Druim Trustees

Meet our Trustees, who bring a wealth of diverse talents, skills and experiences to Druim to enable it to grow and change.

With the benefit of their knowledge, guidance and support we will succeed together.

I am currently the chair-person and co -founder of Druim. I am an experienced artist, creative arts facilitator and special needs teacher. I am currently working as a freelance teacher and facilitator and training to become an integrative counsellor.

I am currently the chair-person and co -founder of Druim. I am an experienced artist, creative arts facilitator and special needs teacher. I am currently working as a freelance teacher and facilitator and training to become an integrative counsellor. I have worked for 25 years delivering art workshops and courses in a range of settings. I was a class teacher and art coordinator for Riverside School in London from 2000 to 2015, designing and delivering a tailored curriculum throughout the school. I worked as a creative arts facilitator with the LIFEbeat charity, working with young people using a ‘person centred’ approach. In my role as a special needs teacher I worked as part of a multi-agency team, designing individual learning plans and collaborating with a range of therapists and professionals to deliver an holistic and wrap around service to vulnerable young people. I am excited at the potential for Druim to offer a special ‘ person-centred’ soothing space and experience for beneficiaries.

I am currently working at Druim as the treasurer and co-founder. I have worked with people and organisations in Ireland, UK and around the world as a consultant, teacher, staff -trainer and artist. I have been working with children and adults with l

I am currently working at Druim as the treasurer and co-founder. I have worked with people and organisations in Ireland, UK and around the world as a consultant, teacher, staff -trainer and artist. I have been working with children and adults with learning difficulties and disabilities, families /carers and organisations for 30 years. I specialize in working to understand people who find speech and language challenging or not their natural style of communication and are pre-verbal or nonverbal. I use ‘person-centred approaches’ that engage the person in an emotional as well as functional way in. I have been practicing meditation for over 40 years and co-founded the Rathlin sitting circle (a non-religious meditation group) on the island some years ago. I am a musician and my passion is enabling anyone interested in exploring sound to be a participant not just a listener and using sounds and music as a language in which to communicate. I have taught music and sound therapy for over 30 years.

I came to Rathlin in 1998 and have lived and worked here as an environmental artist since then. An important element of what I do is about collaborating - often within schools and communities. I have, over the past 5 years, got to know Una and Stewa

I came to Rathlin in 1998 and have lived and worked here as an environmental artist since then. An important element of what I do is about collaborating - often within schools and communities. I have, over the past 5 years, got to know Una and Stewart really well and have become close friends, as well as working alongside them, in various capacities, in their roles as visual and sound artists. As people, they are incredibly generous and open and also bring such a wealth of experience from their years of teaching and arts practice, to invest within their charity work with Druim Over the past few years I have witnessed their hard work to literally build the physical structure for the accommodation and now to build the actual structure of the charity itself and I am only too glad to be able to play a small part as trustee in helping them realise this. I believe what they are able to offer here has the potential to genuinely benefit so many people in truly special way.

Each of us has unique talents that we can use to contribute at home, at work and in our communities. These talents come from our life experiences, our work and our home life. Family, friends and colleagues help us hone these skills. I was born and br

Each of us has unique talents that we can use to contribute at home, at work and in our communities. These talents come from our life experiences, our work and our home life. Family, friends and colleagues help us hone these skills. I was born and bred in Derry. I spent much of my career working (over 20 years) in the Civil Service and Public organisations managing IT, internal businesses and latterly as a Project Manager helping to deliver change initiatives. I spent my final years before retirement walking dogs. I believe that collaboration is the key to making things happen and finding solutions. I am a trustee at Druim to help and support a fantastic small local charity that offers intimate respite experiences to those in our community that need it. I am confident that respite at Druim, with Stewart and Una supporting clients, will provide a positive and lasting difference to those that get the opportunity to stay and experience Druim.

I live in Belfast and work at Queen’s University as a senior lecturer in Physiology. I deliver teaching to students of science, medicine, dentistry and pharmacy. I helped Stewart set up a highly innovative module delivered to medical students called

I live in Belfast and work at Queen’s University as a senior lecturer in Physiology. I deliver teaching to students of science, medicine, dentistry and pharmacy. I helped Stewart set up a highly innovative module delivered to medical students called ‘A Basic Toolkit for Communicating with People with Profound and Complex Needs’. This provides an enlightening introduction to students in interacting with an often-marginalized group of people, and gives the students a background to the problems that these people face in their daily lives and has proved immensely popular. Having gained insight into the value of the work that Stewart and Una have carried out with vulnerable people over many years, I was delighted when invited to be a trustee for Druim. I recognise that there is a need for the provision of a sanctuary for people and their families and carers, along with others suffering from high levels of stress and social isolation. I have no doubt that the accommodation and the specialist experience offered will help many. It is great to be ‘on the team’ with Stewart, Una and the other trustees, and I genuinely hope that people will benefit from what Druim has to offer.

Stewart and I practice mediation. This is something we share and we have been co-hosting a small sitting circle on Rathlin for a few years now. Una and I have a yoga practice, sharing some of the same tutors and classes. For the last couple of years

Stewart and I practice mediation. This is something we share and we have been co-hosting a small sitting circle on Rathlin for a few years now. Una and I have a yoga practice, sharing some of the same tutors and classes. For the last couple of years I have also been teaching yoga to residents on the island. For some of the rest of my life here on Rathlin, when I’m not engaged in negotiations with my teenagers, I engineer software! Since Stewart and Una came to live on Rathlin in 2016, I’ve got to know them extremely well. In that time I have also come to understand just how important the realisation of their charity and its work is. They personally have discovered something quite special in living here on Rathlin and are determined, not only to share that as fully as possible, but also to share their vast expertise to the full through their work in Druim. Una and Stewart offer so much, both from a personal and professional perspective and I am delighted to support them in making real differences for real people.