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Killarney mayor to honour Loreto Sister with humanitarian award

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THE 2017 Hugh O’Flaherty International Humanitarian Award will be awarded to Sr Orla Treacy, a Loreto Sister in South Sudan. Sr Orla, from Bray, Co Wicklow, will be presented with the award by Cllr Niall Kelleher, Mayor of Killarney Municipal District, on Saturday evening, November 4, at a ceremony in the Killarney Avenue Hotel.

This year marks the tenth year of the memorial commemoration of the Monsignor, organised to raise awareness of his humanitarian work during World War Two when he and his colleagues in the Rome Escape Line saved over 6,500 people from the clutches of the Nazis who had occupied Rome at the time.
Sr Orla was nominated by Martin Rosney from Bray, Co Wicklow.

Born in 1973, she moved with her family at the age of two to Tralee where her father Blaise Treacy took up the position of Kerry County Secretary. She was educated initially at Presentation Convent Tralee, until at the age of six when her family moved to Bray, Co Wicklow, where she attended Loreto in Bray, completing her Leaving Cert in 1991. Having studied at the Mater Dei Institute she subsequently taught in Irish schools.

After spending a summer in India with the Loreto Sisters, at the age of 24 she decided to join the Order. Based at the Loreto Convent in Rathfarnham, she was professed as a Loreto sister in September 2005, but within a year, she headed to the large African state of Sudan with four other Loreto nuns to establish a mission in a diocese the size of Italy with just two secondary schools.

She has spent the last 11 years in Sudan, experiencing the trauma of South Sudan becoming an autonomous independent state in 2011 followed by civil war in 2013. Today, South Sudan is widely considered one of the most fragile states in the world with continuing conflict and unrest. Sr Orla is now the principal of Loreto Secondary School in Rumbek in Lakes State, in South Sudan where they have over 500 boys and girls.

The chairperson of the Hugh O’Flaherty Memorial Committee, Jerry O’Grady, said, “Sr Orla possesses and displays the bravery and humanitarian commitment we have come to associate with the recipients of this Award. At a young age and with a bright future ahead of her in Ireland, she decided instead to dedicate her life to those in need in what was already then a virtual war zone.”
 


 
Sr Orla Treacy with students at her school in Rumbek, South Sudan. Pic Courtesy of Paul Jeffrey/Loreto Sisters

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All eyes down as St Oliver’s hosts bumper bingo fundraiser

It will be All Eyes Down as the saying goes on October 23 as St Oliver’s Primary School hosts a bumper Bingo Fundraiser night. The event, which is being held […]

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It will be All Eyes Down as the saying goes on October 23 as St Oliver’s Primary School hosts a bumper Bingo Fundraiser night.

The event, which is being held to raise additional funds for the school’s Special Classes, will take place in the Killarney Racecourse in the Celtic Steps venue.

According to Colm Ó Súilleabháin, Principal of St Oliver’s, the idea for the fundraiser was the brainchild of Denise Hendey, a parent of one of the children in the Special Classes who approached the school wanting to assist with raising much-needed funds for the classes. “She has been utterly amazing with the amount of work and organisation she has put into this event, sourcing an incredible number of fantastic prizes for the raffle and spot prizes for the bingo winners” he said.
Continuing he said “We are so appreciative of the incredible support we have received from all the businesses who have sponsored some amazing prizes and made very generous donations in support of the event.”

St. Oliver’s has eight separate Special Classes, home to 62 children. All monies raised on the night will go towards purchasing additional resources for the classes.

The event will commence at 7pm with doors opening at 6pm. So be sure to come along to what is promised to be a fun-filled night with numerous opportunities to win some amazing prizes and hopefully if there is a ‘knock on the door’ or a ‘bang on the drum’ it will be on your bingo card!

Bingo books (€10) and raffle tickets (€5) are available to buy from the school office and will be available on the night. All welcome. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

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Milltown plan to preserve history in community project 

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The Milltown History and Heritage Society has announced plans for an oral history archive for the community.

It is hoped that the collection and preservation of stories and folklore will be a valuable resource for future generations.

Oral history expert and historian Dr Tomás Mac Conmara will speak in Milltown in support of the launch.

Dr Mac Conmara, who is an award-winning oral historian, lecturer and author, will speak at the Muintir na Tíre Hall in Milltown at 8pm on Friday, October 24 and will introduce the fundamentals for the collection of oral history.

The presentation is free of charge and is supported by funding from the Creative Communities Grant Scheme 2025.

Attendees will be introduced to the practical skills required in interviewing, recording and documenting local heritage.

Stewart Stephans of the Milltown History and Heritage Society said they are excited to have Tomás to set them on the right path towards the development of the archive.

He said: “The collection and retention of oral history needs to be approached properly, drawing on the right advice and maintaining high standards, so we are pleased to be getting the input of such a renowned expert.” The event is open to anyone who would like to attend.

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