How the Red Cross helps break down religious divides

Marie’s enthusiasm for the cross-community element of the project goes back even further, though, and stems from early courses she took with the Irish School in Ecumenics.

“Those early Peace-funded courses that I attended just as the Troubles were coming to an end, they were so interesting, and were a great opportunity to meet people,” Marie says.

A founding member of the town’s inter-church group, Marie speaks highly of the excellent support from Newry Mourne and Down Council’s Good Relations Officer, although her group has also previously had funding from the Department of Foreign Affairs in Dublin.

“We are cross-cultural, cross-community and, to a certain extent, cross-border too, in terms of our outlook.”

The PRISM Project offered the inter-church group the chance to widen its engagement with newcomers to the town, meeting people from Poland, Moldova, Romania and Syria.

“It was a wonderful experience, attending those events every Monday evening. It was a learning experience for all of us, even down to simple things like sharing music, dance and of course food!”

Thanks to a PRISM micro-finance grant, as well as help from her daughter (who is also a teacher) and other members of the committee, Marie and her group are now embarking on a nine-week course with activities like bread-making, vegetarian cooking and trips to Clare Lodge in Newcastle and Darkley House in Keady planned.

Find out more about the work of the Red Cross here.