Category Archives: Miscellaneous

Dear Past Pupil,

Hopefully, by now you will know that the PPU Annual Dinner will take place at the Westbury on 25th. January 2025 and we look forward to seeing as many past pupils as possible on the night. I hope the few photos below from past dinners will help to “whet” your appetites.

I would like to share a few thoughts on the importance of the event and some of the issues faced by the PPU at this time.

The Annual Dinner is the highlight of the PPU year. It provides a chance to meet former school colleagues, it celebrates the ROW Person of the Year and also serves as a valuable fundraiser to help us support the school and its students. Since Covid, hotel and restaurant costs have risen dramatically and this impacts relatively small functions such as ours. Indeed, our colleagues at Synge Street and O’Connell’s PPUs did not hold their annual dinners in 2024 because of these reasons.

Member support is absolutely essential to allow us to continue to hold the function. We are grateful to those past pupils who regularly attend the dinner and we again need your support. I would appeal to all past pupils to make the effort and come along to what is always a very enjoyable occasion.

We are currently engaged with the Westbury about the cost of the upcoming dinner. Thanks to the efforts of John Murray and Jim Conway in particular, they have scaled back their quotation and we now expect to hold the cost at the 2024 level. We are conscious that 70Euro is still a high price but we are guaranteed to receive good value and service from the Westbury.

Separately, you will be pleased to hear that the school continues to flourish under the excellent leadership of Principal, Kate Byrne, and her staff. Pupil numbers are up again this year and they provide an essential service to pupils in the local area as well as many from overseas who come to them in difficult circumstances. The PPU continues to play a valuable role in assisting the school and students financially and in other ways and we could could not do this without the support of a large number of past pupils.

The PPU has lost many long standing members in recent years and 2024 is no exception. Indeed, as I write this message, news is coming through on my phone of the sudden death of Paddy Walsh of the class of 64. Paddy was a great supporter of our dinners and will be sadly missed. May he rest in peace. We lost a former President, Jerry Carroll, in May this year having lost another President , Bryan O’Higgins late last year. Thankfully, we have filled these gaps on committee with Gerry Doyle (class of 73) and Eddie Kelly, recently retired school Deputy Principal. Eddie served forty one years at the ROW which certainly beats the socks off the rest of us for time spent in that famous old building. Eddie has already been a great help to the PPU with advice and assistance in trying to expand our membership. I would like to wish him well in his golfing endeavours also as he recently came into office as Captain at Westmanstown GC.

The issues we face are common to all PPUs but, with the support of our members, we are determined to carry on and do our best to develop and expand the PPU. We are looking at ways to attract a younger cohort of members especially those who attended the school since the co-education days. This will take time, however, well beyond the Annual Dinner date of 2025 so we need your support as always.

As regards the January Dinner, we will need to give firm attendance figures to the Westbury in early January. To plan for that I am asking you to respond over the next few weeks as to whether you will attend on January 25th. If you would like to spread the cost, we can accept a deposit of 35euro at this stage with the balance to be paid in mid January. Payment can be made to the PPU bank account as per the details below. Please make sure to show your name and “Dinner” on the bank transfer details.

In the meantime, don’t forget that our annual Mass for deceased past pupils will be celebrated by the Archbishop at st. Andrew’s, Westland Row on Sunday December 1st at 11.30am. We have two more names of deceased past pupils to add to the list already mentioned, namely, Sean Canavan and Paddy Walsh. If you are aware of any other past pupil who passed away since early December 2023 please let us know.

Regards, Dan Ferrari, President PPU.

Westland Row CBS, Past Pupils Union

BANK ACCOUNT DETAILS

Current Account

Account Number 10367025

IBAN, IE16 BOFI 9013 7810 3670 25

Foxrock Golf Club has played host to the PPU year end golf outing for many years. Our original contact was through the late Des Stirrat and, nowadays, Foxrock member and past pupil, Brendan Malone looks after us very well indeed.

Twenty four past pupils and guests enjoyed the course and the hospitality of the clubhouse on Thursday October 3rd. Conditions, on the day were excellent and, even though only sixteen holes were open for play, the scoring was very good.

