WOMAN BLINDED IN OMAGH BOMBING WINS TOP AWARD
Woman blinded in Omagh bombing wins top award
WOMAN blinded in the 1998 Real IRA Omagh bombing received a prestigious training award in London last night.
Claire Bowes (24) offers advice to others suffering sight loss after battling back from her own trauma.
She was among eight winners from Northern Ireland covering women's education, environmental management and use of information and communications technology.
Ballyclare Grammar School in Co Antrim, St Columb's College in Derry and Barnardos were also among prize-winners at the ceremony.
Claire was blinded when she was 15 in the Real IRA bombing of Omagh which killed 29 people, including a mother pregnant with twins.
She graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a degree in music in 2004 after learning new ways of studying and working.
Speaking at her graduation she said she was "just delighted to have got to this stage".
"It is another important milestone for me. There have been difficulties put in my way in life but I haven't let them hinder me," she said.
During her degree course Claire appeared in an inspirational television advertisement for the Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB).
She later attended a course at the RNIB helping children with music and is now an eye clinic liaison officer.
Other winners were Invista Textiles (UK) Ltd, Maydown, Intercomm, Belfast's Women's Enterprise and Vocational Education Programme and the Southern Group Environmental Group, Armagh, which helps reduce pollution from businesses.
The Now Project in Belfast also promotes skills for people with learning disabilities, while Barnardos' Parenting Matters initiative in Carrickfergus, Co Antrim, supports vulnerable patients like lone parents and victims of domestic violence.
St Columb's College and Ballyclare Grammar School were both rewarded for use of technology.
WOMAN blinded in the 1998 Real IRA Omagh bombing received a prestigious training award in London last night.
Claire Bowes (24) offers advice to others suffering sight loss after battling back from her own trauma.
She was among eight winners from Northern Ireland covering women's education, environmental management and use of information and communications technology.
Ballyclare Grammar School in Co Antrim, St Columb's College in Derry and Barnardos were also among prize-winners at the ceremony.
Claire was blinded when she was 15 in the Real IRA bombing of Omagh which killed 29 people, including a mother pregnant with twins.
She graduated from Queen's University Belfast with a degree in music in 2004 after learning new ways of studying and working.
Speaking at her graduation she said she was "just delighted to have got to this stage".
"It is another important milestone for me. There have been difficulties put in my way in life but I haven't let them hinder me," she said.
During her degree course Claire appeared in an inspirational television advertisement for the Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB).
She later attended a course at the RNIB helping children with music and is now an eye clinic liaison officer.
Other winners were Invista Textiles (UK) Ltd, Maydown, Intercomm, Belfast's Women's Enterprise and Vocational Education Programme and the Southern Group Environmental Group, Armagh, which helps reduce pollution from businesses.
The Now Project in Belfast also promotes skills for people with learning disabilities, while Barnardos' Parenting Matters initiative in Carrickfergus, Co Antrim, supports vulnerable patients like lone parents and victims of domestic violence.
St Columb's College and Ballyclare Grammar School were both rewarded for use of technology.
Further Information
Publisher: THE IRISH NEWS
Ref: IN/0859
Published Date: 14-Dec-07
Related Images
