This article is from page 14 of the 2014-08-26 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 14 JPG
FRIENDS of a Polish man who died in tragic circumstances in Ennis earlier this year turned out in large numbers on Friday night to celebrate his memory.
Over 80 people attended a memorial soccer match in Ballycasey between an international selection of players and local club Rineanna Rovers.
The charity match was held in memory of the late Robert Godzisz.
Mr Godzisz, a factory worker who lived in Ennis since 2005, died following a suspected suicide in Ennis in June, four days before his 33rd birthday.
The father of one was a popular figure and respected figure in the community and was known for his love of soccer. He was actively involved in anti-racism campaigns and through his association with the Clare Intercultural Network, helped found the Ennis International soccer team.
Robert worked at the Organic Lens factory in Ennis.
A total of 52 players: Irish, Polish, Slovakian, French and Filipino – all united by soccer and their friendship with Robert – were involved in the game on Friday, which was organised by the Robert’s former club Rineanna Rovers.
Marcin Piotrowski, a friend and former work colleague of Robert, said the purpose of the game was to raise money to cover soccer fees for Robert’s 11-year-old son in Poland.
“From now on every year we are going to play a memorial game,” Marcin explained.
Marcin said he hoped the game would also help highlight the issue of suicide and generate discussion on how it can be addressed.
“In the last few months, two Polish people took their own lives. Our community is shocked about it because everyone knows them well. There are around 2,000 Polish people here in Clare and we all know each other well. People are quite close. For everyone, it was quite a shock. That’s the reason why people are trying to help as much as possible,” he said.
“He was a very important member of our community, always in- volved in soccer, in preparation of the games and building international teams, fighting against racism,” said Marcin of his friend.