PUPILS IN TRIBUTE TO OMAGH VICTIMS
Pupils in tribute to Omaghvictims
By Seamus McKinney
CLASSMATES of Omagh bomb victim, Samantha McFarland, held a poignant assembly at Strabane Grammar School on the first day of the new term yesterday.
Samantha (17) was to have sat her A-level exams next year but slip was killed with her best friend Lorraine Wilson in the explosion which tore the centre of Omagh apart on August 15.
While she had originally studied at Omagh High School, Samantha moved to Strabane Grammar on completing her GCSEs.
As her classmates gathered yesterday for the first time since her funeral, staff at the school led what one teacher described as a "traumatic" morning assembly.
School principal, Louis Lacey, led prayers for Samantha and other victims of the Omagh tragedy.
Following assembly. Mr Lacey said staff had tried to give pupils the chance to express their feelings about the deaths and about Samantha's death in particular.
The head teacher told pupils about the various forms that grief often took and stressed that everyone needed time to come to terms with any death.
He also urged the students to use teachers and other counsellors to talk through their feelings and learn to cope with their grief.
"The pupils came back with ways in which they would like to remember Samantha and we will consider them all," Mr Lacey said.
He also revealed that Samantha's mother had requested that a book of condolences be opened at Strabane Grammar so that pupils could record their sympathies.
"Most of her classmates and most teachers met at Samantha's funeral but this was the first time they had come together since then.
"Meeting in uniform again as they did this morning was traumatic." Mr lacey said.
The Strabane teacher revealed that his staff intended meeting experts from England trained in how to deal with situations such as the aftermath of the Omagh bombing.
But most counselling offered to students would be on an in-house basis as many teachers at the school were qualified in counselling, he said.
Describing Samantha as a popular student among the 380 pupils at Strabane Grammar, Mr Lacey said she was very caring and outgoing.
Meanwhile at Scoil losagan in Buncrana where Oran Doherty and Sean McLaughlin should have started a new school year yesterday, teachers were surprised at how well their classmates coped with the trauma.
After receiving advice from the Republic's Department of Education, staff maintained a low key approach to the new school year, holding separate classroom assemblies and praying for the dead.
Vice-principal of the school, James McBride, who should have been eight-year-old Oran's teacher this year said he was surprised and proud with the courage shown by the Buncrana youngsters yesterday.
"I brought them in and went through the names of the new class and said is that them all, I thought we should have one more.
"One of the young lads said we should but he can't be here," Mr McBride said.
The Co Donegal teacher revealed that the entire class then prayed to young Oran for help with their studies in the coming year.
While yesterday's first day of term passed off well, Mr McBride said staff believed that the children could face crisis in the months ahead as the enormity of what happened to the class mates sunk in.
By Seamus McKinney
CLASSMATES of Omagh bomb victim, Samantha McFarland, held a poignant assembly at Strabane Grammar School on the first day of the new term yesterday.
Samantha (17) was to have sat her A-level exams next year but slip was killed with her best friend Lorraine Wilson in the explosion which tore the centre of Omagh apart on August 15.
While she had originally studied at Omagh High School, Samantha moved to Strabane Grammar on completing her GCSEs.
As her classmates gathered yesterday for the first time since her funeral, staff at the school led what one teacher described as a "traumatic" morning assembly.
School principal, Louis Lacey, led prayers for Samantha and other victims of the Omagh tragedy.
Following assembly. Mr Lacey said staff had tried to give pupils the chance to express their feelings about the deaths and about Samantha's death in particular.
The head teacher told pupils about the various forms that grief often took and stressed that everyone needed time to come to terms with any death.
He also urged the students to use teachers and other counsellors to talk through their feelings and learn to cope with their grief.
"The pupils came back with ways in which they would like to remember Samantha and we will consider them all," Mr Lacey said.
He also revealed that Samantha's mother had requested that a book of condolences be opened at Strabane Grammar so that pupils could record their sympathies.
"Most of her classmates and most teachers met at Samantha's funeral but this was the first time they had come together since then.
"Meeting in uniform again as they did this morning was traumatic." Mr lacey said.
The Strabane teacher revealed that his staff intended meeting experts from England trained in how to deal with situations such as the aftermath of the Omagh bombing.
But most counselling offered to students would be on an in-house basis as many teachers at the school were qualified in counselling, he said.
Describing Samantha as a popular student among the 380 pupils at Strabane Grammar, Mr Lacey said she was very caring and outgoing.
Meanwhile at Scoil losagan in Buncrana where Oran Doherty and Sean McLaughlin should have started a new school year yesterday, teachers were surprised at how well their classmates coped with the trauma.
After receiving advice from the Republic's Department of Education, staff maintained a low key approach to the new school year, holding separate classroom assemblies and praying for the dead.
Vice-principal of the school, James McBride, who should have been eight-year-old Oran's teacher this year said he was surprised and proud with the courage shown by the Buncrana youngsters yesterday.
"I brought them in and went through the names of the new class and said is that them all, I thought we should have one more.
"One of the young lads said we should but he can't be here," Mr McBride said.
The Co Donegal teacher revealed that the entire class then prayed to young Oran for help with their studies in the coming year.
While yesterday's first day of term passed off well, Mr McBride said staff believed that the children could face crisis in the months ahead as the enormity of what happened to the class mates sunk in.
Further Information
Publisher: THE IRISH NEWS
Ref: IN/0349
Published Date: 02-Sep-98
Related Images
There have been no images archived for this article.