HEADMASTER'S TRIBUTE TO OMAGH BOMB VICTIMS
Headmaster's tribute to Omagh bomb victims
By IAN STARRETT
AN Omagh headmaster has pledged that his school's pupils who were killed in the Real IRA atrocity will never be forgotten.
William Harper, Omagh High School principal, speaking at the annual prize distribution, said the evening was tinged with sadness and coloured by the tragic events of August 15 last in the Tyrone town.
"Alan Radford and Lorraine Wilson should have been present tonight. We are still overwhelmed by the loss of our pupils and former pupils. We are essentially a youthful community in school and I know in moments of personal reflection, over the years ahead, we will cast our minds back to our friends who were killed."
Mr Harper, addressing parents, pupils and guests including the Duke of Abercorn, said that in their memories those killed will always be youthful.
"My thoughts tonight are with the relatives and friends who have lost loved ones and I would wish to assure them that our grief and our memories will not fade and dissipate like the morning mist on a summer's day."
"The school was privileged to act as a focus in the community and we genuinely offer our sympathy to the relatives of our former pupils - Esther Gibson, Debra-Ann Cartwright, Samantha McFarland, Alan Radford and Lorraine Wilson as well as Mrs Hawkes, Mrs McComb and Mrs Short, who were mothers of pupils," he said.
"The injured pupils and former pupils are, in general, making a reasonable recovery although in other situations there is a long way to go before anything like normal health can be restored. Their optimism, strength of character and lack of self pity in the face of difficulties are an example to us all."
He said he was proud of the many pupils and former pupils who "performed heroically at the scene of the explosion".
He said that they wanted to acknowledge the amount of sympathy they had received from throughout Northern Ireland, the rest of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.
"It is clear that people of goodwill everywhere fervently wish such wanton violence as occured in Omagh and indeed other towns to stop."
"Whatever the alleged cause or whatever the political dynamics pertaining at a particular time, violence must stop. I join with the hundreds of people who have contacted us in praying that Omagh will engender such mass revulsion of violence that this evil act will play an important part in eliminating violence from political life."
By IAN STARRETT
AN Omagh headmaster has pledged that his school's pupils who were killed in the Real IRA atrocity will never be forgotten.
William Harper, Omagh High School principal, speaking at the annual prize distribution, said the evening was tinged with sadness and coloured by the tragic events of August 15 last in the Tyrone town.
"Alan Radford and Lorraine Wilson should have been present tonight. We are still overwhelmed by the loss of our pupils and former pupils. We are essentially a youthful community in school and I know in moments of personal reflection, over the years ahead, we will cast our minds back to our friends who were killed."
Mr Harper, addressing parents, pupils and guests including the Duke of Abercorn, said that in their memories those killed will always be youthful.
"My thoughts tonight are with the relatives and friends who have lost loved ones and I would wish to assure them that our grief and our memories will not fade and dissipate like the morning mist on a summer's day."
"The school was privileged to act as a focus in the community and we genuinely offer our sympathy to the relatives of our former pupils - Esther Gibson, Debra-Ann Cartwright, Samantha McFarland, Alan Radford and Lorraine Wilson as well as Mrs Hawkes, Mrs McComb and Mrs Short, who were mothers of pupils," he said.
"The injured pupils and former pupils are, in general, making a reasonable recovery although in other situations there is a long way to go before anything like normal health can be restored. Their optimism, strength of character and lack of self pity in the face of difficulties are an example to us all."
He said he was proud of the many pupils and former pupils who "performed heroically at the scene of the explosion".
He said that they wanted to acknowledge the amount of sympathy they had received from throughout Northern Ireland, the rest of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland.
"It is clear that people of goodwill everywhere fervently wish such wanton violence as occured in Omagh and indeed other towns to stop."
"Whatever the alleged cause or whatever the political dynamics pertaining at a particular time, violence must stop. I join with the hundreds of people who have contacted us in praying that Omagh will engender such mass revulsion of violence that this evil act will play an important part in eliminating violence from political life."
Further Information
Publisher: NEWS LETTER
Ref: NL/193
Published Date: 05-Feb-99
Related Images
There have been no images archived for this article.