Well over 300 people of all political persuasions, of all ages and all backgrounds gathered in the Midlands Park Hotel last night and the aim of all concerned was quite simple. To save Portlaoise Hospital.
There was contributions from politicians and clergy, consultant doctors and nurses, sports clubs and business people, all united by the desire to protect Portlaoise Hospital from being downgraded.
You could have heard a pin drop when Dick Sydes, a man who is now in his 80s, and campaigning for the best part of two decades told of how he and other colleagues like the late Katherine O’Brien once put their homes as collateral as they took a High Court case against the movement of the cancer unit in Portlaoise Hospital.
He had a pop at Brian Cowen for neglecting Portlaoise at the expense of his home county Offaly and later urged people to come forward to volunteer so they could bring thousands to the Dail to march on the issue.
We heard contributions from a man who had a quintuplet bypass in Portlaoise Hospital, we heard from a retired consultant, from a GAA club secretary, from Austin Stack, from numerous county councillors, from young local businessman Seamus Delaney who challenged the sitting TDs to bring down the Government over it all.
Peter O’Neill was the independent chairman who kept things moving along with authority, assertiveness and good hunour.
And afterwards people put their names down to be part of a committee to move things forward.
Our photographer Julie Anne Miller was there to capture some of the moments as a town and a community united on one single issue.
SEE ALSO – Committee meeting next week to consider the next step in Hospital protest
