Open Letter To Sheila Gilheany <==========

Zounds

Raphael wrote:

[Sorry about getting john to post this for me, but I'm still banned, and this won't wait]

Dear Sheila,

Wow. You're going. When I first heard, I thought it was a joke. To me, and to many of us, You ARE CTYI, your name is synonymous with the organisation. But, just as the river flows to the sea, all things must change, and I wish you every luck in your new position

It was fantastic knowing you, you've changed my life for the better

Aonghus FJR Collins

[Everyone, feel free to add your own sentiments and feelings, I'm going to email them all to Sheila on the 1st. So be quick!]

.

mentalimplosion

i doubt you'd know me, or recognise me if you saw me on the street, but i'd like to say thanks for creating such an institution which has had such an impact on my life, has given many new friends, taught me so so so so much and given me the best 6 weeks of my life.

Ana

Piste

This year was my first year in CTYI and though I don't think I said two words to you, you were a part of those 3 weeks. I remember the first day when we were all in the lecture theatre and everyone screamed and clapped when you came in, My roomate and I looked at eathother wondering why everyone loved you so much and at the end of the 3 weeks I knew why. Thank you so much for 3 amazing weeks and I'll miss you next year. In conclusion: You rock Socks!

Peterfing

Okay I haven't been reading Boards very much... Sheila's GOING? What?! Since when?

Piste

Check out the 'Sheila's Leaving' Thread

the_only_Ali

Thank you for all you've done for me and all of us CTYIers. I've spent the happiest weeks of my life at CTYI and made some of the best friends I'll ever find there, and I know it wouldn't have been the same without you.
Good luck in whatever path you choose next, we'll miss you and never forget what you've done for us.

Alison

LiamD

Sheila,

Thanks for everything.CTYI was and hopefully will again be one of the best experiences of my life.The people are great, the atmosphere is great and it's just plain great.Good Luck in the future and I hope you drop by and see us next year.

Regards,
Liam Devine

Matthewthebig

Sheila I want Your babies! I thank you for setting up CTYI its a brilliant place. Thanks!

Aoibheann

I really don't know what to say, I'm so bad at this sort of thing.
You have done so much for me and everyone else here. Thank you really isn't enough.
You're a legend. Cheers for everything. Good luck with whatever you do next and in the future. Enjoy yourself.

Jim_Are_Great

What can one as humble as I say to one as godly as Dr. Sheila Gilheaney? I suppose that words alone cannot express even an ounce of my everlasting gratitude to you for being the founder of an institution which brought light into so many people's lives. From the very deepest pits of my heart, I thank you and will never forget you and what you did for all of us. CTYI changed my life and were it not for you, it would never have happened. Thank you eternally-
Yours, Jim

PS- I'm also very sorry about putting the cutlery in the toaster *cringe*

Peterfing

Its the end.
I think Sheila leaving CTYI is one of the signs of the Apocalypse...

Well goodbye Sheila. I'm another person who you wouldn't remember what with only attending two years, but all the same.... CTYI was an amazing, life-changing thing for me. Without it I wouldn't have some of the greatest friends ever. And I guess everyone who feels the same way has you to thank for that.

I'm kind've glad I can't go back to CTYI this year. My second year was a little bit disappointing. Brilliant and all, in the end but not as sensational as the first year. I don't think it will be quite the same without Sheila welcoming us at the start and bidding us farewell at the end.

I don't know what else to say so I'll stop before I get too upset over never being able to go back to CTYI ever ever... ever again.

Goodbye Sheila!!!! We all love you!!!!

Peter Fingleton

Stephen Forde

pretty much the same as the rest.......thanks sooooo much for giving me so much fun and more fun in all the ctyi sessions.........some of the best 12weeks of my life.U probably dont know who i am but ask will cos he know every1. Im sure he will remember me (mayb not for such good reasons but yea its all good)


Thanks lots

CONOR!!! f...

Sheila. wow. can't believe you're going. You probably don't remember me but I was one of those who got us kicked out of the library in session 2 last year. Thanks for standing by us and keeping us in the course! It let me enjoy the rest of my first year and all of my second! I don't really know what else to say except that you are the best! CTYI will not be the same without you.

Good luck in the future and I really hope to see you in the (near) future! Toodles!
Conor Flynn

imp

Sheila... CTYI has had such an amazing and profound impact on my life since my brief time there.

