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ST. PETER'S old boys
gathered in Wexford over the weekend, some meeting face-to-face for the
first time in 41 years. . "There was a great sense of camaraderie and loyalty, although there were stares of disbelief and bewilderment at times", said former pupil Brian Doyle, who has been teaching at St. Peter's for the past 29 years. . Twenty-eight past pupils, who attended the college between 1957 and 1962, joined the reunion which was held at the Ferrycarrig Hotel, on Saturday night, and which lasted until 5 a.m. on Sunday. . Nostalgia 'We departed the hotel at 5 o'clock in the morning after a great night of nostalgia and communal celebration,' said Mr. Doyle. . A total of 94 pupils had contact with the college during the five-year period, 34 did the Leaving Certificate and 10 of the 94 are now deceased. 'It was great to see people there who only had contact with the college for a short while,' said Mr. Doyle. 'It shows the sense of loyalty they have for the college.'  |
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Among past pupils at the reunion were well
known local business people Paddy 'Junior' Kelly,
Jimmy Cahill and Denis Asple.
.
Former pupil Hugh Byrne was unavoidably detained as was Dan Quigley, a
former captain of the Wexford hurling team
.
The senior of the class was Dr. Michael Rossiter and one of the oldest
surviving teachers,
Fr. Seamus De Val, gave an inspiring homily at the
Mass, which was also celebrated by former teacher and principal Fr. Seamus
Larkin, the P.P. from Kilmuckridge. Among the guests were Jim Golden,
a former vice principal at St. Peter's, who has made a great contribution to
both the educational and cultural life of St. Peter's and Wexford town, and
Michael Kehoe, former president of the Past Pupils' Union.
The classmates said they wanted to pay tribute to the nuns of the St. John
of God, particularly
Srs. Ida O'Leary and Mercedes Whyte, who gave great
service in looking after the needs of the college and who were present for
the Mass.
The organisers said it was particularly nice to see Tom Kavanagh
and Leo Basil Kelly who travelled from the United States and Dr. Michael
Rossiter, Brian Murphy and Billy Foley, who travelled from England to be
there,' he said.
One teacher, who was unavoidably absent, was Irish teacher Piaras O'Dalaigh,
who is now living in retirement in Cork. He sent a personal letter to the
class and spoke highly of his memories with them.
St. Peter's Principal, Pat Quigley was unable to attend the reunion
either, but in his card of congratulations referred to the fact that this
particular class had laid the foundation for the record of sporting and
academic excellence for which St. Peter's is famous.
In fact, this class was the first to bring the All Ireland Senior Colleges
hurling title to St. Peter's
in 1962 - an achievement that was to be
repeated three times between then and 1973.