Society Secretary, Tony Kenny was in charge of the organisation and did an excellent job as usual. Captain Eamonn Cleary, was in his usual good form and the craic was mighty during the after dinner speeches and prize presentation.

Dermot Soraghan was unveiled as Captain for 2025 and he appealed to past pupils to support the outings next year.

Prize Winners

1st. Kevin Ryan

2nd Dennis Cleary

3rd. Des Mooney

Best on Par Threes Dermot Soraghan

Front 8 Pat Wallace

Second 8 Brian Cleary

Below are a few photos at the presentation

Ray Behan, who graduated from the ROW, at the age of 15, in the late seventies, addressed about 100 students of the 5th and sixth year classes in the school on August 28th. Ray told of how he sustained a serious head at the age of seven whilst playing on a swing in Ringsend Park but how he overcame this trauma to become renowned as the “Man Who Changed His Brain”. Through his profound journey of self-discovery and education in a number of fields, Ray has unlocked the transformative power of reshaping one’s mindset to reshape life itself. Drawing from his own experiences, he passionately shares how it’s not only possible but achievable, as he has demonstrated and others have since followed suit. Through his teachings and workshops, he has touched countless lives around the World empowering individuals to embrace their innate potential.

Ray admitted that his audience was the youngest he had ever addressed but he skilfully adjusted his presentation to suit the occasion. A large number of teachers attended and all agreed that it was a very useful way to start the new academic year.

The PPU was represented by Pat Neill, Gerry Doyle and Jim Conway. Ray’s nephew, Jordan (class of 2022) and Ray’s Classmate, Stephen Doyle were also in attendance. Ray arranged for a video to made be made of the entire occasion and, hopefully, the PPU will be able to share that through News Blog in due course.

After the presentation Ray, Jordan, Stephen and his secretary, Antonella, went on a walk about the school.

I managed to get a few photos which are below. I hope to get more later when the video becomes available.

Sixth Year Graduation Day May 9th 2024

Thirty Two Leaving Cert students attended their graduation ceremony in St. Marks on Thursday May 9th.

The ceremony was very well organised and Deputy Principal Cathriona O’Sullivan was an excellent master of ceremonies. The ceremony featured input from students, parents and teachers including a ceremony of light, speeches and music.

The PPU would like to wish all of the students every success as they embark on the incredible adventure that lies ahead of them.

As I said above, there were many parents of the students present in St. Marks. There were also a few grandparents including myself (Jim Conway, class of 62) to witness my grandson, Euan Ryan, graduate. It was a very nostalgic moment for me as I thought back to the June day in 1962 when I left the ROW. I remarked to Kate Byrne, School Principal, that there were no graduation ceremonies in those days and it felt that we were being thrown out into a difficult environment where jobs were scarce and we had to “sink or swim”

Euan Ryan (class of 2024) grandson of Jim Conway (class of 1962)

School Prizes Presentation May 22nd 2024

The school students and teachers as well as representatives of the PPU gathered in St Marks on Wednesday May 22nd for the annual prize presentation ceremony. The PPU was absent from this ceremony during the Covid years but was pleased to reconnect with it this year and to present the Students of the Year awards. We were ably represented by John Cullen and Brian Duncan for what was a very enjoyable occasion.

There were three awards for each class – Best Pupil, Most Improved Pupil and, most notably, the Pupil who best demonstrated the values of Blessed Edmund Rice. All the award winners and the teachers were acknowledged by the audience with enthusiastic applause. As is noted on the school website, the school provides a wide range of extra curricular and sports activities, and pupils who participated in these activities were presented with individual certificates to acknowledge their achievements.
After a period during which, because of low pupil numbers, there was little sporting activity, it is worth noting that participation in inter schools’ sports is back, even if it is in sports, which were known in the “old days” as “ foreign games”. The girls junior tag rugby team won a junior inter schools team award. Coaching is provided by Rugby Ireland and the current coach is Maz Reilly who has played on the Irish international team. The boys also had success, winning an inter schools shield and reaching another final. John Cullen was disappointed that there was not a hurley to be seen! Other sports activities include chess and pool. Hopefully, we will have another Ken Doherty in the future.
The ceremony concluded with the awarding of the Leaving Certificate Student of the Year awards. These awards are sponsored by the Past Pupils Union. In making the presentations Brian said that John and himself had left the school 60 years ago and still have happy memories of their school days and friendships made that lasted down the years. This was a particularly nostalgic occasion for Brian as he was the recipient of Student of the Year award in 1964. Back in those days it was called An Mir Sciath (the Merit Shield). On behalf of the PPU Brian wished those leaving the school this year every success in the Leaving Cert and in their future lives.

