Brother Kevin Crowley, founder of Dublin's Capuchin Day Centre, has died
The esteemed humanitarian founded the organisation in 1969. It provides over 1,000 hot meals each day and more than 1,450 food parcels each week to those in need and those who are homeless.
Brother Kevin was a Capuchin Friar who devoted his life to supporting people living in poverty and in food need.
The Capuchin Franciscans today confirmed that Brother Kevin died early this morning in the 'wonderful care' of the Mount Desert Nursing Home in Cork.
'Through his ministry and life as a Capuchin Friar, Brother Kevin opened his heart and his hands to serve those most in need,' they said.
Archbishop of Dublin Dermot Farrell offered his 'sincere sympathy' to Brother Kevin's family and his Capuchin Confréres on his death.
'Brother Kevin devoted his life to the service of the poor. His work with the Capuchin Day Centre staff and volunteers transformed the lives of the poor and marginalised in our city who availed of its services, from misery and despair to hope and love,' he further said.
The Archbishop said that as we mourn Brother Kevin, he would want us to 'remember the poor we still have with us in ever greater numbers because of homelessness, wars, famine and the multiplicity of addictions that affect our country today.'
President of Ireland Michael D. Higgins joined with all those who have 'expressed such sadness' on learning of Brother Kevin's death.
'I was deeply honoured to meet with Brother Kevin on many occasions throughout the years and to share in his company. Brother Kevin was a warm, caring, yet fearless man, who dedicated his life to living his Christian faith in dedication to those most in need,' Higgins said.
'Sabina and I will miss his messages, which continued after his move to Cork,' he added.
Advertisement
Tánaiste Simon Harris said that Brother Kevin was 'one of life's true heros' who devoted his life to helping others.
'A proud Cork man, he made an enormous contribution to assisting vulnerable Dublin people with the foundation of the Capuchin Day Centre,' he added.
Harris said that the work of the day centre went beyond the provision of food, as it provided a range of medical services and family supports.
Brother Kevin was originally from Enniskeane in Co. Cork. In his early days as a friar he worked in the Co-operative Clothing Guild for unemployed persons and families in Dublin.
In 1969 he had the small Guild offices on Bow Street reconstructed to create the day centre, with its chief purpose being to 'relieve the hardship endured by homeless people'.
The centre went on to become a core part of homelessness supports in Dublin. In recent years, it has also extended its support to international protection applicants who were living homeless in the city.
In 2018 the late Pope Francis visited the centre and met service users, and said that the Capuchins are 'especially attuned with the people of God, and indeed with the poor'.
Father Kevin Crowley meeting Pope Francis.
Brother Kevin retired in 2022 at the age of 87.
On his retirement President Michael D. Higgins said that Brother Kevin had led an 'invaluable service that is providing essential food and compassion to those most in need in our capital city'.
He praised Brother Kevin and his team for their 'great spirit of shared humanity and determined pursuit of dignity, their practical work in the delivery of human rights for all our fellow citizens.'
At the tome. Archbishop of Dublin Dermot Farrell said Brother Kevin had 'devoted his life to the service of the poor'.
Brother Kevin will be laid to rest on Saturday 5 July, with a funeral mass to be held at 11am at St Mary of the Angel's, Church Street, with burial afterwards in Dardistown.
Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone...
A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article.
Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation.
Learn More
Support The Journal
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Times
2 days ago
- Irish Times
A life's work reviving the Irish language - Oliver O'Hanlon on Liam Ó Briain
Irish language was not taught in the school that Liam Ó Briain attended. He had to learn it himself – from a grammar book. Despite this impediment, he went on to make the revival of the language one of his main goals in life. Born in the North Wall, Dublin , in 1888, he went to the Christian Brothers O'Connell School on North Richmond Street. He started using the Irish version of his name while still at school. He went to Gaelic League meetings until his parents and teachers suggested that it would be better if he concentrated on his schoolwork. The playwright Seán O'Casey was the first person that Ó Briain spoke Irish with. O'Casey had come to his door to invite him to join the local branch of the Gaelic League. Ó Briain persisted with the language and won a scholarship to attend UCD. READ MORE There, he studied Irish, French and English and helped to found its first Irish club. After receiving his BA and MA, he was awarded a prestigious NUI travelling scholarship to the value of £600 (€694). This enabled him to go to Berlin and Bonn in Germany and study with the Celtic scholars Kuno Meyer and Rudolf Thurneysen (who was an authority on Old Irish). He returned to Ireland in 1914 and joined the Irish Volunteers. During the Easter Rising , he fought in the St Stephen's Green garrison with the Citizen Army. Imprisoned afterwards in Frongoch internment camp in Wales, he described it as 'the best university' he ever attended. Ó Briain moved westward from the capital after he secured the post of Professor of Romance languages at University College Galway in 1917. In 1928, he helped found Taibhdhearc na Gaillimhe , the national Irish language theatre. Ó Brian was fundamental to its establishment and its running. He secured a grant from the minister for finance Ernest Blythe, who was an avid supporter of the language. Ó Briain played the part of Fionn mac Cumhaill in the very first play that was performed there, Diarmuid agus Gráinne. Based on the old Irish saga, the play was written especially