Certificates for St Joseph’s students

STUDENTS at St Joseph’s Education Centre in Ennis received certificates for courses they had completed during the year this week.
The student of the year was named as Nellie Mongans, who received a plaque from Shelagh Graham, head of human resources, County Clare Vocational Education Committee, at the annual presentation of awards in the Auburn Lodge Hotel, Ennis.
A spokesman for the VEC said that the event had the biggest attendance ever, indicative of great expansion in the centre from humble beginnings over 31 years ago in initial cramped quarters off O’Connell Street in the town. The centre is now housed in Gort Road Industrial Estate, continuing the tradition of being the first education and training centre for Travellers in Ireland.
A number of students were presented with certificates from FETAC, while others were presented with Leaving Certificate Applied and Cook it programme certificates. The latter included men for the first time in a module introduced in conjunction with the Health Service Executive and its community dietician, Dr Anne Griffin.
The formalities began on a rather sombre note with the lighting of a candle to commemorate a former learner, the late Michael Molloy, and William Carr, who died the previous day and whose siblings are learners at the centre.
George O’Callaghan, chief executive officer of the Vocational Education Committee, said that there were many special people at the ceremony who came back into education and stuck with it.
“You are an inspiration to the rest of us,” he told them, adding that Helen O’Connell and her team at the centre comprised a great group of people with positive attitudes.
Ennisman Dónal Griffin, who represented FETAC, said that there had been great achievements among the learners and he encouraged others to go and see the many opportunities the centre offered.
Gerard Griffin, national co-ordinator at the office for senior Traveller training centres in Ireland, which is based in Ennis, and a former director of the Ennis centre, said that major achievements in the centre evolved from tremendous work.
The attendance included Fr Martin Blake, CC, chaplain to the centre, Deputies Timmy Dooley and Pat Breen and representatives of several organisations associated with St Joseph’s.
Besides the student of the year award, other special awards were as follows: best attendance, Patrick Sherlock; best new learner, John Molloy; most helpful learner, Paddy B Mongans; best team effort, Annie McCarthy, Nora Donovan, Mary Sherlock, Julia McDonagh, Julia S Keenan, Margaret McDonagh and Teresa Keenan; greatest contribution to upkeep of centre, Annemarie Carr; best humoured, John G McDonagh; learner showing leadership within centre, Gavin Cording; speaker’s award for representing the centre, Margaret Molloy and Kathleen Mongans; literacy award, Nora Donovan and life-long achievement award, Julia McDonagh.