Tuesday, September 02, 2008

Fr Declan




This weekend saw a major change for Irish people living in Paris. One of the rocks of the community has moved back to Ireland and will be missed. Fr Declan Hurley, our Chaplin and confidant, who has been here for the last 4 years has returned to his home town of Navan.

I met Fr. Declan when I first arrived in Paris. He was resident in the Irish College or College des Irlandais in the 5eme. My wife and I lived there for the first 5 months of the first year here in France and we have very fine memories of the time. Fr Declan was undoubtably one of the pillars of the society and he made the community there stronger.

The Irish parishioners commissioned a going away painting for him. A reminder of his stay here and of the college itself. It's painted in oils on canvas.