Tag Archives: ardoyne

by | May 1, 2013 · 2:12 pm

Darryl Petticrew says “Goodbye” to PPI-NI

PPI-NI Leadership Coordinator, Darryl Petigrew

PPI-NI Project Coordinator, Darryl Petticrew, has been working with PPI since 2008

Today, we hear from PeacePlayers International – Northern Ireland (PPI-NI) Project Coordinator Darryl Petticrew one last time before he moves on to a post with Ulster Rugby. We are both sad and proud to see him go; he has served us so well in the past six years. 

I’ve been with PPI-NI for almost six years now, and it’s been an amazing journey, one that I don’t believe will ever fully end. I first got involved with the organization while sitting at my desk, studying in Ardoyne. My phone began to ring, and I answered, hearing an American accent in response. I was confused but  just went with it, and the guy on the other end of the phone rambled on about an organization called PeacePlayers International and how he would love for me to get involved. I decided to meet with this guy, who introduced himself as Sean Tuohey. Little did I know that this would be the start of a long journey with PPI-NI.

Darryl at a tournament

Darryl with some of his favorite participants at the Spring Jam Tournament

Sean and I decided to meet at a café called the Toasted Soda, now McCaufield’s, in Ardoyne, a place that we now take all our new fellows as a tradition. I arrived alone and was joined by five people, including Sean, Kelly Lyons (PPI-NI Managing Director at the time) and a few others. We began to talk about the programme, specifically the first twinning with Holy Cross Girls and Wheatfield Primary Schools. My ears perked up and from that moment on I was hooked.

My first event with PPI-NI was the twinning featured in the ESPY piece with the two schools. I remember the kids running into the gym, so excited to be doing something different and meeting kids that they might not have been able to before. The kids were smiling, the energy was amazing. Seeing the children from my neighborhood getting the opportunity to play sport together outside of all the off-court conflicts is something I will carry with me forever. At that moment, nothing could have wiped the smile of my face.

I remember thinking to myself “how can it get any better than this?” To this day I still have the same thought every single day. I constantly think, “this is actually my job, I’m doing something I love and it’s making a difference.” PPI-NI has been good to me over the past six years, I’ve made countless memories, and I have met people that will be a part of my life forever.

I am leaving the office to take up a new job, but I am most certainly not “leaving” the organization. I look forward to being on the other end of PPI-NI’s partnership with Ulster Rugby. And the mission, vision, and ethos of PPI-NI will be in my heart for the rest of my life.

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by | October 10, 2012 · 3:11 pm

Once A PeacePlayer, Always A PeacePlayer

Mary (pictured at the back, second from the right) at the launch of the PPI-NI basketball hoops at Holy Cross Girls’ Primary School in 2008

This week, PeacePlayers International-Northern Ireland (PPI-NI) is joined by Mary Braniff, a work placement student from North Belfast. In this week’s blog we find out why Mary selected PPI-NI as her work placement site.

Hi Mary, welcome to the PeacePlayers International blog ‘From the Field.’ First of all, tell us a little bit about yourself!

My name is Mary Braniff, and I’m 15 years old. I come from Ardoyne, North Belfast. I am here for a week on work experience from my school, Our Lady of Mercy Girl’s School. PeacePlayers allowed me to join them this week to see what it’s like ‘behind the scenes.’

How did you first get involved in PeacePlayers?

I first got involved in PPI-NI when I was 8 years old in Holy Cross Girls’ Primary School. There was never a dull day. Through sport, PeacePlayers helped us realise the differences between the two religions.

What brought you back to PeacePlayers?

Last year, I attended Young Enterprise Northern Ireland’s (YENI) KEY camp in Corrymeela. Coach Joanne was at our first residential and delivered an Understanding Diversity through Sport course. I wanted to help out in anyway I could because it brought me so much joy when I was a child. I thought I could pay them back by helping out at some of their events.

What has been your favourite moment so far with PeacePlayers?

My favourite moment with peaceplayers has been helping out at the Belfast Interface Games. I got to dress up as a mascot and dance about. It was great to meet all the kids, and I would love to do it again.

Mary, pictured second from the left with some of our other PPI-NI volunteers, acting as a Mascot for Ulster GAA at the Belfast Interface Games flagship event in August 2012 with an Olympic Torch from the London 2012 Olympics.

What would you like to do in the future with PeacePlayers?

In the future I would love a full-time job with PeacePlayers, but even if that doesn’t happen, I’ll find other ways to help out.

Thanks Mary, and finally, what is PeacePlayers?

PeacePlayers is ‘sweet to the beat!’ It is an organisation, that helps young people create a better future between different cultures and religions. I know it has helped me see a better future for Northern Ireland.

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by | October 26, 2011 · 1:15 pm

Session Four with Glengormley Integrated and Holy Cross Boys’

This week, lead Coach Rory O’Neil writes about the unique twinning of Glengormley Integrated Primary School and Holy Cross Boys’ Primary School. The two P6 classes just completed their fourth session together and are having a great time! Enjoy the video of one of their most recent twinnings this past Monday. The energy level that these kids bring to the table is unmistakable from the beginning!

