Three Honoured At Cobh Civic Reception

Paul Bridgeman, Clodagh Kilcullen & Frank O'Brien - Photo by Pat Bransfield

Special Olympians Clodagh Kilcullen and Paul Bridggeman, along with long time Special Olympic Volunteer Frank O’Brien were awarded a Civic Reception at Cobh Town Hall last Friday evening. Clodagh who won a 5-A-Side Bronze Medal and Paul who won three medals in total for bowling, one gold each for both team and doubles events and one silver for the individuals, were also presented with a framed specially commissioned parchment incorporating a print of Philip Gay’s unique art.

Mayor Jim Quinlan opened the evening when he said ”We are gathered here this evening to recognise not just three local people but a movement which epitomizes the traditional Olympic spirit and a movement that has, at its heart the very essence of community spirit.The foundations on which the Special Olympic Movement is based encapsulate all that is best about community and the spirit of volunteerism. In recent years we in Ireland lost sight to some degree of what was truly important and while I would never say that the economic climate we now live in is a good thing, maybe we can take something positive from these austere times in the shape of greater community spirit and I think we can certainly see a shift in that direction in our own town.

Photo by Pat Bransfield

”A community with a united direction and voice, with a strong spirit of volunteerism and with a positive outlook on what is being and will be achieved is the kind of community we should all strive to develop. In this way we can learn a huge amount from the Special Olympic Movement. This is a movement which is built from local level and is hugely dependent on local volunteers with a global participation of over 3 million athletes in more than 150 countries.”

A variety of groups including Clergy, Gardai, Naval Service, Cobh Tourism, Councilors were in attendence along with the athlete’s coaching staff, friends and families.

Photo by Pat Bransfield

Photo by Pat Bransfield