Local Faces: Steven Fitzgerald

THRESHOLD Training Centre in Tallaght Village is an organisation which helps people who have had, or are having, struggles with mental health to regain some control over their lives through accredited training programmes, reports Ken Doyle

It is a hugely important resource available to all, and upon visiting their facility and speaking to some of the people involved, it’s clear than it has really helped hundreds of people since it’s foundation in 1995.

One of the absolute cornerstones of Threshold Training Network is Tallaght man Steven Fitzgerald.

Raised, and indeed still living in the Old Bawn area, Steven was recently kind enough to to share his fascinating story with The Echo.

The youngest of three children, Steven attended St Maelruan’s primary school and then Old Bawn Community School.

As a teenager however, he decided he didn’t want to go as far as the leaving cert at school and took the decision to leave and pursue a career in gastronomy.

Steven wants to emphasise to anyone who might be thinking about coming to Threshold, that recovery is possible

He studied catering at Crumlin College with the intention of becoming a chef, but soon enough realised that the culinary world wasn’t a good fit for him either.

Steven takes up the story; “The catering work really wasn’t clicking with me, so I found myself in my late teens with plenty of ambition, but also a real lack of direction. I knew I wanted to help people in some way through my work but I honestly didn’t know how to make it happen.”

“At the time, information technology was really advancing and the world was becoming more reliant on IT so I thought that might have been a good career move.

I did a Springboard course in IT and through that, in 2001, I got a placement in Canada, teaching senior citizens to use computers.”

Steven’s temporary move to Canada proved to be serendipitous.

“It was really this that planted the seed in me that I wanted to work at helping people in some way.

“I was teaching these older people how to use email, and they were so delighted to find this new way of keeping in contact with family and friends.

“It took away a lot of their feelings of loneliness and isolation and I found their happy reactions extremely gratifying.

“It completely changed my outlook, and once I came home I resolved to help people in any way I could.”

It’s at this point where your favourite local weekly paper enters the story.

Through The Echo, in 2006, Steven raised money to fund a series of trips to Mombasa in Kenya to work with impoverished children who had sight and vision problems.

“Through the generosity of Echo readers, and the people of Tallaght in general, we were able to improve and restore the vision of many Kenyan kids who never would have had access to the treatments we were providing,” he tells me.

Whilst his work in Kenya was a great success, there was a rather unpleasant sting in the tail.

“Towards the end of my third trip to Mombasa I was unfortunately attacked by three men with machetes.

“I was pretty badly injured and very shaken up.

“I even made the news and went on Kenyan radio to talk about it.”

Whilst this experience was one to forget, Steven speaks with nothing but fondness for the nation of Kenya.

“After I was injured I was really moved by the kindness and support I was shown by the Kenyan people.”

There is a really lovely postscript to Steven’s Kenyan adventure.

In the years subsequent to his visits, Facebook was founded, and through it, many of the children Steven helped got in touch with him.

He was overjoyed to hear how they were thriving as adults and he keeps in touch with them to this day.

Wounds healed, in 2007 Steven found himself working in an office to keep the bills paid while he planned his next move.

Steven says, “My supervisor there was a woman named Pamela Corrigan and she suggested social care might be a good fit for my aspirations and abilities.

“I looked into it and decided it was perfect for me, so I went after it straight away.”

After studying first at Ballyfermot College and then at IT Sligo, Steven graduated with a degree in Social Care in 2010.

After stints volunteering at Killinarden Community Centre and working for the Salvation Army at Cedar House, a homeless hostel, Steven secured a full time, permanent position at Threshold Training Network in late 2010.

“It felt like a great fit for me from day one,” he tells me.

The manager, Angela Keegan and I worked together very well and we clicked straight away.

Angela was very passionate about Threshold and the work they did, and she was a big influence on me.”

As ever, Steven was generous with his time and energy and one of the first things he did when he started was to enlist a handy friend of his named Trevor Doyle, and between them, they redecorated the place, making it a calming, nurturing environment.

“We were then based in Bruce House, which was the old Bank of Ireland building.

“It was a great, character filled place, but in some ways it didn’t suit our needs as an educational and wellness facility,” he says.

Nowadays, Threshold Training Network is based at the Tallaght Enterprise Centre on Main road in Tallaght.

As soon as one walks in the door of the place, the warmth and welcome is palpable.

“I love what I do and we’ve had so many testimonials from people who’ve attended, telling us that we helped them in their recovery from mental illness.

“We really want to emphasise to anyone who might be thinking about coming to us, that recovery is possible.

“Our whole team endeavours to create a place where people can move forward with their lives with safety and empathy.”

When not doing the amazing work he does at Threshold, Steven has a rather busy home life.

He lives in the Old Bawn area with his partner Gareth, Gareth’s fifteen year old daughter and their twelve year old foster daughter.

Completing the family unit is their canine companion Buddy.

It’s a particular pleasure to profile Steven in this week’s issue.

He’s one of those people you occasionally meet in life who inspires you to adopt a more selfless lifestyle.

May he and his family have continued success and happiness for many, many years to come.

They certainly deserve it.

For more information on the services provided by Threshold Training Network, check out their website at www.thresholdtraining.ie or call on 01 4940502.

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