PPI-NI is smack-dab in the middle of its Fall Twinning season. Of the 16 schools that PeacePlayers is working with this term, perhaps one of its more unique twinning pairings is that of Holy Cross Boys’ Primary School and Glengormley Integrated Primary School. Holy Cross Boys’ is an all-boys Catholic primary school in the Ardoyne neighborhood of North Belfast, while Glengormley Integrated is just outside the city in Newtonabbey. It’s worth noting that Holy Cross Boys’ is the only all-boys primary school that participates in PPI-NI’s Twinning program. Whenever PPI-NI coaches walk the halls of Holy Cross Boys’, it is a rarity that the teachers of the school do not offer them a cup of tea and biscuits. It’s also a rarity that they do not receive a plethora of high-fives and fist bumps from the pupils and from students that don’t even participate in the PeacePlayers program – yet!

Glengormley Integrated’s Principal, Nigel Arnold, continues to be one the biggest supporters of PPI-NI’s program, as well as Integrated Education in general. Glengormley Integrated Primary School is one of the few academic institutions in Northern Ireland where the Union Flag of the United Kingdom and the Tri-Color of the Republic of Ireland fly side-by-side in the opening hallway. Flags from the United States, Turkey and Serbia also line the hallway, further illustrating the diverse make-up of Glengormley’s student body.

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by | February 23, 2011 · 2:22 pm

What IS “Community Relations” Anyway?

Hello from sunny (or is it rainy?) Belfast, Northern Ireland! A large part of programming here involves our Primary School Twinning program, where we work with more than twenty primary schools in and around the region’s capital city. In addition to working on basketball skills and team-building activities, program participants take part in what we refer to as community relations or “C.R.” Today, we’re going to give you a closer look at what a C.R. session looks like!

In yesterday’s session with Wheatfield Primary and Holy Cross Girls’ Primary, PPI Fellows Meghan Houlihan and Shannon Brown led a discussion with the kids about similarities and differences between themselves and the other PeacePlayers participants in Cyprus, South Africa and the Middle East.

Students were shown pictures from each of the PPI sites, and worked together to generate a list of similarities and differences. They discussed the benefits of having diversity in both their local communities and the wider world. Explaining that PeacePlayers is one of many organizations using sport to promote diversity, participants talked about how the Olympics, the World Cup, Six Nations rugby, and cricket’s The Ashes were additional examples of using sports to bring a variety of cultures and nations together.

Next, participants worked together to come up with a list of characteristics they would expect to make up the “Perfect Team.” Meghan and Shannon questioned the kids on which professional sports teams they rooted for, drawing parallels between the qualities of those teams and those of the “Perfect Team.” Finally, everyone joined in to play the Human Knot, working together to untangle themselves.

Watch the clip above to see Meghan explain why diversity and differences within groups of people are things to embrace!

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by | February 16, 2011 · 2:04 pm

Alchemy in Ardoyne

‘Definition of alchemy - the way two individuals relate to each other; “their chemistry was wrong from the beginning — they hated each other”; “a mysterious alchemy brought them together”’

Students from Holy Cross Girls and Wheatfield line up to play Target Shooting at the ESPN Tournament

In 2001, Holy Cross Girls and Wheatfield Primary Schools in North Belfast drew international headlines as sectarian tensions turned violent within the interface community of Ardoyne. During those tenuous months, all community relations work ceased and little contact occurred between the two schools.

In recent years, however, the two schools and, to a greater extent, the two communities have taken steps to make Ardoyne a safer place to live, as community leaders steadily build relationships and promote participation in cross-community programmes. Holy Cross Girls and Wheatfield Primary School now participate together through several cross-community activities each year, including PeacePlayers.

So far this term, pupils from both schools have participated in multiple PeacePlayers events, including trips to watch the ESPN tournament and attend the Monster Mash and Jingle Ball tournaments. They have even enjoyed a shared pizza party, awarded to the P7 (ages 10-11) class at Holy Cross Girls for their tournament attendance. We are currently half-way through the P7 twinning programme, with only three more sessions to go. We’ve also completed introductory sessions with the P4 (ages 7-8) and P5 (ages 8-9) classes from both schools, as well as a full twinning programme with the P6 classes (ages 9-10) in the autumn.

Having a laugh with Coach Joanne at the end of Tuesday's session.

Last week, we had some great discussions surrounding discrimination and sectarianism as Coach Shannon led the kids in the “Gate Game,”  a game where children are unknowingly separated into groups for arbitrary reasons (e.g., girl/boy, blue eyes/brown eyes, dark hair/fair hair and Holy Cross Girls/Wheatfield). One side is deemed the “forfeiters,” who must do push-ups or jumping jacks as punishment. The purpose of the game is to allow kids to experience discrimination and discuss how it made them feel.

