Sr. Carmel Fallon and Athy's Irish Wheelchair Association

In this the centenary of the 1916 Rising it is a privilege to celebrate another centenary, that of Sr. Carmel Fallon who on 5^th February became a centenarian.  I have written previously of the gracious lady, small of stature but big of heart who for the past 81 years has been part of our lives here in South County Kildare.

The future Sr. Carmel was born Carmel Fallon in the parish of Kilchrist, Co. Galway a few miles south west of the town of Loughrea.  She entered the Convent of Mercy here in Athy in August 1935, as did many others from the west of Ireland from the time the Convent opened in 1852.   Sr. Carmel took her triennial vows on 16^th February 1938 and three years later her final vows.  Following the completion of her training as a teacher in Carysfort College, Dublin she returned to Athy to teach in Scoil Mhichil Naofa.  Her subsequent teaching career was spent between the girls primary school and St. Joseph’s Boys School. 

Before Sr. Carmel retired from teaching in 1980 she had secured a remedial class and the services of a psychologist for Scoil Mhichil Naofa.  Outside of school hours Sr. Carmel founded a youth club for local girls with the assistance of Sr. Dolores and Sr. Alphonsus.  However it was following her retirement that Sr. Carmel fulfilled perhaps her most important role outside her religious life with the development of the Irish Wheelchair Association here in Athy. 

The Irish Wheelchair Association was founded in 1960 by a small group of wheelchair users who had participated in the first Paralympic Games held in Rome.  In September of that year the inaugural meeting of the Irish Wheelchair Association took place in the Pillar Room of the Mater Hospital Dublin, attended by several members of the Irish Paralympic Games team as well as a number of interested individuals.  It is noteworthy that the founding meeting was held in the Dublin Hospital established by Mother Mary Vincent Whitty, who came to Athy in 1852 to take charge of the new Convent of Mercy and the nearby convent schools. 

The Irish Wheelchair Association was founded primarily to improve the lives of people with physical disabilities by securing equality and access for wheelchair users.  Providing employment and housing for wheelchair users as well as encouraging social interaction were also further aims of the Association. 

The Athy branch of the Wheelchair Association was founded in 1969 when Sr. Carmel and the late Sr. Alphonsus came together with a number of local people.  The local branch provided a range of activities for wheelchair users with socials in Mount St. Marys and summer holidays spent in boarding schools operated by the Sisters of Mercy.  None of this could have been done without the help of volunteers, both male and female, who from the very start devoted their spare time and energies in helping Sr. Carmel in her determined effort to provide services for the disabled.  Amongst those who were involved in the early days of the Wheelchair Association in Athy were Leo Byrne, Lily Murphy, Mary Malone, Mary Prior, Michael Kelly, Bridget Brennan, John Morrin, Tommy Page, Paddy Timoney, Dinny Donoghue, Phoebe Murphy, Caroline Webb, Peadar Doogue, Fr. Lorcan O’Brien and Fr. Denis Lavery. 

The Athy branch of the Wheelchair Association under the leadership of Sr. Carmel was the first branch of the provinces to provide a Day Centre.  The only other such facility in the country was in the Association Headquarters in Clontarf, Dublin.  Teach Emmanuel was developed within the grounds of St. Vincent’s Hospital and represented a partnership between the Irish Wheelchair Association and the Health Board.

In 1992 Sr. Carmel was appointed President of the National Organisation of the Irish Wheelchair Association and she held that position for 10 years.  Her appointment as National President of the prestigious organisation was a recognition of her pioneering role in the successful development of services for the disabled in County Kildare.  Sr. Carmel retired as National President in 2002.

Looking back over the work of the Sisters of Mercy here in Athy and elsewhere over the years I am struck by the enormous debt we a community and as individuals owe the religious sisters.  Apart from their role in education and their charitable works amongst the needy the inspiring work of Mercy nuns such as Sr. Carmel, Sr. Consilio, the late Sr. Dominic, Sr. Joseph and so many others must surely ensure that the legacy of the Sisters of Mercy will never be forgotten.  Best wishes to Sr. Carmel from a grateful community on the occasion of her 100^th birthday.

