Well after a week of euphoria at the announcement that Tom Crean is to be finally provided state recognition in the shape of the research ship RV Tom Crean here’s an update that will come as a shock and a disappointment to all signatories of this petition.
Very noticeable by its absence from the press release put out by the Marine Institution, was any reference to the campaign to honour Tom Crean and the petition you've all signed. Others noticed the same and messaged me or left comments about it.
With that in mind I contacted a former member of their board who is now a member of the oversight committee for the build project of RV Tom Crean.
Firstly, here's a little bit of my history of discussion with Lorcán Ó Cinnéide, who was a board member up until December 2020.
Lorcán contacted me first in April 2020. Whilst still a board member of the Marine Institute, he wanted to purchase a number of copies of my biography of Crean to present to other board members so that they were made aware of the man Lorcán was proposing they name a new research vessel after (RV Tom Crean).
His proposal was evidently successful and on Sunday, 31st January 2021, the historic announcement was made.
I was alerted to the great news by a supporter, John Dimond, before an official announcement went out and Lorcán contacted me sometime later by e-mail to state:
“Just and long overdue reward for Tom, and a great day for the campaign to have him recognised.”
So far so good - I fully agreed with him and there was no cause for concern as I set out writing up all the social media posts of celebrating a victory of the campaign for Ireland to honour Tom Crean who the signatories of this petition are an intrinsic part of.
Still, one thing seemed really strange - the lack of any reference to the campaign or the petition in any news reports of the announcement. So, in a message to Lorcán I asked:
Why there was no reference to the campaign to honour Tom Crean?
His answer to this:
“I’ll be very honest, the campaign to honour Tom Crean in the form of a petition or online had very little if any bearing on the decision that was made by the Board. That is simply a fact.”
Naturally I was left gobsmacked by this revelation.
What was most important to me was the efforts of all the supporters who subscribed to a campaign they were passionate about, a decision by the Irish government to honour Tom in whatever form that may take, be it a ship, a statue, a plane or a hot air balloon. A number of you, I know, submitted payments to the Change platform so that we were able to reach more fans and others tirelessly shared links and details of the drive so we could increase the numbers which we did.
We have achieved the goal and it happens to be in the form of a research ship and we all deserve acknowledgement for achieving the result - RV Tom Crean.
Quite naturally fans of the Facebook page Ireland Should Honour Tom Crean and members of the Tom Crean Appreciation Society are expressing their anger and disbelief. Many are contacting the Marine Institution to convey the same. The question that is bugging me the most is why on earth would a signatory to this petition wish to disassociate with it when we won the prize we all sought?
A small number who never signed the petition, are saying that we're making a drama out of it and should just celebrate the fact that Tom Crean has finally achieved recognition - that he was humble and shied away from the attention we are now seeking. What they fail to take into account is that Tom also took pride and pleasure in receiving his medals as reward for his own achievements and it's human nature to take some pleasure in being acknowledged for your part in any success story - it's food for the soul to be part of a positive change and god knows we all need that with the times we are in.
In his reply to me Lorcán also mentioned: “I was a supporter of the campaign and I found myself in a position to do something about the matter off my own bat and I did my bit”
Everyone here who signed this petition will be receiving this notification and among them, with the greatest of relevance to the matter, will be Lorcan who, on 4th December, 2016, just one day after I created it, added his name to it. Yes, he too was a signatory to this petition that sought this very outcome.
In my reply to him I ended with the following:
"I’ll still celebrate this historic decision with our fans in the solid belief that your own subscription and support for the campaign, the petition of which you signed 4 years ago, the day after I created it on 4th December 2016, was the catalyst that made it happen."
I'm sure many of you too will have noticed the absence of the campaign in the news reports and it would be good to hear your thoughts on this disappointing update in the comments here.
If the Marine Institute continue to disregard our part in this, our solace will lie in the knowledge that we all know that it was this campaign which brought this historic event about.
Sorry to be the bearer of an update that will be as disappointing to you all as it has been to me.