Transition Year student not resting on his laurels
JUST BACK FROM COMPLETING THE CAMINO, BARRY IS RAISING FUNDS FOR PIETA HOUSE WITH HIS CALENDARS
WHILE it’s not uncommon for some students to switch off and lose focus during transition year, that’s certainly not the case for CBS student Barry Cunnea. Davidstown native Barry has been making the most of his transition year and having recently returned from walking the Camino, he has thrown himself into raising money for Pieta House through his transition year mini-company, selling calendars at events all over town.
Having heard an awful lot about it, Barry decided to embark on the Camino himself on October 20, alongside his great-aunt Ursula and her two friends Liz and Noreen.
‘I had heard of lots of other people doing it,’ Barry said. ‘I thought it would be a great experience for me to do the Camino during my transition year.’
While renowned for its beauty, the Camino is also quite a tough task and Barry and the group walked over 20km per day through some fantastic scenery, beautiful eucalyptus trees and picturesque forests. Along te way the met some other wonderful characters including the two Seans from Ireland and Bob and Kathy who were able to tell them about cousins in Wexford.
‘It was tough going at times, he said. ‘The weather was in the mid 20s. We’d stop every couple of hours for a coffee or tea break and they kept us going.’
Having completed the walk, Barry was presented with his certificate in Latin to mark the achievement, one that he is very proud of. Not to rest on his laurels, however, straight away when he returned from the walk, it was back to his latest venture, selling calendars to raise funds for Pieta House.
‘I’m donating all my profit to Pieta House,’ he explained. So far I have raised over €1,000 and I think I’m the only student in transition year doing it for charity. All of the photos inside are scenic photos from around Enniscorthy and I got sponsorship from local businesses, along with Joe Hogan who is printing them for me.’
Barry has been busy attending craft fairs in recent weeks trying to raise as much as he can for the cause. The calendars are priced at €8 and if you haven’t already got one, he’ ll be selling at St Patrick’s Special School on December 2 and the Vocational College on December 6.