The award for the Leaving Certificate Student of the Year went to Keira Joy Cabamungan and the award for the Leaving Certificate Applied went to Saoirse Sheridan.

Below are a few photos of the prize ceremony 2024 style!

Mattie (Class of 62) passed away on Thursday June 13th. A large group of family and friends, including a number of past pupils gathered on Monday June 17th for Mattie’s funeral Mass at the Church of the Assumption Dalkey.

Mattie was a native of Dalkey and he travelled by train to school at the ROW. On leaving school Mattie and his brother Jack set up a building contracting business which flourished for many years.

Mattie was a very good hurler and footballer at school and later with Clanna Gael Fontenoy, Dalkey Mitchels and Cabinteeley GAA. His daughter, Sara, said that he hurled into his fifties. He played in goal during his later years and she recalled seeing him with his hurley resting against the upright while he had a puff on a cigarette when the play was down the far end. He was very quick to drop the cigarette and grab the hurley when the ball came near. He was a good singer and he was the first to get a party started. He was a regular at PPU golf outings as well as a number of class of 1962 outings. Mattie passed away within a few weeks of another 1962 man, Jerry Carroll.

Emmet (class of 62) passed away on March 15th. News Blog published a tribute to him on March 28th.

Tommy Mulloy and Johnny Murray represented the PPU at Emmet’s Funeral Service at Mount Jerome on Tuesday March 26th. Johnny passed me on the Service Booklet and it is reproduced below for the benefit of those of us who could not make it Mount Jerome on the day.

Westland Row CBS past pupil Emmet Bergin died unexpectedly at the age of 79 on Friday March 15th. Past pupils of the 1962 Leaving Cert Class remember well him as a classmate even though the Irish Independent Obituary said that he left school at the age of 15 “prompted by his questioning mind and difficulty with authority”

Emmet took acting lessons at the Brendan Smith Academy, delivered newspapers and read voraciously ranging from the great playwrights to the Stanislavsky method of acting. His first job in theatre was as an assistant stage manager in the Eblana, located below Busaras in Store Street.

The role involved providing prompts from the wings, and he told his daughter, poet Tara Bergin, that observing the cast was as good as “acting school” – he enjoyed the craft and the collaborative aspect of the theatre. Possessing an excellent memory, he invariably knew everyone’s lines as well as his own.

He toured with the Irish Theatre Company and later signed up to the Abbey School of Acting. He was cast in the first production of Brian Friel’s, PHILADELPHIA HERE, I COME in the Gaiety as part of the 1964 Dublin Theatre Festival.

His many stage roles in the following years included parts in Sam Shephard’s, TRUE WEST,Sean O’Casey’s, THE SILVER TASSIE, and Hendrix Ibsen’s, HEDDA GABLER.

He had an early taste of film with a small part in David Lean’s, RYAN’S DAUGHTER, shot in Kerry in 1969. That same year he married Sarah – their 55th wedding anniversary would have been on March 25th.

Emmet’s younger brother Patrick (a Row Man as well) also pursued an acting career and is a celebrated film actor.

Emmet played Sir Ulfius in John Boorman’s, EXCALIBUR, in 1981. Two years later he became a household name, and flame, as philandering solicitor Dick Moran in the Wesley Burrow’s scripted RTE soap. GLENROE.

“He wasn’t remotely like Dick Moran” Geraldine Plunkett, who played opposite him as Mary McDermott, recalls. “In fact, Emmett was kind, serious, well read and very well liked among the cast” He was cast as Sunday Independent editor, Aengus Fanning in Joel Schumacher’s 2003 film Veronica GUERIN,but never expressed an interest in moving to Hollywood as he and Sarah were well settled in Ireland.

He Continued on theatre and radio and his work for RTE Drama on One included John Boorman’s THE HIT LIST. He also performed in Maeve Binchy’ comedy about aging, GOLDEN MY ARSE.

