Founder of Cara House, Susan McCauley is honoured with Mayoral Reception

Susan McCauley still remembers the very early days of Cara House when it opened at Castle Street in Letterkenny back in 2004.

She recalls sitting with her first colleagues, wondering if anyone would come in to use the new resource centre.

She need not have worried. People soon did start to arrive, and very quickly, Susan and her staff at Cara House began to play an important role in the lives of so many.

On Tuesday night, Susan, who recently retired as manager of Cara House after over 17 years, was honoured with a Mayor’s Reception at the Public Services Centre in Letterkenny.

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It was an honour bestowed on her by the members of the Letterkenny Milford Municipal District and according to Mayor Donal ‘Mandy’ Kelly, the award is richly deserved.

“Susan is a modest woman that never took credit for herself even though it was thoroughly deserved,” he said.

“She always praised and shone the light on her staff. That for me shows the kind of woman that you are Susan.”

Susan McCauley listens to some of the speeches at Tuesday night's event PICTURES: JOE BOLAND

Susan was joined by members of her family, friends and colleagues from Cara House, among them Martina McGinty who has taken over as manager since Susan’s retirement.

Cara House is now based at a new premises off Letterkenny’s Pearse Road and Martina said the staff are looking forward to the opening of Cara House’s age active facility next year.

“I feel very privileged to have worked with Susan for over 14 years,” Martina said.

“Not only is Susan an inspiration to me but to so many people who have been through the doors of Cara House over the years.

“She always has a knack of drawing people into Cara House and giving them a job without them knowing. 

“Susan has so much empathy for people who are struggling in their lives and has been such a support for so many people in Letterkenny.”

Susan pictured with some of those who attended Tuesday night's Mayoral Reception

Describing Susan as  a role model, a mentor and a second mother on some occasions, Martina, on behalf of all the staff at Cara House, wished Susan a long and happy retirement.

It was Cllr Ciaran Brogan who first proposed a Mayor’s Reception for Susan at a meeting of Letterkenny Milford Municipal District.

“When I decided to put the motion forward, I didn’t tell Susan because the first thing she would have said would be ‘don’t be silly’,” he said.

“Everything that Susan has done, over many years - well it was never about Susan, it was about Cara House and the needs of the community 

“Letterkenny has enjoyed many successes over many years, but there have been many challenges and Susan identified that at an early stage and she had a great ability to bring along the relevant agencies with her.”

Susan with some of her friends from Cara House 

He added:  “You have achieved more than most, and that became evident over the years when you think of the people you helped out. People you got the dinner for when there was no dinner on the table; people who took up the dancing classes or the sewing classes. 

“It was just the simple things and having somewhere to go.”  

Susan is originally from Birmingham but came to the North West,  teaching in Derry and Strabane, and setting up home in Donegal. She set up Cara House in 2004 and addressing Tuesday night’s event, she said she was so glad to be joined by members of her family and some of the staff members who were with her in the early days of Cara House.

“You gave me the push I needed,” she said.

And in a way of explaining how she often managed to convince people to help out at Cara House, she went back to her time in England.

“Many years ago when I was a teacher in Birmingham, my car broke down and I got out of the car and there was a group of teenage boys walking by and I said come here and give me a push. They did and it was at that stage that I realised that if I said things, people did them.”

Cllr Ciaran Brogan who proposed the Mayoral Reception, pictured with Susan and Mayor Donal 'Mandy' Kelly

Recalling the early days of Cara House at Castle Street at the top of the Market Square, she said: “People came in and they said we’d like to do this, or we can do that. We listened and that’s how it all developed. 

“Everyone was given the chance to use their own skills and that was very important.

“They (the staff and volunteers) came very willingly and gave of their time very willingly and I want to thank them.

“Especially the people that were there at the very beginning and sat with me at the Market Square. I wondered if anyone would come in, but they did.”