Sr. Carmel Fallon and Athy's Irish Wheelchair Association

In this the centenary of the 1916 Rising it is a privilege to celebrate another centenary, that of Sr. Carmel Fallon who on 5^th February became a centenarian.  I have written previously of the gracious lady, small of stature but big of heart who for the past 81 years has been part of our lives here in South County Kildare.

The future Sr. Carmel was born Carmel Fallon in the parish of Kilchrist, Co. Galway a few miles south west of the town of Loughrea.  She entered the Convent of Mercy here in Athy in August 1935, as did many others from the west of Ireland from the time the Convent opened in 1852.   Sr. Carmel took her triennial vows on 16^th February 1938 and three years later her final vows.  Following the completion of her training as a teacher in Carysfort College, Dublin she returned to Athy to teach in Scoil Mhichil Naofa.  Her subsequent teaching career was spent between the girls primary school and St. Joseph’s Boys School. 

Before Sr. Carmel retired from teaching in 1980 she had secured a remedial class and the services of a psychologist for Scoil Mhichil Naofa.  Outside of school hours Sr. Carmel founded a youth club for local girls with the assistance of Sr. Dolores and Sr. Alphonsus.  However it was following her retirement that Sr. Carmel fulfilled perhaps her most important role outside her religious life with the development of the Irish Wheelchair Association here in Athy. 

The Irish Wheelchair Association was founded in 1960 by a small group of wheelchair users who had participated in the first Paralympic Games held in Rome.  In September of that year the inaugural meeting of the Irish Wheelchair Association took place in the Pillar Room of the Mater Hospital Dublin, attended by several members of the Irish Paralympic Games team as well as a number of interested individuals.  It is noteworthy that the founding meeting was held in the Dublin Hospital established by Mother Mary Vincent Whitty, who came to Athy in 1852 to take charge of the new Convent of Mercy and the nearby convent schools. 

The Irish Wheelchair Association was founded primarily to improve the lives of people with physical disabilities by securing equality and access for wheelchair users.  Providing employment and housing for wheelchair users as well as encouraging social interaction were also further aims of the Association. 

The Athy branch of the Wheelchair Association was founded in 1969 when Sr. Carmel and the late Sr. Alphonsus came together with a number of local people.  The local branch provided a range of activities for wheelchair users with socials in Mount St. Marys and summer holidays spent in boarding schools operated by the Sisters of Mercy.  None of this could have been done without the help of volunteers, both male and female, who from the very start devoted their spare time and energies in helping Sr. Carmel in her determined effort to provide services for the disabled.  Amongst those who were involved in the early days of the Wheelchair Association in Athy were Leo Byrne, Lily Murphy, Mary Malone, Mary Prior, Michael Kelly, Bridget Brennan, John Morrin, Tommy Page, Paddy Timoney, Dinny Donoghue, Phoebe Murphy, Caroline Webb, Peadar Doogue, Fr. Lorcan O’Brien and Fr. Denis Lavery. 

The Athy branch of the Wheelchair Association under the leadership of Sr. Carmel was the first branch of the provinces to provide a Day Centre.  The only other such facility in the country was in the Association Headquarters in Clontarf, Dublin.  Teach Emmanuel was developed within the grounds of St. Vincent’s Hospital and represented a partnership between the Irish Wheelchair Association and the Health Board.

In 1992 Sr. Carmel was appointed President of the National Organisation of the Irish Wheelchair Association and she held that position for 10 years.  Her appointment as National President of the prestigious organisation was a recognition of her pioneering role in the successful development of services for the disabled in County Kildare.  Sr. Carmel retired as National President in 2002.

