Tag: Women
Helen Crickard
Helen grew up in a family of ten, five boys and five girls in Carrickfergus. “My early childhood in Carrickfergus was great, coming from a big family there was always something going on, we lived in a nice housing ...
Catherine Couvert
Originally from France, Catherine grew up on a small farm. She remembers her childhood as a happy one, though living conditions were sparse. “Until I was ten, we lived in a house with one kitchen and one bedroom, a...
Anne McVicker
Anne was born into a large family, being one of 9 children born in South Belfast. Anne spent most of her childhood growing up in the Cliftonville area in north Belfast. During her youth Anne recalls a lack of youth pr...
Ballymurphy – The People’s Co-ops
Like many cities in Britain, Belfast suffered industrial decline in the 1960s. High unemployment rates were the norm for many of the housing estates in west Belfast. “Official statistics in Ballymurphy had 37% of ...
Tar Anall
The 50+ Group was established several years ago by a group of Republican women in Tar Anall, a Drop In Centre for Republican prisoners and their families based in Conway Mill, west Belfast. “After the peace came, a...
Angela Ifonlaja
Born in Nigeria, Angela’s family moved to London when she was a child. She remembers many differences between London and her homeland, most notably the British education system. “In Nigeria you move through the school...
Lynda Walker
Lynda Walker grew up in Sheffield, England and came from a working class background. “It was a fairly run down area, we lived in a couple of rooms in the back of a shop, but we moved onto one of the bigger estates ...
Father Desmond Wilson
Father Wilson grew up in the mixed community Ormeau Road area in south Belfast. “Belfast, to us, was an amazing place. When I was growing up I was very fortunate, I was able to go to Saint Malachys Grammar School a...
Vera Henderson
Vera had a tough start to life. Her mother died when she was only one year old. Her father, unable to manage, sent her to a home until he remarried when Vera was 4 years old. “I don’t remember an awful lot about it be...
Ruth Taillon
Growing up in post WWII Canada, Ruth left home at an early age: “I left home at a very early age following the hippy trail. I was very interested in music and it was exciting at the time. I quickly got involved with t...
Helen Holland
Helen’s interest in getting involved in her local community came soon after she married. “Betty Rice was organising these meetings about new houses, so, I was quite interested in that. My husband used to say ‘why do y...
Betty Carlisle
As the youngest of five children, Betty recalls fond memories of the Woodvale area of the Shankill in west Belfast as she was growing up. “It was a very community spirited area, I spent lots of time playing and felt a...