THE Board of the Donegal Education and Training Board met this week for the first time since the murder of board member Stephen McCahill.
Mr McCahill was a member of the Finance Committee and served as an ETB representative on the Board of Management of Coláiste na Carraige.
The father of two tragically died following a violent attack at his home in Beagh in the early hours of Monday, January 5.
Michael Maloney, 32, of Loughross Point, Ardara, is charged with the murder of the prominent businessman, community activist and publican.
Many present at Tuesday’s meeting shared fond memories of the dedicated board member, who was respected throughout Donegal.
Cllr Declan Meehan, who chaired the meeting, proposed a ten-minute adjournment in Mr McCahill’s honour.
Before the adjournment, councillors and ETB staff took turns paying moving tributes.
Cllr Martin Harley summed up the sentiments of the comments, describing Stephen as a great example and advocate for everything the ETB stands for.
Several members spoke of how their last interaction with Stephen was at the ETB’s Christmas dinner at Dillon’s Hotel, just weeks before his tragic passing.
Chief Executive Anne McHugh recalled the shock of learning about his passing, especially after sharing that lovely Christmas dinner.
“So you can imagine our shock when we learnt our valued member wasn’t going to be with us any longer,” she said.
She went on to describe him as a valued board member with a real and genuine interest, adding that he was a great contributor to the Board of Management at Coláiste na Carraige.
“He always had a smile, always had time for a chat, and he will be sorely missed,” she said.
Cllr Albert Doherty shared that when they last said goodbye, it was to look forward to further discussions on local politics and the upcoming GAA season.
