Ever-presents lauded for their diligence

Three families, nine children and just one day missed at school between them across more than a century worth of classes — and counting.

These are just some of more than 70 youngsters given awards by Lord Mayor John Buttimer for being marked present for between eight and 14 years at primary and second-level schools in Cork City.

For Seán O’Sullivan, from Model Farm Rd, Ciara O’Regan, from Turner’s Cross, and five others, an amazing 14 years of unbroken attendance was recognised at City Hall yesterday. Among those also honoured were 10 sets of siblings, including Coláiste Chríost Rí twin students Nathan and Bryan Geasley, with matching records of 11 years of perfect attendance.

* THE HORGANS

Amy and Alan Horgan from the Glen on Cork’s northside can boast 23 years of unbroken attendance between them.

Alan is in second year at the North Monastery and Amy is preparing for her Leaving Certificate next June at the nearby St Vincent’s secondary school for girls.

Proud mum Geraldine said she never had any problems getting them out to school: “They might want to have a lazy day now and again but sure, so do all of us.”

She and her husband Alan did not get to Leaving Certificate themselves but they place a big value on Amy and Alan getting everything they can out of the education system.

“I was very lucky, whenever they did get sick, that it was either during the holidays or their mid-term breaks. It just happened at the right time, if you can say that about a sick child,” she explains.

“They come up teaching us things, and if we’re ever stuck on anything ourselves, they’re able to teach us and explain things we don’t know about,” said Geraldine.

* THE O’REGANS

For Ciara O’Regan, a stretch of 14 years without absence came easy, particularly as she tried to emulate older brother Robert. He is now 23, but started the family trend.

“It was not so much a competition, but when you’re never ever sick and you start getting invited to the Lord Mayor’s awards, you do get motivated to keep going and do the whole 14 years,” said Ciara, who chaired the student council at Christ King Secondary School, where she did her Leaving Certificate in June.

She is now studying intellectual disability nursing at UCC, and hopes to become a garda.

She said she has seen her excellent attendance record stand to her already: “I was applying for a supermarket job and when they saw the certs for attendance listed on my CV, they said they’d hold the space a few weeks until I turned 16.”

For younger brother Alan, the benchmark has been set high but he has already completed five absence-free years at Bunscoil Chríost Rí.

Their mother, Kay, said she left school early to work in a factory but now heads out to class herself on weekdays as a literacy tutor.

* THE O’SULLIVANS

Seán O’Sullivan never missed a day in his 14 years at St Joseph’s National School and Presentation Brothers College, next door on the Mardyke in Cork City.

“It was never something I thought too hard about all the way up. I just went to school and didn’t make a conscious effort that I had to get in,” said Seán, who was also motivated by involvement in the school rowing club.

He has just started a business information systems degree at University College Cork, and has one up on his older sister Jenna, who missed a single day in second year.

“She went into hospital with her tonsils on a Friday but she was home on Sunday and back to school on Monday,” explained mum Martina.

But Seán and Jenna’s younger sister Lauren, a student at Mount Mercy College is following in their footsteps after getting her certificate for 10 years of perfect attendance. And the youngest of the family, Sorcha, has started into her eighth year at St Catherine’s primary school with no missed days so far.

Jenna would love to have been at the ceremony with the family yesterday — but she didn’t want to miss lectures at college, where she is now in her third year of studying medicine.

* Read more: here and here