Latest news with #Seán
Irish Independent
08-06-2025
- General
- Irish Independent
Late Cork man's posthumously-produced play reaps windfall for vital day centre Cuan Álainn
Seán Buckley's involvement with the Sheltered Housing and Day Care Centre began in 1999 when a group of people got together with the ambition to establish these amenities for people from Ballydesmond and surrounding areas. A committee was duly formed with Seán appointed as Chairman, a role he fulfilled until his death in 2023. Twelve houses and the day centre were built to Seán's design with the first residents moving in during October 2002. Mary O' Riordan, Committee member said: 'We thank Seán for his vision, hard work, dedication, wit and wisdom. Two others from our committee Tim Murphy and Pádraig Leader have also passed away RIP.' Cuan Álainn Day Centre opened on Tuesdays and Thursdays in 2004 and continued until the Covid 19 lockdown in 2020. Post Covid, the Centre operates on Tuesdays only. Mary O' Riordan explained: 'Our day consists of morning tea and currant cake, Mass or Rosary, a freshly cooked nutritious lunch, fun exercises, story telling and Bingo. We offer a chiropody service as well as transport to and from the centre. We provide care and attention in a warm and comfortable setting. We are extremely grateful to Seán's family for donating the proceeds from the night in the Community Centre to Cuan Álainn Day Centre.' Although Seán Buckley's play has been staged posthumously, his family recalls that he always kept a diary, avidly read the newspapers and was always 'scribbling'. Before he passed away in 2023, he revealed that he had penned a play. Throughout his working life, Seán was friendly with Tadhg O'Keeffe of Banteer Drama Group and this cast of talented actors subsequently staged 'Roger's Final Farewell' to full house audiences over 11 nights at the Glen Theatre, Banteer. The Group later brought the play to Seán's native Ballydesmond to great acclaim. Tadhg O'Keeffe of Banteer Drama Group described Seán Buckley as a man of many talents, gifted in the arenas of building, architecture, plumbing and electrical work which he ably demonstrated in the family business over his lifetime. Seán was a staunch advocate for animal rights and established a sanctuary for various animals at Coolwood, Killarney. 'Most people were not aware that Seán was also a talented writer, as he ably demonstrated when he penned this play,' Tadhg said. 'Roger's Final Farewell' will be staged at the Everyman Theatre, Cork, by Banteer Drama Group on Sunday, September 7th.
RTÉ News
05-06-2025
- Health
- RTÉ News
Palestinian-Irish doctor Prof Afif El-Khuffash on hope & identity
Episode 17 of the Insights with Seán O'Rourke podcast features a riveting conversation with Professor Afif El-Khuffash, a Palestinian-Irish consultant neonatologist and a professor of paediatrics working at the Rotunda Hospital in Dublin. The doctor, who is also a writer and artist, spoke about identity, caring for critically ill babies and the importance of hope in challenging circumstances. El-Khuffash can still remember many of the pre-term babies he has cared for in his career, but one exceptional case stands out. "The first ever 24-week-old baby that I looked after 19, 20 years ago", he told Seán. "Five hundred grams, never forget her, so critically unwell. I was just starting out in the field, had a lot of support from the consultant at the time, of course, and she survived." Neonatal consultants often stay in touch with the families of the babies they care for, which is what El-Khuffash did with this girl's parents for a number of years. He recalled ringing the girl's mother on her birthday each year to celebrate her with them, but then communication dried up. Then, just three or four months ago, El-Khuffash received a message on Instagram: a photo of a young woman ready to go to her debs. "The caption on the bottom said, do you know who this is?" El-Khuffash said, laughing: "I started panicking saying, is this a child of mine that I wasn't aware of?" Eventually, the mother revealed that the woman was the 24-week-old baby El-Khuffash had helped nurture to health. "That was so wonderful. I was actually having a really bad day that day with things going wrong in the hospital, and it just really reminded me why we do what we do." Hope has been a throughline for El-Khuffash for much