BYNUALA MCALOON
At the age of 71, Kinawley man Arthur Murphy has become the oldest man in Northern Ireland to not only have sat a GCSE in 2007, but to have passed it with flying colours!
When the 'Fermanagh Herald' contacted the father of three yesterday (Tuesday) morning to congratulate him on his success, little did we know that we were the first to alert him to the fact that he had just scooped a Grade B in Irish.
The GAA stalwart, and a groundsman at his beloved Kinawley Brian Boro's club, Arthur, unlike many 16-year-olds yesterday morning, wasn't fazed by the results drama and hadn't even been out to collect the early post because he wasn't sure whether his result was due out on Tuesday or Thursday.
That said, it was a delighted and emotional Arthur who took the call: "I'm so proud to get it, it means so much to me. It's sinking in, it's just brilliant."
Arthur took up Irish classes at the then Fermanagh College two years ago before embarking on the GCSE course with tutor, Sharon Breen in September last year. Over the course of the Winter, he kept his head in the books, got a grasp of the task in hand and committed himself to completing the exams in June.
As for his age, it never came into the equation: "It's a big achievement to get it, but I never thought of my age, I just get on with life. I'm pretty fit and healthy, I feel great and I am blessed with enough health to get on with it." And, that he did.
Arthur always had a longing for the Irish language, something that was further instilled in him when at the age of 19 he emigrated to London where he lived for 38 years. A carpenter by trade, he worked as a foreman in the building construction industry there and, initially served his time in the Buttermarket working for the Irvine Brothers. He retired at the age of 58 and came home to his native Fermanagh where his interest in GAA saw him take up work as a groundsman at Kinawley GFC.
"I always had an interest in Irish. Even when I was in London, I would have had Irish tapes. I worked with a lot of lads from the West of Ireland who were fluent in Irish, so I always had the interest. It's the sole of the country, it's about your identity and who I am.
"I took up evening classes in the College two years ago and then did the GCSE course. The trouble is I have a fierce love of the language. It took up a lot of my time but it has paid off now. I'm so proud to get it, it means so much to me. I'll keep going to my Irish classes and advance what I have learned."
Yesterday's celebrations with wife, Vera, sons Charles and Aiden and daughter, Patricia were made all the more special as Patricia is currently on a visit home from Sydney, Australia. Arthur wished to convey his thanks to his wife, family and tutor who helped him throughout his GCSE course.
Meanwhile, Peter Toal, Marketing and PR Manager at the South West College was among the first to offer his congratulations.
"South West College Enniskillen campus would like to congratulate Mr Murphy on his excellent GCSE exam result", he stated. " Arthur is a another great example of what can be achieved by anyone, at any stage of their life. We hope that Arthur will be back to do another course at the college and that his example will inspire others to come back to learning no matter what their age". He added that the overall results for the College suggested that a lot of people would be celebrating their achievements this week and, likewise, he offered congratulations to all concerned.