Looking back over the work of the Sisters of Mercy here in Athy and elsewhere over the years I am struck by the enormous debt we a community and as individuals owe the religious sisters.  Apart from their role in education and their charitable works amongst the needy the inspiring work of Mercy nuns such as Sr. Carmel, Sr. Consilio, the late Sr. Dominic, Sr. Joseph and so many others must surely ensure that the legacy of the Sisters of Mercy will never be forgotten.  Best wishes to Sr. Carmel from a grateful community on the occasion of her 100^th birthday.

Eye on the Past 900

On Thursday last the Athy branch of the Irish Wheelchair Association celebrated the 50th anniversary of the founding of the first branch of the National organisation. Teach Emmanuel was ‘en fete’ for the occasion as volunteers, past and present, returned to acknowledge the wonderful work undertaken by that most underrated of organisations.

The I.W.A. was founded in 1960 by a small group of wheelchair users who had participated in the first Paralympics Games held in Rome. In September of that year the inaugural meeting of the I.W.A. took place on 10th November 1960 in the Pillar Room of the Mater Hospital Dublin, attended by several members of the Irish Paralympics Games team, as well as a number of civic minded individuals. Given the later history of the Athy branch of the Association it is, I feel, significant that the founding meeting was held in the Dublin hospital established by Mother Mary Vincent Whitty. This was the same Sister of Mercy who came to Athy in 1852 to take charge of the new Convent of Mercy and the nearby Convent Schools.

The Irish Wheelchair Association was founded primarily to improve the lives of people with physical disabilities and today the organisation has a network of 20,000 members with over 2,000 staff and many dedicated voluntary workers supporting and encouraging independence for all. The I.W.A. seeks to improve equality and access for wheelchair users as well as providing employment and housing, while encouraging social interaction. A quarterly magazine ‘Spokeout’ is published and made available to members of the Association.

Pride of place at the 50th celebrations went to Sr. Carmel Fallon and Sr. Alphonsus Meagher, both Sisters of Mercy who were part of the small group who in 1968 established the local branch of the I.W.A. It was these two Mercy nuns who with their colleague, the late Sr. Dolores, formed a girls club in Athy in 1968. The young club members were encouraged to visit wheelchair users in their homes and very soon the possibility of establishing a branch of the I.W.A. in Athy became a reality.

The driving force in setting up the branch was the Co. Galway born Sr. Carmel Fallon who entered the convent in Athy in August 1935. The year was 1969 and very soon the local branch developed as socials for wheelchair users were held in Mount St. Mary’s, annual Christmas dinners were arranged and summer holidays were spent in boarding schools operated by the Sisters of Mercy. None of this could have been done without the help of volunteers, both male and female, who from the very start devoted their spare time and energies to helping Sr. Carmel in her determined effort to provide services for the disabled, while integrating them fully into the local community.

Amongst the early volunteers (and apologies if anyone has been overlooked) were Leo Byrne, Lily Murphy, Mary Malone, Mary Prior, Michael Kelly, Bridget Brennan, John Morrin, Tommy Page, Paddy Timoney, Dinny Donoghue, Phoebe Murphy, Caroline Webb, Peadar Doogue, Fr. Lorcan O’Brien and Fr. Denis Lavery.

The Athy branch was in time to provide a fulltime activity service for the disabled and the first Day Centre outside of the association’s facility in Clontarf, Dublin was opened in Athy. Teach Emmanuel was developed on a site in the grounds of St. Vincent’s Hospital and represented a partnership between the Health Board and the Irish Wheelchair Association. It also confirmed, if confirmation was needed, that the diminutive nun from the West of Ireland had an admirable record of achievement since arriving in the South Kildare town at the height of the economic war of the 1930s.

In 1992 Sr. Carmel was appointed president of the Irish Wheelchair Association National Organisation and held that position for 10 years. She is now retired from active involvement in the day to day work of the local association, but still retains a kindly watching brief over the work of Teach Emmanuel.

