Commins Calling
Michael Commins
A Claremorris woman has compiled a remarkable book documenting the stories of Irish missionaries in Nigeria. Beyond Faith and Adventure is the work of Irene Lynch whose husband Joseph is the current Irish Ambassador to Switzerland and who served as Ambassador to Nigeria from 1998 to 2003.
Irene, formerly Duffy from Knock Road, Claremorris, is daughter of the late Maura (nee Hanley) and John Duffy. Her mother was a teacher in Meelickmore National School and her father was a member of the Garda Síochána. Irene and her husband Joe spend regular vacations in Claremorris each year.
The book is dedicated to the memory of another Mayo person, the late Sr Regina Diamond, RJM, from Ballina. “Her radiance illuminated all our lives in Nigeria. Taken seriously ill in Ekpoma in Edo State, she was brought home to her native Ballina where she died in January 2003,” says Irene.
In a foreword, President Mary McAleese says Irene was determined to bring some of the extraordinary stories of the Irish missionaries and their friends to a wider audience and she had done so in an engaging and insightful manner. “Irish missionaries have made an enormous contribution to the physical, spiritual and economic well-being of so many people in the Third World. Nowhere is this more evident than in Nigeria.
“Since the arrival in West Africa of the first Irish Missionaries one hundred years ago, many thousands of Irish men and women have devoted their entire adult lives working in every part of what was to become the Federal Republic of Nigeria in 1960. They brought not only material benefits in the form of education and health care, but also a deep love for the talented and generous people of this vast country.
“Irene brings to life people with different personalities, backgrounds and aptitudes, each telling their stories in a simple yet gripping fashion. United in a desire to preach the gospel in its fullest sense, they continue to reach out to all, while working to build a new and better future for the people of Nigeria. They freely admit that they have often received more than they gave and have become better people, and better Christians, as a result,” says the President.
The book, which runs to around 500 pages, features interviews with several missionaries who recall many of their various experiences in Nigeria as well as memories from back home in Ireland. Among those interviewed is Fr Christopher Clarke from Claremorris who is a Carmelite priest serving in Nsukka since 1995.
In a wide-ranging interview, Fr Clarke makes the following interesting observation. “Nigerians are very optimistic by nature and they seem to have a natural faith. There is very little atheism in their culture and their belief is spontaneous. The present Holy Father, when he was cardinal, remarked that he believed that Catholicism in particular appeals to the African because The Communion of Saints corresponds with their own belief in the Ancestors, and the Catholic world of sacramentals connects with former African pagan rituals.
“The priest in Nigeria has won the battle with his people because before he even gets started, he can assume that they are on his side and that they believe in God. It is so difficult for the priest at home (in Ireland) right now. He has to deal with much scepticism, his authority is suspect and he is faced with the weakened faith of the people.
“Nevertheless, if the priest believes in God, he cannot but remain optimistic and we must not forget that the Church has been through far more difficult times in the past.”
Sr Celsus Nealon from Ballina is with the Franciscan Sisters of the Divine Motherhood and is attached to the Assisi Convent in Rantia, Jos. She recalls: “I was born on December 31, 1942 - the first of 13 children, eight boys and five girls. I was christened Alice Mary Nealon. Both my parents came from farming stock in the Ballina region. I attended the Mercy Convent in Ballina for a few years but in the late fifties, my father, my eldest brother and I moved to England and that is where I finished my education. While there, I was introduced to the FMDM and from the moment I met them, I knew that I wanted to join their congregation and give my life to God by becoming a missionary.”
Others from the region featured in Beyond Faith and Adventure are Sr Chris Gill (MMM) who hails from between Castlerea and Ballintubber and who is in Fuka, Niger State; Sr Mary McGlynn of the Carmelite Nuns who is now based at Tranquila, Knock, and Sr Ethelbert Coleman of the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles who was in Castlemacgarrett, Claremorris when interviewed by Irene for the book. She had come there following a missionary career in Nigeria and Ghana.
