ORGANISERS of a North Clare parade, in which one entry depicted a dead man being taken to a post office, have apologised and described the situation as “tone deaf”.
Kilfenora St Patrick’s Day parade was one of a number nationwide to contain floats representing a widely-publicised incident in which Carlow man Peadar Doyle was found to be dead during an alleged attempt to collect his pension. Foul play was ruled out in the 66-year-old’s death last January and Gardaí are continuing their investigations.
After a major backlash following the parades, Orla Vaughan, apologised publicly and sent a letter to Mr Doyle’s family. “To Noeleen, Peadar’s sister and to Liam and Christopher, Peadar’s brothers, I really, really apologise,” Ms Vaughan said on Clare FM.
“I can understand retrospectively, and that’s never a good thing, the hurt it caused them.”
The Kilfenora woman said the committee sent a card last Monday to Mr Doyle’s family and that they would welcome an opportunity to apologise directly.
She added that the organising committee has no role in deciding on entries to the parade and does not vet floats in advance.
“The criteria is, ‘Please turn up with a float’,” she said.
“There is no vetting. To be honest, I wasn’t aware of the float at all until it was coming back down through the village.”
She fully acknowledged the hurt caused to Mr Doyle’s family and community and said that in light of this, vetting of parade entries will be considered in the future.
The apology was welcomed in Mr Doyle’s home town where his depiction caused huge consternation. Former Councillor Walter Lacey welcomed Ms Vaughan’s apology, describing it as “fulsome”.
He had earlier told his local radio station, KCLR FM, that the mockery of the incident was “thoughtless and certainly offensive”.
The former local authority member had contacted parade organisers to seek an apology for the family. He said the matter might yet be raised at the next meeting of Carlow County Council.
Undertaker Rory Healy, who also joined the debate, described the floats as “deplorable and despicable”.
“A more quiet or decent man you wouldn’t come across,” he said.
Fr Tom Little, the Parish Priest of Askea and Bennekerry, celebrated Mr Doyle’s funeral mass and described him as “a very decent man” who was “deeply loved”.
He said his family had been hurt by the parades.
“I feel the family have been very badly treated,” he said.
“St Patrick’s Day is supposed to celebrate what is good about being Irish. I don’t believe that making a skit about somebody’s family is fair.”
On social media, Deputy Jennifer Murnane O’Connor, a TD for Carlow-Kilkenny also spoke out.
“I voiced my disgust at the floats depicting a local family and their deceased relative to officials there and to my colleagues, deputies representing the area,” she said.
“The family deserve an apology and I have called for that.”
It is understood that a parade in Belmullet, County Mayo, also featured a float depicting the incident, as did another in Ardara, County Donegal.