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Introductory address delivered by Professor John O' Halloran

13 Sep 2018

TEXT OF THE INTRODUCTORY ADDRESS DELIVERED BY:

Professor JOHN O’HALLORAN, Deputy President and Registrar in University College Cork, on 13 September 2018, on the occasion of the conferring of the Degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, on JIM DENNEHY

Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the NUI and President, Registrar, colleagues, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

 

It is my pleasure and privilege to introduce to you this evening, Jim Dennehy, Co-Founder and President of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind. Jim, I welcome you, your wife Patricia, your daughter Tara and son in law Ger, families, friends and staff of Irish Guide Dogs to this special celebration in your honour.

 

Jim was born in Cork city in 1938 (in St Kevin’s Nursing Home). He grew up at Dennehy’s Cross, an area known to us all.  The area is named after the Dennehy family – his great grandmother moved to Cork from Millstreet in 1835, coming into the city as a widow with one son on a horse and trap.  She leased a pub and some land on either side of the Wilton Road, which was the beginning of the Dennehy’s family businesses in this area (including the car dealership and a shop run by Jim’s mother). Jim was the eldest of 10 children.  He went into the family business after completing his Leaving Certificate (two of his brothers are UCC alumnus). At the time, he told his parents he wanted to be a vet.  They suggested he speak to a vet to decide whether or not it was really the path for him.  He did so and learned that a vet’s life meant you could be called at any hour of the day or night to care for a sick animal.  This put Jim off as he preferred the idea of regular working hours.  As a family, the Dennehy’s always had dogs.  It is interesting that although he didn’t follow the veterinary calling, dogs would always play such an important role in Jim’s life.

 

Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind is a flagship organisation that owes its origin and excellence to you, Jim, and over the last 40 plus years multitudes of people have benefited from the vital work of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind.

 

We honour and salute you Jim for the amazing contribution you have made to the lives of so many people with vision impairments and their families through the creation of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, the nationally renowned facility on the Model Farm Road, of which  we are all so proud.

 

I am aware that as a result of an accident in 1968, Jim became blind.  As a young man working in a busy thriving family motor business and married with two young children, you were determined to become mobile and independent again as soon as possible. Although losing sight was a huge shock, it was an even greater shock to learn there was no mobility training in Ireland at the time.  Ireland then had no facilities to support the independence of blind and vision impaired people and hence you were flown following your accident to Devon in England to a Rehabilitation Centre for the Blind, where you had your first encounter with a guide dog.

 

Lucky for us!

 

It  was there Jim that you experienced the life changing impact that a guide dog could have for a vision impaired person and you were determined that more vision impaired people back home would experience the independence which a guide dog could bring to their lives. Together with his own dogs Jim continued his active work in the garage and embarked on a project that was to change the life of thousands of people, of an entire nation. Jim is full of praise for the dogs he worked with, emphasising how intelligent they were – he was able to say to the dogs “bring me to the office” or “bring me to the shops” and they understood him perfectly.

 

Returning to Ireland with your first guide dog Vanessa, your quality of life improved and together with your friend Mary Dunlop (d. 2004) who was involved in raising money for the UK guide dogs at the time, you set about the foundation of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind in 1976.

From tiny acorns can grow mighty Oaks

 

Mary and you both worked tirelessly in those early years, and I know the big moment came in 1980 when you purchased the house and three acres on the Model Farm Road in Cork for the Guide Dogs Centre. That was a dream come true!

 

Each and every one of us here this evening owes a depth of gratitude to you Jim for the sheer determination and hard work you have engendered into making Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind the world-class centre it is today.

 

Today, Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind have working Guide Dog and Assistance Dog partnerships in every county in Ireland. There are 13,000 people registered blind in Ireland, and several hundreds of families with children with autism have also been helped by Irish Guide Dogs.

 

Guide Dogs act not only as a mobility aid but also as a constant support providing both safety and social benefits. With the help of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, people with vision impairments and young people on the autism spectrum develop the skills and confidence to succeed, have their talents respected, participate in society on parity with their peers and achieve their potential.

 

The range of services that Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind offers people with vision impairment is far reaching and includes Guide Dog Training, Orientation and Mobility Training for adults, and Child Mobility Training programmes for children in primary and second level. These services enable people to fully participate in education, work, travel and leisure.

 

Under your stewardship, and together with the talented staff, groups of volunteers and sponsors, Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind has grown to be internationally recognised as a centre of excellence.

 

As an academic leader, I have seen the change a guide dog brings to students with disabilities here in UCC. It is thanks to your vision for a better future, and a more independent life for those with vision impairments, that UCC is proud to welcome the largest number of blind and vision impaired students participating in higher education in Ireland. The partnership between UCC and Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind has enabled these students to attend college with the help of their trusted friends; their own very special guide dogs.

 

 I would now like to share with you the comments of a few of our students:

  1. Shauna, an Arts degree student from Waterford and her guide dog, Kuto
  2. Donnacha, a BIS graduate and his guide dog Aero

“Kuto cheers me up and keeps me company, I never feel alone anymore. Everyday,

Kuto helps me navigate the college environment independently”

 

“I couldn’t have done it without my best friend and companion, Holly, and now Aero or without the help I have been receiving from Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, almost since the day I lost my sight at the age of 8 years old.”

 

Jim, the relationship between Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind and UCC continues through the project with the Tyndall National Institute, which supports the training and understanding of guide dogs’ behaviours and reactions to stress through the use of bespoke sensor technology.  These sensors will build a picture and allow the dogs have a voice in their training by tracking heart rate, heart rate variability and a number of other bio markers. 

 

Jim, you as President of Irish Guide Dogs and the staff of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind continue year-on-year to lead the way in the innovative supports and services provided to families across Ireland.

 

In 2005, Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind developed the Assistance Dogs Programme for families of children with autism. It was the first organisation in Europe to provide Assistance Dogs for families of children with autism. This programme has had a significant impact on the quality of life of the child with autism and his or her family. Through the positive changes which occur having been matched with a dog, the child with autism is better able to function in the home and, critically, in the external environment.

 

Speaking to a number of people about Jim - a range of words came forward: grit, determination, generosity and a wonderful man.  Many commented on seeing him (a dapper man accompanied by a beautiful woman) and his wife each day walking back and forth from their home to the business at Dennehy’s cross. Each day dinner was eaten at ‘lunch time’ and Patricia and Jim were the epitome of friendship, companionship and love as they walked that journey daily.

 

Jim, what I have captured here this evening is only a snippet of the amazing work that is done on a daily basis at the Irish Guide Dogs Centre.  You have normalised disability in the mind set of Irish people. Today, guide dogs and assistance dogs are part of the fabric of life all over Ireland and as a consequence, young people and families and communities are more inclusive. This would not have happened without your vision and sheer determination.

 

“Something very beautiful happens to people when their world has fallen apart: a humility, a nobility, a higher intelligence emerges at just the point when our knees hit the floor.” Marianne Williamson

 

Through your great work Jim, the tiny Acorn has grown to be the mighty Oak that is

the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind Centre, of which we are all so proud.

 

 

Praehonorabilis Cancellarie, totaque universitas!

Praesento vobis hunc meum filium, quem scio tam moribus quam doctrina habilem et idoneum esse qui admittatur, honoris causa, ad gradum Doctoratus in utroque Jure, tam Civili quam Canonico, idque tibi fide mea testor ac spondeo totique Academiae.

Conferrings

Bronnadh Céimeanna

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