Irene Lynch has succeeded in capturing in a very special way a piece of the Irish legacy to Nigeria over the past century. In many ways, it can be no more that just that as the Irish missionary association with Nigeria has been so huge. In the 1950s and 1960s, there were more than 2,000 Irish priests and sisters in that country. Many in this region have had direct associations with the missionary movement through family members and will readily identify with many aspects of this fine book.
• All the proceeds from the sales of Beyond Faith and Adventure are going to St Mary’s Hospital, Eleta, Ibadan, Nigeria. The highly respected hospital is currently in great need of funds. It was founded by the Medical Missionaries of Mary in 1967 and treats people of all creeds and ethnic backgrounds. Copies may be ordered from www.beyondfaithandadventure.
Information sought on Michael Carr
I had an email during the week from a reader from the Westport area in relation to Michael Carr who is listed as the co-composer of South of the Border.
The lyrics of the song were written by the famous Omagh-born songwriter, Jimmy Kennedy, and I understand that Michael Carr was the gentleman who added the melody to the now world famous song.
“Some time last year you wrote an article in The Mayo News about Jimmy Kennedy and ‘South of the Border’. Well, I sent that page to a friend of mine in USA, who is into that kind of thing and he was delighted to get the history of the song.
“He was in touch with me again recently looking for some information on Michael Carr, co-composer of ‘South of the Border’. I know nothing about Michael Carr, except I think he was born in Leeds.
Can you come to the rescue again …in relation to such matters as date of birth, when did he die and was it in Leeds he was born, or any titles of his western songs, or any information you may have about him,” writes our regular reader.
Well, I’m a bit lost at this stage myself and am now appealing to other readers out there who may know something about Michael Carr to contact us by email at micommins@eircom.net or 094 9381531.
I did have the honour of having breakfast with Jimmy Kennedy one morning in the Farnham Arms Hotel in Cavan town during the Cavan International Song Contest.
It was in the early 1980s and it was hard to imagine that this quiet-spoken man of reserved disposition, probably almost unknown to other diners in the hall, had penned so many classic hits over the years and numbers that have been recorded by some of the biggest names in world showbiz.
Among his songs are ‘South of the Border’, ‘Red Sails in the Sunset’, ‘Harbour Lights’, ‘My Prayer’, and ‘Isle of Capri’.
Outlaws a big success
THE Outlaws have been making steady progress around the country in recent months. And in parts of the south and south east of the country, they have now developed a huge cult following.
At one of their recent gigs, they received two encores … after the National Anthem!
Bandleader Sean Hughes from Castleblayney tells us they have added two new members, including the renowned American bluegrass banjo player, Tom Hanley, who has featured at the September Bluegrass Festival in Omagh in recent years.
The Outlaws are playing at the Flock to the Lough Festival near Monasteraden, just a few miles from Ballaghaderreen, on Friday night, July 6. (Mick Flavin is at the same festival on July 7). And Fr Vincent Sherlock is hoping that this will be a huge launching pad for the band here in the western province.
They are without doubt the most original band to arrive on the circuit in years and deserve to be huge.
Popular duo back for Castlebar show
ONE of the country’s most popular country duos of recent times, Thomas Maguire and Fhiona Ennis and their band, are back by popular demand for the regular Saturday night dance in the Ruby Club at the TF in Castlebar on Saturday night.
The prolific recording duo deliver a fine dancing set and recently issued a new single, ‘We’re Still Together’, written by Roscommon man, Frank Nelson, who has his own band on the road.
Their website www.thomasmaguire.com is testament to their growing popularity, boasting entries from Ireland, the UK, Europe, USA and Australia. They are under the management of former Mainliners band-leader, Henry McMahon, who also takes care of the diary for Jimmy Buckley.
