Mother of murdered Stephen Lyne starts empathy group

A Killarney mother is turning “a family nightmare” — the murder of her eldest son — into a programme to teach children about the importance of caring in the community.

Stephen Lyne was yards from home when he was killed by a single stab wound to the back. He died on a grass margin at Ross Road, in June, 2009. Nobody was ever charged with his murder. The chief suspect, who was also a teenager, died later in an accident.

Now, Stephen’s mother, Lotte, has launched the Stephen Lyne Foundation to teach children empathy. Empathy is the ability to identify with another person’s feelings or difficulties, and Lotte researched programmes suitable for honouring her son, but which would make the community safer.

She was impressed by the Roots of Empathy programme devised by Mary Gordon, which Barnardos brought into schools in Dublin. Married to Killarney native Denis Lyne, Lotte is from Denmark, but has spent 23 years in Ireland. Stephen was the eldest son and second child of six.

Lotte, who is a business development and business network adviser, is passionate about our children’s safety. “My son never lived to find out why ‘friends’ he trusted betrayed him. His last word was ‘why’? The effect of what happened to my son has not just changed my life for ever, but his Dad, his sisters, brothers, grandparents and extended family have been affected beyond words,” she said.

Lotte believes children “are not born to do evil”. The Stephen Lyne Foundation will try to prevent innocent children growing into people capable of violence.

“We want to make our community a safer place for our young people. I am committed to making sure my son did not die for nothing,” she said.

On the board of directors is Rory D’Arcy, the principal of St Oliver’s, Killarney’s biggest primary school, as are a solicitor and accountant. Some €20,000 is needed by September for three instructors to introduce the programme in three schools in Killarney — St Oliver’s , Holy Cross Mercy, and Monastery Primary School. By 2018, it is hoped that all schools in Killarney will run the programme.

www.stephenlynefoundation.org