Row Person of the Year 2026

Vivian Guerin – Class of 1974

The Past Pupils Union is delighted to announce that Vivian Guerin has been elected ROW Person of the Year for 2026. Vivian was born (1957) and raised in Windy Arbour, Dublin, the eldest in a family of six children. He joined the Department of Social Welfare as a Clerical Officer in early 1975, before leaving to complete a Bachelor in Social Science degree (UCD – 1979 to 1982). He subsequently worked as a social worker with Dublin County Council, before joining the Irish Probation Service as a probation officer in 1987. He worked in the Probation Service, in various roles and levels, for almost thirty-three years. He was appointed National Director of the Probation Service in 2012, a position he held for seven years, up to his retirement at the end of 2019. He holds a number of postgraduate qualifications including a research masters degree.

Vivian was appointed Adjunct Assistant Professor in the School of Social Work and Social Policy, TCD in 2020 where he currently teaches modules on the two TCD social work programmes. He was commissioned in 2020 by then Minister for Justice Helen McEntee TD to complete a review and report on drugs, crime and community safety and wellbeing in Drogheda, following the brutal murder of seventeen year old Keane Mulready-Woods, which led to the establishment of the Drogheda Implementation Board.

He has published numerous articles in academic journals and a textbook, Probation and Parole in Ireland: Law and Practice, with Dr. Shane McCarthy. He is a Fellow of the (London based) Probation Institute and currently chairs, and has chaired and served on, a large number of national and EU committees and panels.

Vivian is married to Paula (née Fitzpatrick), they have two children; a son Karl and daughter Nicole along with a grandchild, Lauren.

Please see the PPU Blog for full details.

Change of date for the Annual Dinner – November 1st, 2025.

For many years one of the key events of our year, the Annual Dinner, has been held on the last Saturday in January. Following consultation with our members the PPU has decided that the next dinner will be held on Saturday, November 1, 2025. Thanks to the continued support of the family of the late P V Doyle the Dinner will again be held in the Westbury Hotel. At the Dinner a presentation will be made to the Row Person of the Year.

Tickets for the Dinner cost €75 and can be obtained from the PPU Secretary John Cullen or any member of the Committee.

Monsignor Dan O’Connor celebrates his Golden Jubilee

Monsignor Dan O’Connor, (Class of 69) recently celebrated his Golden Jubilee. Dan was ordained on June 16 1975 in St. Patrick’s Church Ringsend. His jubilee mass was celebrated in St. Patrick’s on Sunday July 27

A large number of family members including Dan’s brother, sister-in-law, nieces and extended family were present on the happy occasion. The Church was also full with hundreds of parishioners from Ringsend and Irishtown as well as parishioners from his former parishes in Rush, Swords and Dun Loaghaire.

Dan has been a strong supporter of the PPU and a regular attender at our Annual Dinner. The PPU were represented at the Mass by the President, Pat Neill. Photographs from the occasion are available on the Westland Row CBS PPU Blog. Note, clicking on the link will take you out of this website directly to the blog.

30th Anniversary – Sergeant Paul Reid RIP.

On the 18th of May, 1995, Paul Reid, Class of 1974, died while serving overseas in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Paul was on secondment duty with the United Nations peacekeeping force UNPROFPR in Sarajevo, having been appointed Administrator for that area.

Paul Reid was born on 5 January 1956 and came from Dundrum, Dublin. He joined An Garda Síochána on 3 August 1977 and was allocated to Letterkenny in 1978. He was appointed to Detective Branch in 1982 and promoted to Sergeant in 1990. Paul was married to Rosemarie and had 3 children, Aoife, Connor and Eoghan who joined An Garda Síochána.

On the 18 May 1995, Sergeant Paul Reid and his colleague Garda Phillip Carr were returning to base from their peace monitoring duties at Sarajevo Airport. As they travelled through Snipers Alley in the city, their official vehicle was struck by a snipers bullet which caused it to go out of control and crash, injuring Garda Phillip Carr and fatally injuring Sergeant Paul Reid.

Paul was recently remembered by his former colleagues in the Garda Síochána Retired Members’ Association (GRMSA). Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Pat Neill elected President.

Pat Neill (class of 1973) was elected as PPU President at the AGM on March 27th. 2025. Pat was elected Row Person of the Year for 2020 and has served on the committee for a number of years. He is a keen golfer and a regular player on the ROW society outings. Pat joined An Garda Siochana in 1974 and was appointed Detective in 1978 involved in the newly formed anti terrorist unit. He reached the rank of Inspector. In 1997 Pat completed his academic education with the International Executive Master in Business Administration at Smurfit Business school. Pat had a long and outstanding career in An Garda Síochána prior to joining the Dundrum Shopping Centre as Security Manager. Pat was invited to join the Board of Board of Dun Laoghaire Chamber of Commerce in 2008. From May 2016 to May 2018 Pat served as President of the DLR Chamber of Commerce. The accompanying photograph shows Pat Neill receiving the Chain of Office from the immediate Past President, Dan Ferrari. Please the see the PPU Blog for further information.