This transitioned into the “Line of Sectarianism” activity, where the group reviewed various flash cards with statements describing scenarios such as “a Catholic boy throwing stones at a Protestant school bus” or “a Protestant girl watching the St. Patrick’s Day celebrations.” The group then had to then decide whether the statement was “Sectarianism” or “Not Sectarianism.” Ultimately, this activity inspired two thoughtful conversations on a typically challenging topic.

For the first time, we are inviting the pupils from Holy Cross Girls and Wheatfield to join PPI-NI’s Cross-Community League, an evening program where they can meet up with their friends from “the other side” and play basketball. The program will run for five weeks, during which time participants will practice their basketball skills and compete on integrated teams, while furthering their understanding of community relations.

Stay tuned to find out how the kids get on at Cross-Community League, kicking off March 7th.

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by | April 14, 2010 · 2:10 pm

Holy Cross and Wheatfield Take the Next Step with PPI-NI

The work being done with Holy Cross and Wheatfield by PPI-NI constantly challenges the historic divides of Ardoyne and Upper Ardoyne

This week, PPI – NI begins the first session of twinning program between Holy Cross and Wheatfield Primary Schools. While all twelve schools engaged in our twinning program this year come from areas in need, the Holy Cross/Wheatfield twinning holds a special significance.

Sectarian rioting has plagued North Belfast for generations

In the summer of 2001, the Ardoyne and Upper Ardoyne communities of North Belfast were at a standstill over a stretch of road no more than 300 yards. This is the Ardoyne Road, an interface area in North Belfast that crosses from the Catholic nieghborhood of Ardoyne into the Protestant neighborhood of Upper Ardoyne. Both Holy Cross and Wheatfield are situated in the center of the area that was under dispute.

There were nightly riots, sparked by a dispute over paths to school and suspected acts of sectarian violence. Students at both schools still had to attend classes each day, even while violence at night gave a glimpse into the dark days of the Troubles. Nearly ten years later, the violence has settled but tensions still run rampant.

PPI-NI first began its work with the schools in 2007, with a one day basketball session. Then, even bringing these schools together for one day was accomplishment enough to earn the two men at the heart of the action ESPN’s Arthur Ashe Courage Award, given to individuals whose work transcends sports. Now, nearly three years later, Holy Cross and Wheatfield are fully engaging in our eight week twinning program, and for the first time this semester, visiting each others schools.

PPI-NI's work with Holy Cross and Wheatfield comes from years of slowly building confidence and comfort.

PeacePlayers International Fellow Ellen Cosgrove will be leading this Spring’s twinning and is excited for the next 8 weeks. “Its inspiring to see the progress of both these schools and communities. While there are plenty of obstacles, the attitudes of both the students and teachers in each school have brought Holy Cross and Wheatfield to a place most said they would never be.”

Over the next eight weeks of the twinning, the PPI-NI team will be working to keep that progress going.

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by | January 6, 2010 · 5:02 pm

Locals Stepping Up for PPI – NI

PPI - NI Local Coordinator Darryl Petticrew at this year's Jingle Ball.

Over the past year at PPI-NI, we have seen a lot of changes. Amongst many positive and exciting shifts in our programme, one is the increased local capacity. We have seen the hire of our first local Managing Director and the increased responsibility of our local staff.

At PPI-NI we pride ourselves in creating the best mix we can between our American Fellows and our Local staff. The children that we work with in Northern Ireland are amazed to see, hear and interact with both American basketball players and also positive role models from their own communities in our local staff.

My name is Darryl Petticrew and I have been a local staff member at PPI-NI since 2007. I remember my first coaching session with Holy Cross Girls Primary and Wheatfield Primary Schools. When the children ran into the gym I was shocked to see how excited they were to play basketball and meet each other. I had never seen anything like it in my life, and from that day I knew that I wanted to be a part of it.

Relaxing at an LDP event.

Since then, I began working as a local coach, engaging children from my own community in Ardoyne and others. As time went on and the children were developing their own opinions and ideas, I too was developing as a leader for my community – and my community is Northern Ireland, something that I had failed to realize until I began to work with PPI-NI.

I began to facilitate community relations discussions and coach at twinnings. This was a big step for me; I believe that as a local, the children can identify with me, but more importantly see me as a positive role model within their community.

More recently I have stepped into the role of Leadership Development Programme Coordinator. I came through PPI-NI as a local coach, and I am now leading a key component to our programme. PPI-NI helped me develop as a leader, and gave me the opportunity to form my own ideas and opinions. The Leadership Development Programme (LDP for short) gives me the ability to give other young people from interface communities in Northern Ireland that same opportunity through training residentials.

For me PeacePlayers is not a job, it’s a passion and it grows more every day. I am a small player in a big game but I can see with my own eyes that the work I, along with the rest of our staff here, do on the ground makes a big difference.

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