Producer Aidan Mathew’s described Emmet as “a wonderful actor, with presence and aplomb” he was also described as “a sweet, smart, funny and generous artist”

Emmet is survived by his wife Sarah, son Gavan, daughter Tara, grandson Jack and extended family.

Six more photos from PPU Annual Dinner at the Westbury Hotel on Saturday January 27th. below –

Forty nine past pupils and five guests enjoyed a good evening at the Westbury on Saturday January 27th. Highlight of the evening was the presentation of the PV Doyle trophy for Row Person of the Year 2024 to Gerry Keenan (class of 1971). President, Dan Ferrari, outlined Gerry’s career which culminated in his appointment as Chief Executive of Irish Life Investment Managers. Gerry’s biography was posted in a recent News Blog.

Replying to President Dan, Gerry said that he was honoured and delighted to be voted as Row Person of the Year. He was very impressed with the school as it is today and he referenced, in particular, the banner at the school entrance celebrating the Community Award “School of Distinction 2023”. He believed the award to be a great representation of the success of the staff and students in promoting diversity and inclusion in CBS Westland Row today. Gerry said that he was amazed to learn that there are more than 220 pupils in the school with over 30 countries and 20 plus languages represented. He said that the school motto which says that “CBS Westland Row is a school where your child is known and valued’ is an outstanding statement of the school values.

In her address, School Principal, Kate Byrne, said that the school was doing well and she thanked her staff for their dedication and hard work. She also thanked the PPU for their continued support. She said that the financial support provided to pupils by way of bursaries and assistance was very important and gratefully received.

Many thanks to John Murray for the photographs taken on the night. Some of these are below and I hope to post others over the coming weeks.

President Dan Ferrari Presenting the PV Doyle Trophy to Gerry Keenan

Gerry with wife Liz, son Colm and daughter Ciara

Visitors from Synge St, Joey’s and O’Connells with Brian Duncan and Dan

Row Person of the year 2024, Gerry Keenan, paid a visit to his old Alma Mater on Friday January 26th. After a welcome from Principal, Kate Byrne, with coffee and scones prepared by some of the students, Gerry addressed a large gathering of pupils from Sixth, Fifth and Transition years. Drawing on his own experiences, after he sat the “Leaving” and left the Row in 1971, Gerry clearly struck a chord with his young audience. Having no fixed thoughts of what career he wished to pursue, he sat for the Junior Executive exam and was awarded a place in the Civil Service. Gerry was only a few weeks in the job when he realized that he did not like it and left to work for the Simon Community as a volunteer. Obviously, a new career had to be carved out, so Gerry went to UCD and obtained an Arts degree. After that he studied at the London School of Economics. His career path next took him to UCC as a lecturer and roles at the Economic and Social Research Institute as well as the Central Bank. He joined Irish Life Investment Managers in 1984 working in various roles before becoming Chief Executive in 2005.

Gerry said that the spirit of perseverance which he got whilst trying to get a place on the Row football team stood him in good stead in his work years and he urged his audience not to give up no matter how bad things may appear. He said that he never got beyond first sub for the team but he always turned up and never gave up hope. He said that it was alright to fail but always “get back on the horse” and you will get there in the end. Also, he urged the pupils not to “bottle up” problems but talk to parents, teachers, mentors and friends. Help is always available. He said that he was particularly impressed with the spirit of friendship which exists between Westland Row past pupils. he said that he met many during his working life including Brian Duncan and Brendan Hayes who worked with him in Irish Life and made him welcome there. He urged the students to stay in touch after graduation.

Gerry and a number of his 1971 classmates went on a tour of the school after his address and were very impressed with what they saw.

Below are a few photographs taken by John Murray on the day –

PPU Treasurer (and Blogger) Jim Conway with his grandson Euan Ryan and Gemma Kelleher, sixth year students who were among the attendance at Gerry’s address.

ABOVE – Gerry receiving his PPU tie from President Dan Ferrari

BELOW – PPU members Eddie Hanlon and Dr. Kieran Jack McGinley (Class of 71) and Neil Murray (Class of 64) enjoy refreshments provided by the students before Gerry’s address.