You're the catalyst for many of the best friendships and best memories of my life, and thinking about it I can't quite think of words to show how grateful I am for that, so I'll just say a simple thank you.

Congratulations, and best wishes for the future

}:>

halenger

Madness, madness I say. You are CTYI and CTYI is you, to an extent.

You are the establishment, as it were, and as such were not always the most popular person. Having said that there's hardly 1 person who does not recognise what you have done for them. That being CTYI. We cannot thank you enough for it. I'm of an older generation 1998-2000 but CTYI hasn't left me. I don't think it ever will. CTYI offered a haven that just was not available anywhere else.

You'd be amazed at how many people want to set up CTYI School and so on. It's a dream many of us have had. I know I sure as hell have had it. Often pondered on it.

CTYI was more than just "summer school" or "nerd camp". CTYI can hardly be confined to the courses really. CTYI is a set of beliefs. A way of life.

You've given us something that we will always cherish. You've done yourself proud.

Thank you and good luck in your new job and in life in general.


Regards,

Pádraic D. Hallinan.

Crash

Stickied then unstickied as i suddenly realised it was less visible

personally - i dont think theres anything i can say here that hasnt been said before.
Some of the closest friends i've made were in CTYI - and some of the saddest moments came from friendships there. but never for a minute do i regret a single moment in CTYI

Thankyou.

Neil McGough

article6

Sheila, thank you for the contribution you made to our experience at CTYI. None of us who went there will ever forget it.

Best wishes for the future.

Is mise
Edward Gaffney

Shiney

Thanks for giving me perspective in life that CTYI did like no other organisation ever could.No matter what, nobody outside CTYI could ever understand the true meaning of it and why the vast majority of CTYIers enjoy it so much.

Niamh Shine

Crash

I sent an email to Sheila linking to this thread last night, and recieved this reply, asking me to pass it on to people that i could.

Dear Neil,


Many thanks for your very kind message - it is really appreciated. Haven't been able to access the thread just yet as I think the connection may be down at the moment, but I look forward to doing so.

CTYI has been the most amazing work experience of my life - primarily because of the great people that I have met through it including students, staff and parents. As you know, there is an atmosphere in CTYI which is not comparable to anything else and that is really down to the students. I would be really pleased if you could pass this on to your friends. I'm sorry that I wasn't able to write out individually to all the students but at this stage we have over 18,000 students on records and I might have had to stay on for another year to contact everyone!!!

Just to let you know my main reason for leaving is that I want to be able to work part-time because of family committments. I will be working in the area of policy development with the Institute of Physics and doing my best to attract young people into Physics. I will still be based in DCU and no doubt will be in much contact with CTYI. I know Colm O'Reilly will do a great job and will bring his wonderful talents to bear on the job so I am confident that the Centre will only increase in strength and depth as a result.

Warmest regards, Sheila

oq4v3ht0u76kf2

Thanks for giving my work experience in fourth year, and sorry I only turned up half the time I was supposed to and when I did turn up I was late... but... well, thanks is all I can say.

Bob

pinkpimp

Thanks is all i can say.
I've been thinking all day,
Wondering what to write,
But i'd be here all night,
If i were to list,
The many ways you will be missed,
So as i bid you adou,
I will tell you,
CTYI changed me,
In more ways than you could see,
So thanks for all the years,
All the smiles and the tears,
And even though i only had one,
'Tis better than to not have done,
Finally, I'll say its true,
Farewell, We all love you.

Awayindahils

Thank you so much for bringing the cty program to ireland, and then making it your own by having ctyi. it has meant so much to me, when i got back after my first summer people asked me had i gone to confidence camp it really brought me out of my shell.

before i went to ctyi, i thought 'nerd camp' was just something that people poked fun at on tv. in reality it is the place where i have made my best friends, and have spent the best weeks of my summers the past few years.

i still remember the day i had to have an interview because of how i was accepted, i was very neverous. you were so friendly towards me and took a real interest in what i had to say, you discussed what the courses were like and made them so vivid and interesting, that i couldn't not but go- i have never looked back since that day.

so thank you once again, and the best of luck with whatever you do in the future. your belief in the ctyi program has help to make it what it is today.

Hilary Allen.

