This article is from page 20 of the 2011-08-30 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 20 JPG
A LOVE for Shannon, coupled with a fascination with the US, are behind an international initiative born in Clare which is expected to be introduced later this year.
81-year-old Gerry O’Neill started out his career in Roscommon County Council before joining Clare County Council in 1958. He moved to Clare as a senior staff officer, dealing mainly with housing and water supplies.
“After a short while in the office I was sent out on the road buying land. I used to go down to Shannon. I was always interested in Shannon. Shannon was a whole series of temporary buildings. Anyone who had a job was working in Shannon. The planes going across the Atlantic were propellor planes.
“I was interested in the Irish. I sat down in Shannon and watched what was going on. I watched people emigrating to America. You were never sure what time a plane was coming in at. People came in from America very well dressed and speaking with fancy accents.
“I got to know Brendan O’Regan. He set up the first duty free shop in the world in Shannon. I was very anxious to go to America and see what America was,” he said.
There the fascination with the US was born. It was developed over the years. His love for Shannon, coupled with his interest in the US, prompted him to set about coming up with an idea to form a permanent link that he hoped would boost Shannon.
In the 60s he looked on as various initiatives were organised in an effort to attract tourists to the mid-west. He feels the formation of a Certificate of Irishness would emulate this in the future.
“Medieval tours were organised and groups visited all the villages along the way like Newmarket-onFergus, Sixmilebridge, Quin and Ballyvaughan. People waved at the buses along the way and made the visitors feel welcome,” he said.
Gerry’s first visit to the US was in 1966 and since then he has built up connections with several people living there. “I went to a Clare Association dinner in New York. There was a huge crowd there, mainly people who went there from Ireland in the 1920s. I heard the band playing The green, green grass of home. I saw old men with tears in their eyes. About 400,000 people left Ireland in the 1920s. There was nothing here so they went to America. I got talking to a few of those. Some of them wanted to come back to Ireland to retire,” he recalled.
Inspired by this, Gerry decided to come up with a way he felt could help those living in the US and at the same time ensuring the Irish economy would be boosted.
“Over the years I brought back a good few people to Ireland and helped them to make contacts to get houses here,” he said.
In 2008, he spotted an article in a national newspaper about the government reaching out to the Irish in the US. He was contacted by a government representative. Arising out of this, he later met with government officials, during which he put forward his idea. He says the proposal was welcomed and is looking forward to it becoming a reality later this year.
He believes a Certificate of Irishness would inspire those with Irish roots to visit here in huge numbers.
“Tourism in Ireland would benefit. They would come all year around,” he said.