for the opening by Micheál MacLiammóir, who starred in the leading role as Diarmuid. Máire Ní Scolaí played Gráinne. MacLiammóir's partner, Hilton Edwards, was stage manager. [ Ireland in the 1980s was bloody awful, but there was at least one good reason not to emigrate Opens in new window ] The first meeting of the new shareholders, including Liam Ó Briain (second row, fifth from the right hand side) of the Abbey Theatre was held in 1965. Photograph: Jack McManus/ The Irish Times In the build-up to opening night, the Connacht Sentinel newspaper described the play as 'probably the most ambitious and elaborate yet attempted in Irish'. It added that it 'promises to be a pageant of colour such as has never been seen before in Galway, or probably Ireland'. Blythe attended on opening night, describing the event as one of 'national importance'. Galway city was in 'a position of vital strategic importance' in terms of the struggle to preserve the language, Blythe also said. This made the opening of the new theatre in Galway of greater 'interest and significance' than if it had been established in Dublin, Cork or Waterford. Ó Briain was secretary of the theatre for its first 10 years. In addition to that, he translated many of the plays that were performed there. These included works by French dramatists Henri Ghéon, Pierre Jalabert and Molière. Ó Brian was a Francophile. He was awarded the Légion d'honneur by France in 1951 for his efforts to promote goodwill between the two countries. He also translated plays from Spanish and Italian, as well as work by local playwrights. JM Synge's Deirdre of the Sorrows was also translated as Déirdre an Bhróin. He played a role in the play with 'his customary finesse', as one newspaper put it, when first staged in 1931. [ Remembering Ballinspittle and the moving statue Opens in new window ] Ó Briain retired from lecturing in 1959 and returned to his native Dublin. He kept up writing and translating. In 1967, he was commissioned to translate Dion Boucicault's The Colleen Bawn. An Cailín Bán was first performed by a company from the Abbey Theatre before an audience of Aran Islanders in Kilronan on Inishmore. Ó Briain was one of the translators of Ag Fanacht le Godot. The Irish version of Samuel Beckett's celebrated tragicomic play premiered in Galway in November 1971 and ran for two nights at Dublin's Peacock Theatre in February 1972. Apart from plays, Ó Briain also looked at other ways to promote interest in the language. He was the first chairman of An Club Leabhar, an organisation that sought to get people reading books in Irish. He died at age 86 in 1974. The actress Siobhán McKenna gave a reading at the funeral mass in St Andrew's Church, on Westland Row in Dublin. Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave and former president Éamon de Valera (who Ó Briain had known since at least 1909) attended the service. Speaking in Irish at the graveside in Glasnevin Cemetery, Micheál MacLiammóir recalled the setting up of Taibhdhearc na Gaillimhe and described Ó Briain as a 'broad-minded man who embraced a great many cultures'.
Irish Independent
3 days ago
- Irish Independent
Mayo school set for major development following multi-million euro investment
The transformative upgrade of the 150-year-old school will also include the demolition of existing buildings on the site. The announcement was made today by Minister Dara Calleary who confirmed that the project has progressed to stage four of architectural planning and will move into the construction phase over the coming weeks. Minister Calleary worked closely with former Minister for Education Norma Foley, and the current Minister Helen McEntee, to advance the building works. He was delighted to confirm the news and said: 'It is a very substantial investment in education in Ballina, a 13 classroom new build school plus accommodation for pupils with special educational needs and the demolition of the existing buildings at the current school site at an estimated cost of over €10 million, 'Scoil Íosa is a wonderful school, blessed with fantastic staff, very dedicated boards of management and vibrant school communities over the years. The physical core of the current building dates back over 150 years - this new build will ensure a proper match of the physical building to the amazing school ethos.' Scoil Íosa is a Catholic school committed to fostering a respectful, inclusive, and nurturing environment rooted in Christian values. The school prides itself on supporting children with special educational needs, embracing diversity, and delivering a wide range of teaching strategies and techniques to meet the varied learning styles of all students. Michael Tunny the Principle of Scoil Íosa expressed his gratitude: 'Our school has received €10m in funding and we are extremely happy with the news. This is a very much deserved facility for the wonderful children in the Parkside area of Ballina.' Mr Tunny said that in addition to the 13 new classrooms, two specialised classrooms will be created specifically for children with autism. He continued: 'We wish to express our thanks to Minister Dara Calleary, he was our main supporter in terms of achieving this funding.' Minster Calleary added: 'I have worked closely with the school principal Michael Tunney, the Deputy Principal Monica Duffy, board of management chair Christy McDonagh and the staff to progress this and I congratulate them on their work to date. I look forward to works now commencing and completing within the expected timeframe.' The building and demolition works are expected to take 19 months to complete.
Irish Independent
04-08-2025
- Irish Independent
Adrian Blomfield: Syria remains a sectarian tinderbox – can new leader hold the nation together?
For centuries, an old, severed head helped hold Syria together. Pilgrims from across the Middle East journeyed to Damascus to venerate the skull buried beneath the eighth-century Umayyad Mosque − a relic both Christian and Muslims believe belongs to John the Baptist, beheaded to reward Salome for her sensuous dance before Herod Antipas.
