Proud Carrick-on-Suir community fly the colours to support Special Olympian

The bunting is out early in Treacy Park in Carrick on Suir.
Normally taken out of storage in advance of an All-Ireland hurling final, the bunting has made an early appearance to honour a very talented young man.
Treacy Park resident Declan Foley is a member of the Irish Special Olympic team that will be heading to Berlin on June 12 to represent the country.

His family, friends and neighbours in Treacy Park are very proud of Declan and everybody in the community wishes him well in Berlin.
16-year-old Declan, a son of Kathleen and Michael and a brother of Chris, is thrilled to be part of the Special Olympics team.
“I can’t wait to go. There is a lot of hard work involved but it is very exciting, I am very proud to be picked for the Ireland team,” said Declan who will compete for honours in the equestrian competitions in Berlin.
“I will be very busy over there and I will be taking part on a number of days. It is hard work getting ready but it will be worth it all,” said Declan.

SCOIL AONGHUSA
Declan, a pupil at Scoil Aonghusa in Cashel, will be competing in the equation, trail ride and dressage events on the biggest stage of them all.
Declan started horse riding as part of a school therapy group classes in 2015 at the equestrian centre of Thomas and Fiona Ryan in Thurles.

It soon became apparent that Declan had a talent with horses. His posture and composure stood out and that talent was identified and nurtured by a dedicated team of coaches.
Those coaches, Ger Ryan Meagher, Anita Manton and Stephanie Moore, will accompany Declan to Berlin as part of his team.

His mother Kathleen will also go to support him as will his 82-year-old grandfather Pat Cleere, who has just returned from Lourdes where he received a medal to mark his voluntary work over a long number of years.
“I am very, very proud of Declan. It will be amazing to be there. I want to thank everybody for putting up the flags and bunting on the estate and I want to thank everybody who helped Declan over the years,” said Kathleen. Declan has represented Munster and Ireland with great distinction on numerous occasions over the last few years.

MEDAL COLLECTION
The walls of the house in Treacy Park are adorned with pictures and gold medals while Declan proudly opens up drawers to reveal even more medals from his huge array of awards. Among them is the gold medal he won in the Special Olympics national games as an 11-year-old. Berlin is a good hunting ground for Declan as he competed in national games there last year, coming home with more medals to add to the collection.

“Declan has worked very hard to get to this level and he deserves this wonderful opportunity. Scoil Aonghusa are so excited and proud to have Declan represent our school on a national team on the world stage,” said Ger Ryan Meagher.