‘Their warmth, hospitality, and generosity left a lasting impression on me’
To mark Refugee Week, Liz Kearney speaks to people in Buncrana who have helped welcome refugees to the town in recent years
In recent years asylum seekers have come to Inishowen under the Irish Refugee Protection Programme and the migrant community has become a valued part of the local community.
The local support network has included support of organisations such as The Exchange, Inishowen Development Partnership and Sanctuary Runners.
Working alongside community leaders, community development organisations found ways to develop friendships with these wonderful newcomers and to help them settle in.
Many are now working, and many have taken on community leadership roles such as Run Director at Buncrana parkrun or helping provide low cost Golden Lunches for over 65’s at the Exchange on Fridays.
“My wife Bernice and myself live close to the Ipas refugee centre in Buncrana and have got to know some of the people living there,” said Stan McWilliams.
“As you would with any new neighbour, hello, a nod and a smile is always a good start. Joining Sanctuary Runners, I made more friends there.
“Travelling and working in Asian and African countries, we both want to return the open generosity shown by many who asked nothing in return,” he said.
“And I’ve learned the phrase salam alekyum’, the Muslim greeting of ‘peace be on you.’ Practising it each week at our local parkrun, where refugees take part as walkers, runners and volunteers, it raises a smile and a laugh. The return of ‘Walaykum Salam,’ meaning ‘and peace on you also’, seems fitting for these times,” said Mr McWilliams.
Buncrana parkrunner Bernie Gibbins said: “In my lifetime I have been privileged to know refugees in three different ways.
“As a child in Manchester, where many Jewish families came to escape the atrocities of European governments. They arrived between the two world wars, so they were well settled by the time I was born, but they still carried the scars of the traumas they had experienced. Sharing time with their children/grandchildren allowed me to experience their traditions and way of family life,” she said.
“I was a member of the reception and settlement team in Manchester during the Bosnian war, aiding refugees from the war zone to have a place of safety and support until it was safe enough for their return home. People of all ages who had witnessed the slaughter of members of their community simply because of their religion. People dependent on the good will and charity of a strange country whose language they didn’t speak. They were so stressed and scared but being with people who had shared their experience gave them some level of strength,” she said.
“And now in Buncrana, where the level of crisis in the world has caused us to offer people a place of relative safety, but not necessarily one of security. Not knowing if their refugee status is accepted and their prospect of a new and secure future is real is most difficult. Amongst them, I have found friends, people committed to being part of our community and looking to make the best contribution they can to this county we live in.”
Sarah Webster, adult education teacher with the ETB, said: “My first experience with refugees was in 2019, when I was asked to teach English to Syrian families, their warmth, hospitality, and generosity left a lasting impression on me. In 2024, I began volunteering with Sanctuary Runners and met refugees who had recently arrived in Buncrana.
“Their positivity, resilience, and ability to embrace the present despite difficult circumstances have taught me so much. I am deeply grateful for the friendships we have formed and the knowledge and experiences we have shared.
“Perhaps these connections have been especially meaningful because I have spent much of my adult life living away from where I was raised. Whether in countries where I did not speak the language or places where cultural differences required adaptation, I often felt like an outsider.
“Over time, I came to value that experience because it helped me connect with people from different nationalities, religions, and backgrounds. I have learned that we share far more than we differ: a love for our families, hopes for our children, and a desire to build a better life,” said Ms Webster.