Team Leader
I joined the group in 2006 and my first trip with the HCPT was in 2007, however I first went out to Lourdes with the Welsh National Pilgrimage in 2000.
I first heard about the group through Peter Luxton, who was a helper in the group at the time. We talked about it many times before I actually joined. I’m so glad I did.
I am a primary school teacher in Our Lady of the Angels in Cwmbran and also a member in an Irish folk band called, Peel Your Own Spuds, where I sing and play many instruments. This has helped my role in the group as the guitarist who leads many a song in the French cafes.
I am currently the Group Leader and have been since 2012, which is where I get the nickname of the “O’Don”. I have been known to mastermind some of the more creative practical jokes we play in Lourdes and recruit other group members to help me. Some of my tricks include missing beds, rearranged bedrooms and evicting people from their rooms.
My favourite song in Loudres is, “Over My Head, I Hear Music in the Air” and I like because you can easily make up your verses and everybody knows it when you sing walking down the street.
I love the experience of being in the presence of Our Lady, and being with children who for one week I can help them forget their problems and enjoy themselves. This week helps me to put things in perspective and renews my spirituality.
My favourite place in Lourdes is the statue of the Crowned Virgin, legend says if you walk around it three times and say a decade of the rosary you will return to Lourdes. I continue to uphold this tradition and in 2011 I “persuaded” the whole group to join me.
My favourite moment during the week is the Torchlight Procession. Not only does it touch me, I love to see how it can affect the children we take.