of his career, and is a guiding principle for the doctor, writer and activist in all parts of his life. It's something he has carried both to his artistic work and to his fundraising efforts for Gaza, helping to channel resources into the area. "My role as a neonatologist... It's primarily about hope, absolutely", he said. "I always think of it as, we can never control the outcome of what happens, you know, in the course of the baby's journey in the neonatal intensive care unit. We can give support, we can give care, but sometimes, unfortunately, the outcomes aren't what we desire. What we control is our communication with the parent and the hope that we can continue to give them throughout the journey of their baby in the ICU." He told Seán that he never wanted to do medicine, but "almost fell into it by accident". Both of his parents are paediatricians, and he said that seeing them was a way of "scaring me away from doing anything closely related to that because I saw how hard they worked". He made the snap decision to change from one course to medicine after six months of university, and in the space of a week, he had moved to Ireland from Kuwait. He arrived in Ireland in December 1995 and began studying for the 1996 Leaving Cert, which secured him a spot in Medicine at Trinity. It was in Trinity that he finally found a sense of identity and confidence in himself after years of personal confusion about his own nationality. He joked that when asked by his now-wife where he was from, he gave her an answer that took five minutes, and at the end of it, his wife was still none the wiser. El-Khuffash's father is Palestinian, from Marda, a village in the West Bank, and travelled to Egypt to study medicine, but couldn't return after the 1967 war. At the time, Jordan was offering Palestinian nationals amnesty and nationality, which he took to be able to travel. He soon met El-Khuffash's mother, a Kuwaiti woman, in Kuwait. El-Khuffash was born in Kuwait, but the law at the time required you to have a Kuwaiti father to be recognised as Kuwaiti. "So there I was, a little boy growing up in Kuwait, being told that you're neither Kuwaiti nor Jordanian, but you're Palestinian. It creates a lot of confusion for somebody growing up in a situation like that. "For a very long time, I did struggle with identity. Now I say that I'm Palestinian-Irish and I'm sticking to that. It took a long time to actually reach that, and even for somebody that grew up in a place that did its best to remind you you're not from it, it took me a very long time to be comfortable calling myself Irish. I've been an Irish citizen now for 12 years, and only over the last couple of years am I comfortable telling people that I'm Irish."
The Irish Sun
04-06-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
Max O'Leary ready for lift-off with Republic of Ireland after six-year wait
MAX O'LEARY qualifies for Ireland through his late grandfather Seán from Farranfore, best known for Kerry Airport. And the Bristol City keeper is hoping his international career can finally take flight, six years after he was first named in an Ireland squad. 2 Bristol City's Max O'Leary during is hoping for his Republic of Ireland debut against Senegal 2 Max O'Leary qualifies for Ireland through his late grandfather Seán from Farranfore, best known for Kerry Airport O'Leary has been called in, but never played, by Mick McCarthy, But with O'Leary said: 'I'm ready to go and if I get that chance, I'll be happy to take it. It's something I've wanted to do and I've put in the hard work. 'This is just another thing to tick off, and it'd be a great honour. READ MORE ON FOOTBALL 'I've been around a while now and seen a few managers. Hopefully, I'll get my opportunity soon.' The 28-year-old admitted he has spoken to managers about what he needed to do to get picked, having sat on the bench 17 times, and often not even made the squad when He said: 'I think it's been a similar sort of situation as the past - keep doing well at club level and hopefully, you'll get a chance to play. 'Obviously, these are friendlies in this camp, so there might be a chance there. I'm ready if needed. I enjoy it every time I come here, it's great. Most read in Football 'You prepare the same whether you're playing or not playing. I had my time of not playing when I was younger. 