Armoy, 21 years on!

 
For my small village (Armoy) on the North Antrim Coast in Northern Ireland, the 5th October 1994 would prove to be significant date in its history. A date that precedes my birth. A date that marks the meeting of neighbours who did not know each other. Conflict and civil conflict had caused division and segregation within areas like ours. On that dusky October night there was agreement to form the Armoy Community Association (ACA). An encounter that would in time take root to transform our people and our place.

A transformed people, a transformed place.

by Conleth Burns

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Figure 1: Cutting the cake. Left to Right – Gerry Burns (Secretary of ACA), Mayor Michelle Knight-McQuillan, John Ward (Chair of ACA) Minister of Social Development, Mervyn Storey

On Wednesday 21st October 2015, over 100 people gathered in Armoy to celebrate the 21st Birthday of ACA. They met in the Tilly Molloy’s Centre that Gerry Burns (my dad and Secretary of ACA) describes as “biggest achievement of the Community Association.” The Community Centre situated at a cross-roads at the centre of the village, is situated at a religious and political fault-line in Northern Ireland. Historically, that cross-roads was the barrier between the two sides of my community. Today, our community centre stands on these cross-roads as a statement of what can be overcome and what can be bridged together.
Gerry explains: “What makes Armoy work is that people can get to know one another! Only at that point can we build good community relations.” The community centre is a shared space – a place where people can meet and mix. The Centre houses tea-rooms, a Community Pharmacy, a Hairdressers, the village’s Motorcycle Road Racing HQ, a Playgroup, a SureStart and Community Hall and office. All parts of the centre, as Gerry explains: “Allow people to chat and get to know one another.” As those present learnt on October 21st, the current community centre transformed a derelict dancehall and ice-cream shop (as pictured below). This enterprise run by the mother of Good Relations, Tilly Molloy, was a foundation of Good Relations in the past. 21 years ago, ACA started out with a commitment to re-discover and rekindle relationships badly broken by the conflict of 40 years of civil unrest.
Those present on this morning in October 2015, came to hear the story of the transformation that has taken place in our area. They heard from young and old. Roma Stevens, the 83 year old Chair of the Over 55s explained how their Over 55s Club brings together people from all sides of the community every week: to learn, to chat and to support one another.
Claire Hunter, Chair of the Cross-Community Playgroup, talked about how toddlers in their playgroup are building a shared future together in the shared space in Armoy.
Minister of Social Development, Mervyn Storey commended the authentic work of ACA, and told those present we could all learn something from the Armoy story.
There was something else that attracted people to Armoy on October 21st. It was also an opportunity to remember Dr Mary Burns, my mother and secretary of the Community Association from 1994 until her death in 2011.
Mammy was a pioneer of the Focolare Movement in Northern Ireland and at an International meeting of the Focolare Movement in 2004, mammy talked about her dedication to the Community Association was “the practical way of working out the belief in the ideal of unity.”
To mark the visionary and courageous contribution that mammy made to our community, a tree was planted in the Riverside Park in Armoy. On dedicating the tree to my mother, Minister Storey talked about how being asked by our family to dedicate this tree to Mary was one of the most humbling experiences of his life in ministerial office. Along with the tree planting, 21 solar globes were planted remembering the stillborn and neonatal deaths (SANDS) in our community. They reminded all those present that “only at night, we can see the stars.”
This transformation for me, and all of those present, can be one of those guiding stars in building unity.