Liquorice

I would like to say thank you, and although I know that those two words can lose meaning so easily, and although I know that they cannot begin to express my gratitude, I mean them.
There isn't much I can say that hasn't been said already. CTYI has been a wonderful experience and I am grateful that you brought the program here to Ireland. Many people will look up to you forever more for taking on such a huge task, and succeeding. For making CTYI more than 'nerd camp' or classes during the summer, for making it a place to expand our knowledge of interesting subjects that we do not get a chance to experience in school, and for helping create such a wonderful social atmosphere there. And for simply being friendly and always with a smile on your face.
Good luck in the future, and hopefully I shall meet you again through my father's involvement in the Institute of Physics.
Kindest regards,

Áine Costello

It wasn't me!

Thank you so much. It's been wonderful. A truly amazing experience. I only wish more could have shared it. You don't know me and, after I leave for probably the last time next year, you still won't know me, but the institution you've set up here is the greatest thing that's ever happened to me and more than likely that ever will. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for four, maybe five, fantastic years and I wish you the best of luck whatever life throws your way. You can always rely on the people of CTYI to look upon you with the greatest fondness and respect. Peace, luck and love,
David Franklin

Rezmuter Duane

Dear Sheila,
I'm lost for words. I've been at CTYI for the last 7 years and you were always there, a permanent fixture. You have touched the lives of so many, brouht together a community of individuals who otherwise have never met. Maybe you remember: "CTYI isn't just a three week course, it is a way of life." You have brought happiness to so many of our lives. My closest friends, the happiest moments of my life have come out of CTYI. The fact that the idea of a CTYI school is so prevalent amongst us is a marvellous tribute to you. It is amazing how the dedication and work of one individual can touch so many, have such a positive effect on so many lives.

I hope you enjoy physics and have a great life. We will never forget you and there will always be a special place in my heart for CTYI. I think it is safe to say that all CTYIers have a special place reserved for you too.

Duane Browne

snuffles

Sheila,
This year was my first and last year in CTYI. They were easily the three best weeks of my life. So thank you for them. They rocked! There are 18,000 students out there who owe you a hell of a lot. It's impossible to thank you enough for CTYI.

Marianne Cassidy

Plunky

Dr Gilheany,
from my days as a young student being lectured by you on the vastness of the cosmos to being a fully fledged nevermore, I've always thought of you as the DemiGod founder of CTYI. Podge was right when he said we all dreamed of a CTYISchool, we truly did. And none of us would be anything like the people we are, know none of the people we know to the extent that we know them, if it hadn't been for a young Astronomist with a dream of summer learning for the gifted. Thank you for putting your chips on us, we're all forever grateful, and will never forget everything you have done for us over the past 10 years...
Good luck in whatever it is you do,
Eoin A Pluinceid (Plunkett) {Now a psychology student, inspired by the CTYI courses}

Raphael

Ok, update

As you all posted the letters, I copyed them into notepad, and saved each file with the senders full name. One or 2 people got letters to me through other means as well, those got put in. Anyway, I just zipped them all and sent them to ctyi@dcu.ie now.

Edit: Oh, and there were 27 letters in all

Spraypaint

I signed up to Boards about 20 minutes ago coz I heard about this thread and felt compelled to post. I suppose I can't say anything that hasn't already been said but still, I'll throw in my 2 cents.
Anyway, Dear Dr. Gilheany.
You probably don't know me. You did only speak to me in person twice but as far as I'm concerned you're synonymous with the instution that is CTYI. You created it and ran it. Because CTYI means so much to me(even though I've only gone once so far) I guess I owe a rather large debt to you because without you're tireless work, commitment and input I wouldn't have had the best 3 weeks of my life or met some of my best friends. Those 3 weeks and those people are a part of me. No complaints, no regrets. All in all I guess this just a long-winded way for me to say THANK YOU.
Best of luck in whatever you do.

-Killian McCarthy (Legal Studies S2 '04)

Caoimhe

Sheila... I don't know what to say. For 5 years now you've been so instrumental in giving me the best summers of my life. I feel like crying writing this, I just can't fathom how CTYI will ever be CTYI without you. I can only wish you the best of luck in whatever you do and thank you from the bottom of my heart for being the director during my time on the course. You have always been there for us all when we needed you. There is no way I can thank you enough for what you have given me - given all of us.

