Corkonians Abroad: I left Gaeltacht for a new life 45 years ago

What was growing up in Ballyvourney like, Sheila?

I was born and raised in the Gaeltacht, Baile Mhúirne (Ballyvourney), Co Cork, in the 1950s. I grew up on a farm along with my six siblings, parents, and grandmother.

Back then there were few cars in the area, so walking to and from school in rain, hail and frost was normal.

We were approximately two miles from the local primary school. When we arrived wet and cold there was no change of clothes, no warm drinks, nor any way of drying yourself. No such thing as school lunches, we brought our own homemade brown bread. No fruit, no hot drinks. Despite all that, I don’t recall any of us being sick.

It was commonplace that we helped on the farm after school, and sometimes before, and of course in the summer months we helped with hay and going to the bog to help with the turf.

Ballyvourney was a great, close-knit community to grow up in back in the ’50s and‘60s. We didn’t have TVs nor phones but close-knit neighbours and relatives who visited often, always unannounced, but with so many characters locally there were endless visits from storytellers who added colour, not just news to our days.

Irish music, sing-songs and storytelling was part of everyday life.

How did you end up in New Zealand?

I have been living in New Zealand since late 1980, firstly coming here with my then boyfriend to meet his family and see his hometown, Tokoroa, which is in the centre of the north island, Waikato region (New Zealand rugby coach Clayton McMillan country).

It was never my wish nor plan to live here, my husband just got lucky!

How has life been in New Zealand?

Life here is like life in Ireland in some ways, but yet different!

One significant difference is people generally get up earlier here and go to bed much earlier. The working day seems to start and finish earlier.

I often see primary school age children in Ireland heading off to GAA practice at 6pm, or 6.30pm. New Zealand kids of that age would be heading to bed at that time.

The weather is generally better here, so people seem to spend more time in outdoor activities. Lots of beautiful walks and hikes here, beautiful lakes and beaches, some voted in the top 10 in the world.

Social life is a bit different here, the pub scene is different. Generally, people tend to go out pre-dinner for a drink, then home for dinner, almost never heading to the pub at 10pm or 11pm like we would at home in Ireland.

Like Ireland, eating out and drinking in pubs has become expensive, especially for families as we too have a cost-of-living crisis in New Zealand. A pound of butter here is now NZ $10, (almost €5).

In fact, so many issues here in New Zealand are exactly the same as Ireland at present - cost of food, rents, housing crisis, shortage of doctors, nurses, teachers... except the economy in Ireland is doing much better and Ireland is a much wealthier country.

I read the Irish Examiner daily as well as New Zealand newspapers and it’s fascinating but so often the headlines highlighting national issues are often the same.

One noticeable difference, is the standard of education and achievement in Ireland is much better.

The population of both countries is about the same, but New Zealand’s land mass is significantly larger (as big at the British Isles). Unemployment here is higher at present, I think, approximately 5%.

What has been the biggest challenge?

Over the 45 years living here, there have been many challenges as you would expect wherever you lived.

Overall, the hardest thing is how far away home (Ireland) is, how expensive it is to get there, and how long it takes - but more challenging than that, in earlier years, was never having your own family nor friends around to share any or all of the good times or bad times.

I have made going home regularly a priority which has helped, and try and maintain a connection with loved ones back home.

How might you spend your weekends?

When my children were young, our Saturdays were all about attending the different sports they played. Now we have grandchildren on a Saturday, we try and attend our grandson’s rugby or cricket, or our granddaughters’ netball or hockey, depending on the season.

Saturday afternoons are often about watching senior or national rugby or cricket, again depending on the season.

During the summer we enjoy an afternoon at the beach, alone or with family, or taking a bike ride, or a long walk.

Sundays are pretty much the same except for attending Mass, which I do regularly, my religious beliefs and practices have remained a central part of my life/living.

Tell us a bit about the culture of where you live?

As I said, I live in a small country town, where we have a large cultural mix, a high percentage of our population is of Pacific Island descent as well as Maori.

We also have quite a high percentage of older English, Scottish, and Dutch people who all came here in the 1950 because of the timber industry that was developed here. Thats why Tokoroa was built here.

Tell us about your line of work/career?

When I first came to New Zealand, I worked in the local hospital as an RN (Registered Nurse). After I got married, my husband and I bought a seven-day-a-week store (like a Spar at home) so I worked in that for the 17 years we had it, while I raised my three children.

When we sold the business, I completed a Back to Nursing course and further post-graduate studies and worked in district nursing, palliative care, diabetes care, and teaching, until I retired a few years ago.

I trained as a nurse in Whipps Cross in East London and studied midwifery in The Erinville in Cork.

Tell us your thoughts on opportunity - and how a different part of the world might offer more opportunities?

When I first came to New Zealand in the 1980s, the economy here was thriving compared to Ireland, where it was difficult to get a job as a Registered Nurse, hence the reason we left.

Up until more recent years, I would have thought it was easier to get ahead here, but I think that’s changed of late as housing here is now amongst the most expensive in the world, and pay rates are not great compared to other countries.

What has been your most memorable moment in your new location so far?

That’s hard to answer, I guess the birth of my three children and five grandchildren.

Any special mentions to friends or family back in Cork?

I’m looking forward to catching up with family in a few months, the Creedon family in Ballyvourney, and the Hoares and Moloneys in Macroom and Cork city, and cousins and friend across Ireland.

If you were back in Cork for one day, what would the ideal day be for you?

Walking along Patrick Street, visiting all the stores, catching up with cousins and friends for some good Cork food, then ending the day at the Mills in Ballyvourney for a few pints of Guinness and dinner with family and cousins there.

What are you looking forward to in the coming months?

Looking forward to going to Chicago on November 1 to see Ireland beat the All Blacks, then on to Ballymoney for my nephew’s wedding in Gougane Barra, reception in Cork city.

Is there anything that you especially miss about Cork?

I miss lots about Cork and home. I miss family and old friends, family gatherings, the craic, pubs, the food, Irish music, the familiar landscape that I grew up in, and of course the craic around GAA.

Keeping the connections with Cork...

My New Zealand-born son, a mechanical engineer, is married with three young children and lives near me here.

He has in recent weeks sold his beautiful home, and decided he wants to go and live somewhere around Cork, so he is heading off there mid-2026… he has already got the passports for the three primary school aged children, such an irony!

Poor Granny, and I made the sacrifice to live here to give them a better life, or so I thought!