Tributes paid for Mayo man receiving Order of Malta award from Rome

A Mayo man has been presented with the Sovereign Order of Malta Cross Pro Merito Melitensi.

John Egan from Knock received the award during the recent Order of Malta Pilgrimage Day at Knock Shrine.

John has been at the heart of providing ambulance and emergency service at Knock Shrine for more than five decades and more than 40 years of those years with the Order of Malta.

This award is one of the highest at international level and was conferred on John by Patrick Downes, co-chair of the Irish Association, after being awarded to him by the Grand Master, Fra John Dunlap and the Sovereign Council in Rome.

READ NEXT: Mayo GAA star helps celebrate special achievement at local school

A number of tributes were paid to John during the ceremony including one from Fr Richard Gibbons, PP, and Rector at Knock Shrine, who lauded John’s devotion and commitment to the Order of Malta, Knock Shrine and the local community down through the years.

John’s first day on duty was May 5, 1973. Since then he has been to the fore presiding over the voluntary emergency services for two Papal Visits (1979 and 2018), the visit of Mother Teresa (1993), and the National Eucharistic Congress (2015) as well as a myriad of other big occasions down the years.

Apart from Knock Shrine, John has coordinated the medical cover for the opening of Knock Airport and several other major events around the region.

He has been to Lourdes 45 times leading groups from around the country and also to Rome on a few occasions including the pilgrimage in 2015 to coincide with the Order of Malta International Jubilee Year.

In 2014, John was conferred with a major honour at an Order of Malta ceremony in Dublin when he was inducted as a Knight of Magistral Grace attached to the Irish Association, an honour acknowledging his years of loyal and unstinting service to the aims and ethos of the Order of Malta.

It was a special afternoon for John and his family as he accepted this latest and prestigious award.

The Order of Malta in Knock has not only served Knock Shrine all down the years but members have also rendered excellent emergency services to the people of the locality on numerous occasions.

It is little wonder that the annual December church- gate collection in Knock receives such generous support. It is, in essence, the people from the region extending grateful thanks to John and the dedicated members of the local Order of Malta Unit for their outstanding service over so many years.

The Retired Archbishop of Tuam, Most Rev Michael Neary from Tuam, was also a recipient of a special award during the afternoon for his spiritual service to the Order of Malta.

READ NEXT: Iconic Mayo Clock Tower now displaying correct time