The 50th celebration was graced by the presence of many of the volunteers, past and present, without whose work and efforts over the years the local branch of the Wheelchair Association could never have been expected to survive. That it has survived and indeed prospered, despite depending so heavily on voluntary financial donations and voluntary workers, is a measure of the generosity, not only of the volunteers involved, but also of the Irish public who can always be counted upon to help those who need their help the most. The Athy branch of the Irish Wheelchair Association can be justifiably proud of its many achievements in helping the physically disabled to better integrate with the local community. At the same time the people of Athy and district can take pride in the continuing success of a local organisation whose presence is a welcome addition to the medico social facilities of south Kildare.

Last week I wrote of the new Traffic Management Plan for Athy and referred to an alternative plan proposed by a group which I understood was the Irish Farmers Association. In fact I am told the plan in question arises from discussions within the Athy Traffic Action Committee and has the support of a large section of the business community. I gather their plan has not yet received the backing of the Town Council but perhaps that support will come when the Council members sit down with members of Kildare County Council to consider the Traffic Management Plan prepared by the Council’s consultants.

Hugh Bolger of 6 Offaly Street passed away last week. A native of Ballylinan he worked for many years in the Wallboard factory and his funeral was marked by a Guard of Honour of members of Ballylinan Gaelic Football Club and by the attendance of many of his former work colleagues from the now long closed Barrowford complex. Hugh married Loy Hayden, now sadly deceased, whom I fondly remember as part of the Offaly Street family of the 1950s. She and her brother Seamus lived with their aunt Mrs. Kitty Murphy and her husband Joe at No. 3 Offaly Street before moving to No. 6 when the Taaffes vacated that latter address to move next door to No. 5.

I had departed Athy for ‘foreign parts’, i.e. Naas, before Hugh married Loy and moved into No. 6. I got to know him over the years and he became part of the familiar Offaly Street background at a time when several of the older families were still living there. It is now a street much changed from my young days and the community of which I was a member and of which Hugh was later a welcome part of, has disappeared. Hugh was one of the last links with that street community and his passing is much regretted. He is survived by his daughters Sinéad and Áine and his grandchildren to whom our sympathies are extended.

Eye on the Past 900

On Thursday last the Athy branch of the Irish Wheelchair Association celebrated the 50th anniversary of the founding of the first branch of the National organisation. Teach Emmanuel was ‘en fete’ for the occasion as volunteers, past and present, returned to acknowledge the wonderful work undertaken by that most underrated of organisations.

The I.W.A. was founded in 1960 by a small group of wheelchair users who had participated in the first Paralympics Games held in Rome. In September of that year the inaugural meeting of the I.W.A. took place on 10th November 1960 in the Pillar Room of the Mater Hospital Dublin, attended by several members of the Irish Paralympics Games team, as well as a number of civic minded individuals. Given the later history of the Athy branch of the Association it is, I feel, significant that the founding meeting was held in the Dublin hospital established by Mother Mary Vincent Whitty. This was the same Sister of Mercy who came to Athy in 1852 to take charge of the new Convent of Mercy and the nearby Convent Schools.

The Irish Wheelchair Association was founded primarily to improve the lives of people with physical disabilities and today the organisation has a network of 20,000 members with over 2,000 staff and many dedicated voluntary workers supporting and encouraging independence for all. The I.W.A. seeks to improve equality and access for wheelchair users as well as providing employment and housing, while encouraging social interaction. A quarterly magazine ‘Spokeout’ is published and made available to members of the Association.

Pride of place at the 50th celebrations went to Sr. Carmel Fallon and Sr. Alphonsus Meagher, both Sisters of Mercy who were part of the small group who in 1968 established the local branch of the I.W.A. It was these two Mercy nuns who with their colleague, the late Sr. Dolores, formed a girls club in Athy in 1968. The young club members were encouraged to visit wheelchair users in their homes and very soon the possibility of establishing a branch of the I.W.A. in Athy became a reality.