'Whatever I can do to help who is playing, I know I'd want the same if I was playing. Germany vs Portugal Nations League clash DELAYED as players are forced to protect themselves from hailstones "So just to have that good environment in training, pushing each other and just making sure we get everything we need for the games is always the most important thing. 'Putting whoever's playing first rather than yourself has been good, whether that's Caoimhin, I know Gav's played before when I've been here. Whoever it is, I'm happy to help. 'Caoimhín is a great 'keeper and a great lad as well. We have a good time when we come away. I think it's a good move for him. "To be playing regular football is what he wants. It looks like he can get that opportunity now.' Whilst Kelleher has moved to Brentford after finding his path to the Liverpool first team blocked by Alisson, Bazunu and Travers both went out on loan in the season just finished in search of regular football. Travers - second choice at Bournemouth - linked up with Middlesbrough with Bazunu going to Standard Liege having been unable to reclaim his spot at Southampton after his recovery from an Achilles tear, only for another injury to curtail his stay in Belgium. Tottenham prospect Josh Keeley, also in this squad, has gained valuable experience with Leyton Orient. But minutes have not been an issue for O'Leary who has started 125 consecutive Championship games since October 2022. He said: 'It is all about timing sometimes. I had to bide my time and be patient, went out on a few loans. 'I know I wasn't ready to make that step up. So, a bit like what Josh has done this year. He's gone out and played really well. 'So, I just had to be patient and wait for an opportunity, just try and take it and stay in. "To be fair, I had been in for five or six games when I went in first, picked up a little knock and missed the rest of the season. After that, I think I got in after 15 games and played the rest of the season. "Nigel Pearson was the manager at the time and he just said 'go and express yourself, you are going to make mistakes. I don't care. I am going to back you'. 'And I think just having that confidence to try and express myself and help the team when I can really helped at the start and just carried it on.' And that run of games means O'Leary feels he is a much better keeper when he was first called up by Ireland in May 2019 when Darren Randolphh was still the country's no 1. He said: 'I have definitely matured and you get into a rhythm of playing, especially with the volume of the Championship, you get to know your body. 'And I feel like I have done well over that longer period of time. Obviously, there are going to be mistakes in there, but the consistency I am really happy with.' He played his part in getting the Robins to the play-offs but they were well beaten by Sheffield United in the semi-finals and there is speculation boss Liam Manning may be on his way out. BRISTOL BOSS O'Leary said: 'He's been great with me, the last 18 months that he has been in, has been really good. The culture has shifted and what he built this year was really, really good. 'If he does go, it will be a huge miss for me. But that's football, people come and go. "I have been at Bristol City long enough now, have seen a few managers come and go, and it moves on fairly quickly. 'People come and go, staff and players and you just have to move on. You just have to get on with it.' And he is confident that, whoever is at the helm, that their squad can again push for the top flight next season. He said: 'We did well this season, obviously we didn't have any additions in January and had that small, tight-knit squad. 'A lot of the lads played a lot of minutes, I think we had the least players used in the league. 'We have lads coming back from loans, a good variety of younger players with more experienced ones. But the core group, if we can keep that, it should be a good year.' A key component of that squad is Jason Knight with O'Leary believing he has grown into his role as club skipper. He said: 'I think for him, it was a big step up at the beginning of the year, being made full-time captain. To see him grow into that role has been really good. 'I think he's been a bit more vocal around the Ireland camps, and he's really stepped up on the pitch for us this year at club level. I know he can bring those performances here as well.'