Unlucky ‘seven’ for south Mayo TDs
ACHILL singer James Kilbane will headline a special concert in The Friary, Ballyhaunis on Wednesday night, June 27.
The venture is in support of the Irish Medugorje Youth Pilgrimage which will see in the region of 150 third and fourth year students from Westport, Ballyhaunis, Dunmore, Tuam, and other areas journey to the International Youth Festival in Medugorje for a week from July 28.
The Friary concert will be the final date in James' series of concerts across the country and abroad over the past number of months since the release of his popular album, Life’s Miracle, back in March. His special guest on the night will be local Ballyhaunis singer and songwriter, Brian Flanagan.
The country gospel show which James Kilbane has pioneered in recent months has proven a real winner and he has received enthusiastic receptions at all venues where he has performed around the country.
The students from the western region who are flying out on the Youth Pilgrimage in July will join in the region of 30,000 other young people from all over the world who will be converging on Medugorje for the event.
Among the outlets where tickets are available for the concert in The Friary are the Mid West Radio office and The Gem, Ballyhaunis.
They can also be had from the concert committee members or by contacting Mike Byrne at 087 2117938. The show will get under way at 8pm.
Monaghan music legend mourned
TONY LOUGHMAN, who died in his native Castleblayney last week, was a central player in the Irish country music scene for many years. He was aged 64 and had been coping with an illness for some time. He was predeceased by his daughter Edel last year.
During the late 1970s and well into the ‘80s, Tony directed the hugely successful Top Rank organisation that was the biggest management operation in country music on the island of Ireland in those years. Several of the biggest names in the business operated out of the Top Rank stable including Big Tom, Philomena Begley, Susan McCann, Paddy Cole, Hugo Duncan and a host of others.
The company also ran a chain of ballrooms and venues. The furthest flung venue from Castleblayney was the Macra Hall in Abbeyleix.
Tony’s company had its own recording studio in Castleblayney as well as its own weekly publication, Entertainment News, which had a nationwide distribution bringing readers up to date with all the happenings on the country music circuit. I had the privilege of editing the Entertainment News magazine for a time and lived in Castleblayney for some months. In many ways, the Loughman enterprise was an empire within the structures of the country music scene here in Ireland.
Tony started out as a quarryman and often said that it gave him a great grounding in understanding the ordinary people. He later served for a term or two as a member of Castleblayney UDC.
A strong footballer, he won eleven Monaghan senior championship medals with Castleblayney Faughs and was a big supporter of the club all his life. As a teenager, he captained Monaghan to an Ulster minor final win while he also played for the Monaghan senior team for a number of years during the 1960s. Immersed in the culture of the GAA, his son Declan was a member of the Monaghan senior team for several seasons.
But outside his native county, he was mainly associated with the world of country music and the promotion of shows. He was a regular visitor to Mayo and the last time I met Tony was in the TF in Castlebar last year. In recent times, he had being doing a lot of promotion work for Deirdre Reilly, the Nashville-based singer whose dad is from Belmullet.
Fr Brian D’Arcy was the chief celebrant at his Requiem Mass in St Mary’s Church, Castleblayney and among the overflow congregation were many well-known people from the showbiz and circuit including Big Tom, Phil Begley, Derek Davis (RTÉ), Susan McCann, Paddy Cole and many more.
Tony is survived by his wife Joan, sons Declan and Anthony, daughters Caroline and Ciara, in-laws, grandchildren, brother Noel and sister Sheila, relatives and friends.
Sean Keane at Áras Inis Gluaire
GALWAY singer Sean Keane is to perform at the new Áras Inis Gluaire, Belmullet on Saturday, July 7, at 9.30pm.
Sean, who hails from the famous traditional music family from Caherlistrane, needs no introduction to lovers of folk, traditional and country music. Tickets for the concert are available only at Áras Inis Gluaire (the new arts centre based in the civic centre, Belmullet) on 097 81079. Advance booking advisable.