The driving force in setting up the branch was the Co. Galway born Sr. Carmel Fallon who entered the convent in Athy in August 1935. The year was 1969 and very soon the local branch developed as socials for wheelchair users were held in Mount St. Mary’s, annual Christmas dinners were arranged and summer holidays were spent in boarding schools operated by the Sisters of Mercy. None of this could have been done without the help of volunteers, both male and female, who from the very start devoted their spare time and energies to helping Sr. Carmel in her determined effort to provide services for the disabled, while integrating them fully into the local community.

Amongst the early volunteers (and apologies if anyone has been overlooked) were Leo Byrne, Lily Murphy, Mary Malone, Mary Prior, Michael Kelly, Bridget Brennan, John Morrin, Tommy Page, Paddy Timoney, Dinny Donoghue, Phoebe Murphy, Caroline Webb, Peadar Doogue, Fr. Lorcan O’Brien and Fr. Denis Lavery.

The Athy branch was in time to provide a fulltime activity service for the disabled and the first Day Centre outside of the association’s facility in Clontarf, Dublin was opened in Athy. Teach Emmanuel was developed on a site in the grounds of St. Vincent’s Hospital and represented a partnership between the Health Board and the Irish Wheelchair Association. It also confirmed, if confirmation was needed, that the diminutive nun from the West of Ireland had an admirable record of achievement since arriving in the South Kildare town at the height of the economic war of the 1930s.

In 1992 Sr. Carmel was appointed president of the Irish Wheelchair Association National Organisation and held that position for 10 years. She is now retired from active involvement in the day to day work of the local association, but still retains a kindly watching brief over the work of Teach Emmanuel.

The 50th celebration was graced by the presence of many of the volunteers, past and present, without whose work and efforts over the years the local branch of the Wheelchair Association could never have been expected to survive. That it has survived and indeed prospered, despite depending so heavily on voluntary financial donations and voluntary workers, is a measure of the generosity, not only of the volunteers involved, but also of the Irish public who can always be counted upon to help those who need their help the most. The Athy branch of the Irish Wheelchair Association can be justifiably proud of its many achievements in helping the physically disabled to better integrate with the local community. At the same time the people of Athy and district can take pride in the continuing success of a local organisation whose presence is a welcome addition to the medico social facilities of south Kildare.

Last week I wrote of the new Traffic Management Plan for Athy and referred to an alternative plan proposed by a group which I understood was the Irish Farmers Association. In fact I am told the plan in question arises from discussions within the Athy Traffic Action Committee and has the support of a large section of the business community. I gather their plan has not yet received the backing of the Town Council but perhaps that support will come when the Council members sit down with members of Kildare County Council to consider the Traffic Management Plan prepared by the Council’s consultants.

Hugh Bolger of 6 Offaly Street passed away last week. A native of Ballylinan he worked for many years in the Wallboard factory and his funeral was marked by a Guard of Honour of members of Ballylinan Gaelic Football Club and by the attendance of many of his former work colleagues from the now long closed Barrowford complex. Hugh married Loy Hayden, now sadly deceased, whom I fondly remember as part of the Offaly Street family of the 1950s. She and her brother Seamus lived with their aunt Mrs. Kitty Murphy and her husband Joe at No. 3 Offaly Street before moving to No. 6 when the Taaffes vacated that latter address to move next door to No. 5.

I had departed Athy for ‘foreign parts’, i.e. Naas, before Hugh married Loy and moved into No. 6. I got to know him over the years and he became part of the familiar Offaly Street background at a time when several of the older families were still living there. It is now a street much changed from my young days and the community of which I was a member and of which Hugh was later a welcome part of, has disappeared. Hugh was one of the last links with that street community and his passing is much regretted. He is survived by his daughters Sinéad and Áine and his grandchildren to whom our sympathies are extended.