O’Flaherty award for rescue services
THE Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty Memorial Weekend proved another success, with the highlight an evening in Killarney House to celebrate the Scarlet Pimpernel and the presentation of the annual International Humanitarian Award in his memory.
The Monsignor ensured the safety of over 6,500 civilians in Nazi-occupied Rome, and celebrating the bravery and humanitarianism of modern-day heroes, seven nominations were submitted to the independent award panel. The chosen three continue to ensure the public’s safety – the Irish Coast Guard, Kerry Mountain Rescue and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.
It’s the first year that the award did not go to an individual nor to a single humanitarian organisation, and to commemorate these services, Mayor of Killarney Municipal District Cllr John Sheahan presented each with Humanitarian Award Citation Scrolls on behalf of the people of Killarney.
Representatives of the O’Flaherty family and Memorial Society presented the Hugh O’Flaherty Humanitarian Medal, and the schools of Killarney Parish came together to generate a school’s bursary for the award recipients.
In presenting the awards, the mayor said that “the brave and selfless members of the Irish Rescue Services deserve not only our admiration, but our practical support in whatever way we can.”
The awards were accepted on behalf of the three organisations by Jimmy Laide (Kerry Mountain Rescue), John Draper (Irish Coast Guard) and Richard Quigley (RNLI).
Saturday’s awards ceremony also saw the official launch by Colm Cooper of Patricia Murphy’s novel ‘Leo’s War’, a book for young people based on Monsignor Hugh’s wartime activities.