Sunday World
03-06-2025
- General
- Sunday World
Mother of Irish soldier killed in Lebanon sues State and UN for alleged negligence
Natasha Rooney filed a High Court case last week seeking damages over death of her son Seán in 2022 Private Seán Rooney was killed while on duty with the UN. Photo: Rooney family The mother of an Irish soldier killed in action in Lebanon has taken legal action to sue the State and the United Nations for alleged negligence contributing to his death in 2022. Natasha Rooney filed a High Court case last week seeking damages against the Defence Forces, Tánaiste and Defence Minister Simon Harris, the Attorney General and the United Nations. Private Seán Rooney, a 24-year-old from Newtowncunningham, Co Donegal, was killed while on UN duty in December 2022, when the armoured vehicle he was driving from south Lebanon to Beirut came under fire. Ms Rooney's solicitor Darragh Mackin said the case is a 'civil claim for damages for the failings by both the Irish Defence Forces and the United Nations'. A military court in Lebanon has indicted seven men over the attack. It previously said all were either members of Hezbollah or another allied group. Hezbollah has denied involvement in the attack. Only one man, Mohammad Ayyad, was detained. He was later released for health reasons. The other accused are expected to face trial in absentia. On a visit to Irish troops in Lebanon on Unifil duty in March, the Tánaiste expressed his concern about delays in progressing the cases, which have been postponed until September. Mr Mackin has previously criticised the UN for alleged discourtesy and failing to provide the Rooney family with the full details of reports that have been carried out into the killing, which he said are required to allow an inquest in Ireland to proceed. Seán's mother has shown the ultimate courage in speaking truth to power In a statement last December, issued to mark the second anniversary of Pte Rooney's death, Mr Mackin said his client's grief 'is as immeasurable today as it was this day in 2022'. He said: 'This grief has in many ways been compounded by the disrespect and discourtesy demonstrated by those within the United Nations — who, to date, have not provided our client with the necessary information to allow the inquest to proceed, so the truth can be established. 'Our client's grief is only outweighed by her pride in her late son, who paid the ultimate price to save others. He will forever be remembered for his bravery and courage. It appears that such bravery is hereditary, in that Seán's mother has shown the ultimate courage in speaking truth to power, in holding those responsible to account.' Private Seán Rooney was killed while on duty with the UN. Photo: Rooney family News in 90 Seconds - 3rd June 2025 In March, RTÉ reported that the UN would share more details with his family about its investigation into Pte Rooney's death, via Ireland's diplomatic mission with the United Nations in New York. Last November, the Government appointed Michael Delaney SC to investigate matters surrounding the killing of Pte Rooney. Mr Delaney was asked to examine the training and briefing of Defence Forces personnel, and the planning of the convoy. He may identify areas for learning and recommend changes. His investigation will not look into criminal matters surrounding the attack, as these fall under the remit of the Lebanese criminal investigation. A spokesperson for Simon Harris told the Sunday Independent: 'The Tánaiste will continue to press the Lebanese government on the need to progress this case, so the family of Seán Rooney can receive the justice they deserve.'
RTÉ News
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
DJ Sean M: Meet Ireland's youngest ever festival DJ
DJ Sean M (Seán Meenaghan) is only 11 years old, but he's already spinning the decks at major Irish music festivals. In May, he made his festival debut at Greenfields, and this summer he'll be playing bangers at Beyond the Pale (Saturday and Sunday) and at the Kaleidoscope Festival (Friday evening set). A 5th class student at Colmcille's Senior School in Knocklyon, Seán's journey began before he could even spell turntable - climbing up to reach his dad's decks when he was still a toddler! Florence from RTÉ's news2day went to Seán's school and partied hard! Press play up top to see the report. Seán says: "When I was very young about 3 years old my father would bring in a step so that I was able to reach his decks. Since then I have practiced nearly every day I can remember. I got my very own set of Pioneer decks last Christmas and I'm very proud of them. "My family have gone to Ibiza every summer since I was born. I just love the dance scene over there, my favourite part is going to Cafe Mambo where I have seen Fatboy Slim, Claptone and many more. "It was just the most amazing experience at my school, I got to share my talent with all my school friends - most of them have never seen me play my decks before. It was great to see them all have so much fun and enjoy the music in the sunshine." Now armed with his own Pioneer setup and backed by the powerhouse platform NOISE Music, DJ Sean M has a growing list of gigs under his belt and a serious passion for the decks. DJ Sean M's Top 5 Dance Tunes Solarstone - Seven Cities The Prophet- CJ Bolland Wide Open Space - Mansun (Perfecto Mix) Silence - Delerium Heaven Sent - Bedrock His sound is rooted in House, Progressive House, and Trance, inspired by annual trips to the electronic music mecca of Ibiza. With energy, talent, and a deep love for dance music, DJ Sean M is proving that age is just a number when it comes to lighting up the dancefloor. Follow Seán on the festival circuit on Instagram (Managed by his mam Susan!) and make sure to head over to see him wherever he is playing.
