Ryan Tubridy’s visit lifted spirits in the community
RYAN Tubridy visited Tallaght this week in a show of support to a community devasted by loss.
The Late Late Show presenter spent time in St Aidan’s Community School before visiting the floral tributes outside the home of Lisa, Christy and Chelsea in Rossfield.
Speaking with The Echo, St Aidan’s Principal Kevin Shortall said that Mr Tubridy made contact on Monday morning, asking if he could visit that day.
“Ryan came to us in his own capacity, there was no frills, no fuss, no media,” Mr Shortall said.
“Everyone was delighted to see him.
“He had time for everyone, spoke to people quietly, and got in a few selfies.
“There was no rush, no hurry, no time limit.
“His visit gave the school a huge lift.”
The radio and television host has in recent weeks expressed his sadness over the tragic loss in Tallaght.
“Ryan really had a genuine feeling about it… he felt compelled to come,” Mr Shortall said.
“There was something very profound about the whole thing, something very touching that Ryan came out to visit the school.”
Speaking with The Echo, Mr Shortall spoke of how the visit lifted people’s spirits, both teachers and students alike.
“Ryan’s visit reminded me of the Toy Show,” he said.
“When the Toy show is on you forget everything and have a bit of a smile and that happened [on Monday].
“The school smiled [on Monday] when Ryan came…”
He added: “Now is the time when we need to try and rebuild, help people to cope with what happened.
“There’s a lot of shock and trauma in the community, we need to mind each other.
“People are still very hurt and very sad.
“In these times, it’s nice to have people being good to the community and Ryan’s visit was the right thing, at the right time by the right person.”
Anyone in need of support for themselves or their family at this time, can call St Aidan’s CS on 01 4524677 or the Brookfield Youth & Community Centre on 01 4520300 / 086 0327909.
An Cosán in Jobstown also has a counselling team available, call or text 086 0136448.
