Sinn Féin TD who grew up in Waterford’s Ballybeg

The Irish Times yesterday carried a profile piece on Sinn Féin TD and its spokesperson on health, David Culliane.

He talks about ‘growing up in the working-class  Ballybeg estate in Waterford, where poverty and inequality lived side by side with a ‘real sense of community’.

“I loved it. Even though we did not have a lot, we had everything, if that makes sense.

“Our parents made sure we had everything. We had good Christmases, good birthdays, we were always able to go on holidays. But I was conscious of the poverty as well.... of the perceptions that people had of the housing estate that I lived in.”

The Dominicans were quick to move to Ballybeg where they had a small community and co-operated in the running of the parish.

Did the Irish Dominicans lose part of their soul when they pulled out of Ballybeg?