Cork garden commemorates lost lives of unclaimed

One of Cork’s oldest charities is working with a local community trust and Cork Prison to create a garden to commemorate those who died in the city and were unclaimed by loved ones.

Cork Penny Dinners is working with Churchfield Community Trust and Cork Prison in designing and building a remembrance garden dedicated to the memory of people who passed away in Cork and whose remains were unclaimed.

Penny Dinners this week received a donation of flower-filled planters from Churchfield Community Trust, the Irish Prison Service, the Probation Service, and the Irish Association of Social Inclusion Opportunities (IASIO).

Wellness Centre 

The new garden will be located outside the Cork Penny Dinners Croí Na Laoí Caitríona Twomey Wellness Centre on James Street in the heart of the city. 

The collaboration began last year when the Irish Prison Service at Cork Prison donated to the Churchfield Community Trust pallets it had received with deliveries.

Local courier company DPD Ireland delivered the pallets to the Churchfield Community Trust premises in Ballyvolane.

Caitríona Twomey, volunteer coordinator of Cork Penny Dinners, told The Echo that the pallets were then dismantled by participants who have engaged with the Probation Service on the community service and early release community returns schemes.

“They then constructed beautiful planters for the spring season, and the planters were then filled with compost and seasonal flowers by prisoners in Cork Prison under the supervision of the Irish Prison Service team,” she said.

“Colm Carey, of IASIO at Cork Prison, did so much to help organise this, as did Paul O’Donnell of the Churchfield Community Trust and Con O’Sullivan in the Probation Service and Cork Prison.” 

Delighted

Liam Spacey, governor of Cork Prison, said he and his colleagues were delighted to have the opportunity to work with Penny Dinners and Churchfield Trust on the project.

“Through my work I meet a large number of people who are homeless, they often speak of the invisibility of homelessness and feelings of being outside of society,” he said.

“This garden remembers those who have died and in many ways removes that invisibility. It identifies the person and not the cohort, it gives them back their identity.”