By Michelle Crean

When the world came to a standstill in 2020 due to the pandemic - local photographer Marie Carroll-O'Sullivan decided to document the challenges and help others - and last week she did just that.

Marie's book, 'Killarney Behind the Mask', features life during the initial days of COVID-19 and with the money raised she donated €7,000 worth of gift vouchers to hospital staff last week.

Nursing staff, redeployed nurses, health care attendants, domestic staff, supplies, portering, maintenance, physio and biomedical departments who received the gifts were ‘on the ground’ at the height of the pandemic.

Marie, a columnist and photographer with the Killarney Advertiser, also donated proceeds from the sale of the book to the Irish Cancer Society and Pieta House.

"Not only did she write this beautiful book, she spent the next year pushing sales and we received a substantial donation for all members of staff, unvaccinated at the time, amidst a global pandemic who were truly dedicated to their work at here at UHK," Margaret Griffin CNM, University Hospital Kerry, said.

"We were the people Marie chose to acknowledge. As Clinical Nurse Manager I was humbled to draw up that list. Marie’s promise to us when she photographed many of the staff in UHK in April 2021, was that she would return with gift vouchers of appreciation from all who purchased her book from Killarney, Kerry, Ireland and beyond. Every member of this team was looked after. True to her word, Marie delivered 90 vouchers, from three Killarney establishments who supported her enthusiasm from day one - Brícín Restaurant Killarney, O’Donoghue Ring Hotels and the International Hotel Killarney. Each voucher is to the value of €80 unless we decide to use it at the Killarney Plaza Hotel where an O'Donoghue Ring Hotel voucher will magically, almost double in value, at the hotel's Spa for a one hour treatment of our choice.

"On behalf of my hard working colleagues, I would like to say a huge thank you to Marie, to each and every person who supported and bought a copy of 'Behind the Mask' and to Mary O’Carroll for providing the link to University Hospital Kerry to receive this amazing gesture of kindness. We are truly overwhelmed,” she said.

“It was baby steps all the way," Marie, who said she "was so excited to return to UHK and deliver the goods" explained.

"If I thought too much about the overall graft that writing a book entails, I might have run a mile! With restrictions in place, even if I wanted to, I couldn’t! Killarney is an amazingly generous town which I have had the great privilege to blow into from Roscrea, Co Tipperary. I thank each and every person, from the fiver to the five hundreds, every cent made this project happen."

There are still some copies available in Killarney Eason on Main Street, Kerry Catering Supplies at the Countess Shopping Centre, Carry Out Killarney, SuperValu Tralee and Carrig Road Service Station Roscrea, Co. Tipperary. It is also available online to purchase at Shop Prints — The Little Memory Gallery.