her face, while recovering in hospital.
"'Oh God,' I said. 'Look at me, I look like Frankenstein,' she recalls.
"My face was so red and raw, the whole top layer of my skin had been burnt off and I had been left with open wounds."
But Garry, 26, saw far beyond her horrendous injuries.
"Donna Marie, you're still as gorgeous as ever and 'I love you,' Garry said tenderly," she remembers.
"Then he took my hand in his.
'"Let's get married as soon as we can.'"
The couple tied the knot in March 2000.
What should have been the happiest day of their lives, was tinged with sadness at the loss of friends and family in the Omagh bomb.
How could they forget their little 18-month-old niece, Breda, who was to be one of their flowergirls, but perished in the massacre?
Donna-Marie talks about that fateful day, when 29 innocent men, women, children and two unborn babies were blown to pieces.
Garry, who sustained third degree burns down the right side of his body in the attack, spoke to her in hospital, about what he remembered.
"It was like a massive electric shock flung me into the air,' Garry said," she tells the magazine.
'"There was dead silence followed by crying. Then I saw you among the rubble.
'"I called out your name, but you didn't move. I thought you were dead.
"'I touched your hand then you squeezed your fingers and I knew you were alive'."
The courageous mum of a beautiful daughter, 16-month-old Cara Frances, will never let the bombers break her indomitable spirit.
"Lying in intensive care I would never have dreamed that I'd be here today with a family of my own," she says, triumphantly. "I finally feel we've arrived at the end of our journey. We've won."
For the full interview, see December's issue of Cosmopolitan, on sale now.
By PAULINE REYNOLDS
From life behind a mask to the pages of a glamorous magazine - Donna-Marie McGillion is finally banishing the horrors of the Omagh bomb.
This remarkable young woman has survived against the odds and defied the Real IRA monsters, intent on murder.
For three and a half years, she wore a clear Perspex and metal mask 23 hours a day, to help heal the skin grafts on her disfigured face.
But now, she appears in the glossy, upmarket Cosmopolitan, radiant in a stylish blue outfit and beaming with confidence.
The scars are still slightly visible, but her pain now seems only skin deep.
She reveals her true feelings, in a moving interview in the December issue.
"My life is fantastic now - I'm married to a man I love, have a little girl I adore and can't wait to celebrate Christmas," says this inspirational 26-year-old.
Such was the extent of Donna-Marie's injuries, that she was only identified by the engagement ring, given by fiance Garry, now her adoring husband.
She had suffered third degree burns all over her body and a priest read her the last rites three times.
Donna-Marie gives a very honest account of the terrifying first moment, when she held a mirror to her face, while recovering in hospital.
"'Oh God,' I said. 'Look at me, I look like Frankenstein,' she recalls.
"My face was so red and raw, the whole top layer of my skin had been burnt off and I had been left with open wounds."
But Garry, 26, saw far beyond her horrendous injuries.
"Donna Marie, you're still as gorgeous as ever and 'I love you,' Garry said tenderly," she remembers.
"Then he took my hand in his.
'"Let's get married as soon as we can.'"
The couple tied the knot in March 2000.
What should have been the happiest day of their lives, was tinged with sadness at the loss of friends and family in the Omagh bomb.
How could they forget their little 18-month-old niece, Breda, who was to be one of their flowergirls, but perished in the massacre?
Donna-Marie talks about that fateful day, when 29 innocent men, women, children and two unborn babies were blown to pieces.
Garry, who sustained third degree burns down the right side of his body in the attack, spoke to her in hospital, about what he remembered.
"It was like a massive electric shock flung me into the air,' Garry said," she tells the magazine.
'"There was dead silence followed by crying. Then I saw you among the rubble.
'"I called out your name, but you didn't move. I thought you were dead.
"'I touched your hand then you squeezed your fingers and I knew you were alive'."
The courageous mum of a beautiful daughter, 16-month-old Cara Frances, will never let the bombers break her indomitable spirit.
"Lying in intensive care I would never have dreamed that I'd be here today with a family of my own," she says, triumphantly. "I finally feel we've arrived at the end of our journey. We've won."
For the full interview, see December's issue of Cosmopolitan, on sale now.
Further Information
Publisher: SUNDAY LIFE
Ref: SL/145
Published Date: 01-Dec-02
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