Archive (186 life histories found)

My best friend in those days lived across the road from us, his name was Aloysius Kennedy, nicknamed Alo. We spent all our free time together playing games and roaming the neighbourhood. At a late stage in our friendship, just before we left primary…

I never started drinking alcohol, perhaps because there was a record of hard drinking in my family. My uncle Jack was a famous drinker in the Dublin area. Drinking hours were severely tight and being 'found on enclosed premises after hours' was a…

By July my objective had been achieved; I was now a qualified secondary school teacher, looking for somewhere to teach. The daily papers were carrying two or three columns of posts to be filled. For some unknown reason I decided that I wanted to…

I don't know why I decided to go to university in Galway, but I am certainly glad that I did. In 1965 Galway and its university were both small and friendly. I shared accommodation with six other students in a house on Prospect Hill, near Eyre…

It was great to be back in familiar territory, but after a few weeks I got restless again. I brought back very little money from Kenya and needed to start generating income as soon as possible. I did not see any opportunities locally. When John…

These words from the poet John Locke were in my mind as the plane came close to Dublin airport. I was excited about meeting with family and friends and telling them all about Kenya. While they were very pleased to see me I soon realised that they…

At the beginning of 1965 I visited Kitale Club on a few occasions and started getting to know a few people there. It was at an agricultural show in Kitale that I first saw a Toyota vehicle for sale. I had no difficulty with the older farmers and…

Two friends from Eldoret, Tom and Ray, asked me to join them for a holiday in Mombasa in December 1964. We agreed that I would provide the transport and they would help with my hotel bills. The road was good as far as Nairobi. From there to Mombasa…

On the day Kenya achieved independence, 12th December 1963, with Jomo Kenyatta as its first President, some local women did an impromptu traditional dance in front of Matunda church. Across the country the relatively low key celebrations passed off…

About six months after my arrival Vincent decided to leave Eldoret and return to Ireland. This pushed me into getting my own car. JBH gave me an advance on my salary, which was 700 pounds per year, and I bought a second - hand VW Beetle. For the next…