Address by President Connolly at the Circle of Life National Organ Donor Commemorative Garden
Galway, 23 May 2026
A chairde, a dhaoine uaisle,
It is a privilege to be with you in this most beautiful place – the Circle of Life National Organ Donor Commemorative Garden here in Salthill, looking out over Galway Bay.
Ba mhaith liom buíochas a ghabháil le Martina agus Denis Goggin as ucht an chuiridh.
Is ó bhur mbriseadh croí, Martina agus Denis, tar éis cailliúint bhur mic Éamonn i 2006 a tháinig breith an ghairdín seo.
Gairdín atá fréamhaithe i mbrón ach cruthaithe le grá agus tiomantas chun spás suaimhneach cuimhneacháin a chur ar fáil dóibh siúd atá buailte ag an gcrá croí céanna.
Is cosúil le croí isteach é agus tú ag siúl tríd an ghairdín, foscadh na gcrann os do chionn agus suaimhneas agus síocháin le mothú agus tú i do shuí i measc na mbláthanna áille.
During my own time on Galway City Council, I witnessed the determination, care and commitment that shaped this vision. I would like to sincerely thank your family, and all involved with the Strange Boat Donor Foundation in bringing this beautiful garden to fruition. I would also like to acknowledge the collaboration of Galway City Council.
The arrangement of the garden itself draws on ancient designs. Its circular layout and standing stones call to mind early Irish sacred sites, embedding this contemporary garden in a much older story of gathering and memory.
Today, we add another stone to this remarkable collection – a heritage stone from the 6th-century Bangor Abbey of Saint Columbanus in Co. Down.
This generous gift to the Circle of Life Garden builds on the tremendous work ongoing by the North-South implementation bodies.
Stone is such a wonderful material. On first glance it appears heavy, cold and inanimate, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Stone holds the warmth of the sun and can be shaped and transformed. It has so much potential.
Formed over millennia through heat, pressure, accumulation of sediments, or crystallisation, stone stores the memory and imprint of time and connects us with those who have come before. This natural material which can both shelter and inspire, is a fitting symbol for a garden that provides a safe space to sit, remember, and reflect, not least of which on the altruism of the donors and their families.
I would like to thank the northern organ donation and transplantation communities for your generous contribution and wish you every success in your work going forward.
I wish to thank also the volunteers who help maintain the upkeep of the garden.
Tá súil agam go mbeidh bhur saothar, sibhse ar fad atá bainteach le deonú agus trasphlandú orgán ar fud oileán na hÉireann go hard i mbéal an phobail mar is obair eisceachtúil agus rí-thábhachtach atá idir láimhe agaibh. Guím gach rath oraibh sna blianta amach romhaibh.
Ba mhaith liom tréaslú, freisin, leis na hoibrithe deonacha ar fad a chuidíonn sa ghairdín seo i mBóthar na Trá.
Tá tearmann cruthaithe agaibh, tearmann a thugann deis don té a thagann machnamh an tsóláis a dhéanamh ar Chiorcal na Beatha agus an nasc dobhriste atá againn leo siúd atá imithe romhainn ní uainn.
Míle buíochas ó chroí libh ar fad.