Blast from the past.

In June 2015, Don Cameron (class of 1971), published a News Blog about the school’s 1964 Centenary celebrations which attracted huge interest from past pupils. The PPU produced a video of the events, which was available on DVD for many years. Don, who is proficient in the technological arts associated with blogging , publishing etc and a weekly columnist on Dublin Gazette, has reproduced his 2015 blog but, this time, he has incorporated the DVD. This enables us to click directly on the video and I attach the link below for your enjoyment. Hopefully, you will still be able to pick your young self out after all these years. Enjoy??

Incidentally, Don spotted Sean Canavan, who died last year, amongst the pupils on the video and he sent a link to Sean’s family in South Africa. The gesture was greatly appreciated by them.

https://westlandrowppu.blog/category/centenary-celebrations/

Row Person of the Year 2025

The Past Pupils Union is delighted to announce that John Murray (class of 1962) has been elected ROW Person of the Year for 2025. John is one of six brothers who attended the ROW and who are still active members of the PPU.

John has been a PPU committee member for many years and served as President in 2010/11. He contributed greatly to all aspects of its work and social activities especially the organisation and running of the annual dinner. He has been our front line negotiator with the Westbury Hotel and has worked his charm on the young ladies, with whom he has negotiated there, to get a good deal, not only on the meal price, but on the little “extras” which make all the difference to our enjoyment. These include the drop of Pernod in the mushroom soup, the champagne afternoon tea for the raffle and the printed menu which includes information on past presidents and ROW Persons down the years. In recent years he has also acted as our photographer and many fine photographs of his can be viewed on previous News Blog pages.

John’s career, after leaving school in 1962, was spent in the Worlds of Accountancy and Life Assurance. He attributes his aptitude for figures to the excellent teaching in Maths which he got in the ROW. He believes that skill in numeracy is very important for all students on leaving school.

He started his career in 1962 as an audit clerk with Coopers and Lybrand and continued his studies in the evenings at the College of Commerce, Rathmines.

John’s next posting in 1963 was to the newly opened Intercontinental Hotel in Ballsbridge where he got his first introduction to computers, an IBM 4200 punch-card system. During this posting, JFK visited Ireland so the entire hotel was taken over by the US State Department. Exciting times indeed for a lad fresh out of school!!

John’s next assignment was at Aspro-Nicholas on the Naas Road. Whilst there he took up a position in the Cost and Works, Purchasing and Production Planning functions.

By this time, John was studying at the IMI where he met two ROW old boys, Pat Stynes and Oliver Byrne who introduced him to Past Pupils events.

John’s further evening studies brought him to the NIHE where he made contacts who later enticed him to get involved in a start-up venture importing nursery/toy brands.

Around this time he attended many ROW meetings and annual dinners mostly at the Montrose Hotel.

Around 1985/6 John joined a newly founded Life Assurance Company called Abbey Life as a Training/Sales Development Manager. Abbey Life was acquired by Canada Life in 1993 with whom John enjoyed a very successful period until he retired in 2007. He did not neglect his studies, even in later years, and achieved QFA and CFP designations.

John continues to put his experience and knowledge to good use as a volunteer strategist with the Credit Union.

John is a keen philatelist and has a full collection of every Irish stamp issued from the foundation of the State.

Genealogy is another of John’s hobbies and he has identified over 10, 000 relatives/ancestors dating back to 1688.

Annual Dinner 2025

Forty Eight past pupils and seven guests attended the PPU Annual Dinner at the Westbury Hotel on Saturday January 25th 2025. This most enjoyable occasion also featured the presentation of the PV Doyle trophy to John Murray (class of 62), ROW Person of the Year 2025.

School Principal, Kate Byrne, addressed the gathering and advised that the school is doing well and has about two hundred students. She said that many of the students come to the school in very difficult circumstances but they find a caring atmosphere where they can study and realise their potential. Kate praised Deputy Principal, Catriona O’Sullivan and her staff for their great work. She also thanked the PPU for its valuable contribution including the provision of bursaries to two pupils and the purchase of “hoodies” for the ladies rugby squad which is enjoying great popularity amongst the girls.

The President also mentioned some of the ways the PPU had helped the school during the year before introducing John Murray for the presentation of the PV Doyle trophy. John has been a member of the PPU committee for over forty years and he served as President in 2010/11. He has been our main negotiator with the Westbury in respect of the Annual Dinner. Dan outlined aspects of John’s career in the Worlds of Accountancy and Life and Pensions. These were mentioned in more detail in News Blog of December 20th 2024.

Dan also thanked the many past pupils who attended the dinner or sent apologies as well as many who donated funds to support the raffle and dinner.

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