A beach that was once a place of giggles and happy chaos for the McLaughlin family of Carndonagh will become a place of remembrance tomorrow, on the first anniversary of the deaths of beloved mum and daughter Natalie and Ella McLaughlin.
Pollan Beach at Ballyliffin is now tinged with heartache for all those who loved them.
It holds memories of ordinary days out with Natalie, Ella and Natalie’s youngest daughter Rhea, before the tragic crash that claimed Natalie and Ella’s lives last July.
“I did not go back to Pollan for a long time after. There would be memories everywhere,” said Joanne McLaughlin, Natalie’s mother and Ella’s grandmother.
“I do take Rhea there but it is very hard because they (Natalie and Ella) are not there.
“I would be pushing Rhea on the swing, but I should be pushing Ella on the swing too.
“We hope that, as time goes on, we will get more peace out there, but it is just difficult.”
The late Natalie McLaughlin pictured with her daughters Ella, RIP, and Rhea on the swings at Pollan Beach, Ballyliffin.
Natalie, aged 27, and her six-year-old daughter Ella died following a collision at Carrowmore, Glentogher, near Carndonagh, on 2nd July 2025.
Lochlainn Doherty, of Doaghmore, Clonmany, aged 18, who was driving the other vehicle involved in the collision, appeared in court last week charged in connection with the crash.
Tomorrow evening at 6pm, the McLaughlin family will gather at Pollan Beach, shortly before the time the crash happened at around 6.30pm.
They will be surrounded by relatives, friends and members of the community as they unveil a memorial bench in memory of Natalie and Ella.
There will be tributes, songs from a family friend, a balloon release and a minute’s silence.
Joanne said the family does not want the anniversary to pass in silence.
“This is for everybody to know how much they were loved and what beautiful people they were,” she said.
“It is about bringing people together to remember them.
“It will be the nearest you can get to having them there, because everybody will be thinking about them.”
A natural-born carer, Natalie was the eldest of four, as well as the eldest grandchild and eldest cousin in the family.
Natalie had Ella on 31 May 2019 and began her nursing degree at Magee just months later.
Natalie loved her work as a practice nurse and was known for going above and beyond to help patients.
“She was the kind of person who would give extra time to everybody, and it was sometimes to the detriment of herself because she would be exhausted at the end of the day,” Joanne said.
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“She was all about her kids and looking after other people. It was never about herself.”
Ella, meanwhile, left a lasting mark on everyone who knew her.
For what would have been her seventh birthday, the family gave a friendship bench to her school, Scoil Chroí Naofa, with Ella’s picture on it, so her classmates would have a special place to remember her.
Photo from the launch of Ella’s Friendship Bench, donated to Scoil Chroí Naofa, Carndonagh by Ella’s family
“Ella always had a spark, even from a baby,” Joanne said.
“She was always so full of personality, full of energy, so loud. She started talking early, she was so smart, and she had everybody wrapped around her wee finger.
“She would be the loudest one at the park and she would never walk, she would bounce around the place.”
This anniversary, the family wants people to know who Natalie and Ella were, beyond the tragedy of what happened.
“We are still in shock that they are not here. They were two perfect people. They were a beautiful mother and daughter,” said Joanne.
Little Rhea survived the two-vehicle collision last July, suffering two broken femurs.
Now aged two and a half, Joanne said Rhea is “doing really well” after a long recovery.
Natalie’s former partner, Tyrone Irwin, who is Rhea’s father, was also injured in the collision.
Natalie and Ella McLaughlin, RIP
Pollan Beach and Ballyliffin were part of the family’s normal routine before the tragedy.
On Natalie’s days off, Joanne said, she loved taking the girls to the park, the beach or out for the day.
“Ballyliffin was one of our favourite spots,” Joanne said.
“We would be at the beach in all weathers, going for a walk, taking the dog out, collecting shells or stones.
“Ella loved paddling and would always end up wet on purpose. She loved having her wee sister out at the beach.”
One of Ella’s favourite things was going to see the rabbits near the golf course.
Afterwards, they would often stop at the coffee van for hot chocolate and treats.
Natalie McLaughlin pictured with her daughter Rhea, who was just one and a half at the time of the collision
The memorial bench, painted pale pink, will feature a picture of Natalie pushing Ella on the swing, along with a plaque in their memory.
Joanne said Natalie and Ella have left “a massive, massive hole” in the lives of the whole family.
Joanne said the bench, looking out towards Glashedy, is a simple gesture, but a place for everyone who loved Natalie and Ella to feel close to them.
“It is for everybody to know how much they were loved and what beautiful people they were,” she said.
“They deserve to be remembered.”