‘Snowball’ Higgins made a freeman of Ennis
Raised in a farmhouse at Ballycar, Newmarket-on -Fergus, Co Clare, the President yesterday became only the second man to be made a Freeman of Ennis, following the honour bestowed on three-time world boxing champion Muhammad Ali in 2009.
At the ceremony, mayor of the soon-to-be defunct Ennis Town Council, Cllr Peter Considine, said: “It took us 400 years to give this honour and now we have given it twice in three years, and I suspect this is probably the last one.”
President Higgins was educated at St Flannan’s College from 1955 to 1960, spending two years as a boarder and three as a day boy, which involved a 16-mile round trip by bike.
He said: “The cycling to school was part of life.”
Nicknamed “Snowball” by his classmates at St Flannan’s due to his hair colour, President Higgins remarked yesterday: “I had a lot of blond hair at the time.”
President Higgins said his father — one of a family of 10 from Ballycar — got his first job as an apprentice in a bar and grocery in Ennis at the turn of the century.
The President’s brother John and sister Kathleen were in the audience to hear Mr Considine talk of their brother’s renowned handball skills while at St Flannan’s.
He told the audience, which also included President Higgins’ wife Sabina: “I’m told from his classmates at St Flannan’s that President Higgins was a feisty, combative sportsman and his technique in playing handball could be described as closed fist and overhand swipe.” This prompted President Higgins to recall “one of the most humiliating experiences of my life in an alley when I was drawn against Pat Kirby”.
“I broke his service twice during the half-hour, which wasn’t bad against someone who went on to be world champion.”
President Higgins said “we have come a long way since handball was regarded as something that was played by myself and the criminal and lower classes”.
Mr Considine raised a laugh from the audience when he suggested the President and Muhammad Ali shared more than an honorary title. “In your days as a TD and minister, some might agree that you also did ‘float like a butterfly, sting like a bee’. Your pragmatic approach to dealing with issues in Irish society and indeed abroad, is internationally recognised and certainly has not gone unnoticed here,” he said.
“Your close ties with Ennis and Co Clare, along with your continued, valuable contribution to Irish society, means we are proud and honoured that you have accepted this award.”
