A MAN who started a fire at a Dublin community centre in which an elderly nun died will be offered accommodation by the nun's order to give him a chance to get back on his feet.
Sister Teresa Roche (70), a member of the Daughters of Charity for nearly half a century, died last May following a fire which destroyed a school and community centre in Whitefriar Street.
Yesterday John Hevey (50), who had pleaded guilty to Sister Teresa's manslaughter and to arson, had his sentence adjourned for a year. For the next 12 months he will be supervised by the Daughters of Charity, priests of the Yincentian order and the Society of St Vincent de Paul as well as by the Probation and Welfare Service.
The Daughters of Charity will offer him an apartment in their recently opened premises at North William Street, which provides self catering accommodation for poor, disabled and other vulnerable people who have difficulties managing on their own.
The court had heard that Hevey, a welder, had been an alcoholic for a number of years and was separated from his wife. Last April he had been angry at having been paid less than expected for some cleaning and painting work he had done at a community club in the school.
in what prosecuting counsel called "a crazy act of madness", he had drunkenly bought some petrol, splashed it on the furniture and set it alight in the early hours of the morning.
Unknown to him, Sister Teresa was in another part of the premises, after working late on her job as a parish sister and visitor to the elderly. She was found unconscious in the debris and died four days later from the effects of smoke inhalation.
Six months ago the Provincial of the Daughters of Charity, Sister Catherine Mulligan, and a nun from North William Street, Sister Magdalene McHugh, visited Hevey in Mountjoy prison. They brought with them rosary beads and a prayer book which had belonged to Sister Teresa.
Sister Magdalene said yesterday he had been "delighted" to accept them. He was "genuinely upset and contrite" and told them he had written to Sister Teresa's sister in Cork, apologising and saying he had never intended to do so much damage, let alone kill anyone.
The superior of the North William Street community, Sister Olivia Sherlock, said yesterday that there was nothing unusual in what they had done.
"Aren't we Christians? We're only trying to imitate what we believe Christ would have done."