Caoimhe Howard

nosmo

As has been said, it's all been said. But for what it's worth, heres my contribution.
Over about 7 years, CTYI has made me who I am today. It brought out of my shell. It has both directly and indirectly made me friends which I will keep for life. I learned a bit too, in between. I never before had such an incredible place to express myself and to meet likeminded people. It has changed me for the better.
Thanks for everything,

Hugh Nowlan

edibility

Dear Sheila.....my god, thank you so much. I remember meeting you for the first time in the Southern hotel in Sligo when you were giving a talk about CTYI to prospective atendees...I was their with my little brother, having attended the summer before, when you weren't present, and thinking that you couldn't be in charge of CTYI...you weren't geeky enough, or professor like...you reminded me of my mum a bit to be honest. You proved me wrong in the two years after that. Since then we've ran into each other once or twice during my time at CTYI, and we didn't always agree on matters, but what CTYI did for me from the first time I turned up at DCU is just amazing, and you are really a huge part of making it happen. In my three years at CTYI I have made the best friends I have, learnt so much about myself, and about others for that matter, understood myself, grown up, accepted my mind and the way it works, learned to be unafraid to have opinions, learned what I want to do in later life, and why I want to do so....CTYI has shaped me and helped me grow in a way that can only be paralleled with my parents. I can never express how grateful I am. All I can say is thank you.

Thank you Sheila.

Sarah Brennan

(And after a bit of consideration, you're really not like my mum at all )

ILikeCheese

All that I can say is summed up in one simple statement. Sheila, you rock! After 3 years I can't imagine CTYI without you. Good luck.
Yours sincerely,
Eamonn Carey

Dalamar

Sheila,

Thanks for organising one of the best times of my life. The days I have spent in ctyi has been the unforgettable to say the least. I've picked up many wonderful friends durning my years attending courses there. Thank you.

Simon Dardis

lucernarian

I'm really ashamed to have posted this so late but if Shiela ever reads this then I'd like to say that few words expressed my sadness and disapointment when I heard the news. I wish you the very best for the future
With Best Regards
Matthew Taaffe

La Guitarra

Sheila,

I want to thank you for making my youth so much better. The last seven years would not have been half as good without CTYI and i'm going to miss it and you very much. Thank you for giving me the best years of my life,

Love
Emma Dore-Horgan

PurplePainter

Hi Sheila,
I know you will remember me! My name is Róisín Garvey, and on behalf of all the Garveys (Alanna and Cathal too!) I'd like to thank you for being kind and helpful to us always (even when I was a very annoying little junior!)
Thank you for your contribution to the CTYI experience, and I am sorry You won't be there when I Invade as an RA some year
x x x x x
Roisin -

Bazookatone

Oh my god!
I can't believe Sheilas leaving. The fundamental forces of the universe are out of balance. The seas will rise, cities will fall and dogs will marry cats. God forbid, Atomic Kitten will get back together.

Ok, It's Jack Connolly by the way. I'd just like to say my deepest warmest thanks to Sheila for creating CTYI and making so many people happy. I'd also like to thank Sheila for being the best authority figure in the history of summer courses, someone who understood that the crazy things we did, ie Megadeath chasing Barren into the kitchen and putting a knife in the door,were what made CTYI special and didn't get all uppity about it. And also for being so nice and understanding about stuff if you had aproblem. Did you know that I nearly quit CTYI after 3 days because I was lonely and it was Sheila and Colm who convinced me to stay. Imagine if I had never been there! :eek:

TalkISCheap

Sheila,
as you leave what was your life for the past 11 years, remember this :
most people say that to know that one persons life was a little better
because they were in the world is enough in their lives.
Since founding CTYI you have made 18000 peoples lives a helluva lot
better than they would have been otherwise. (including mine for the last
6)

Some major respect from us all for what youve done,
Cathal Malone

pinkpimp

Whoever forwarded this to Sheila before, sending it to her agan now might be a good idea, if you havent already, since i think most people have said what they want to say. I'd do it, but im technollogically retarded(not meant in an insulting way to the mentally disabled). Just a suggestion, I'd hate to have her miss what some people had to say. Thanks.

Raphael

Neil mailed in a link to the thread, only reason i was forwarding it was because I had a few extras

pinkpimp

Oh, OK.

farry aka faz

I wish Sheila the best of luck in the future and I thank her for all that she has done for us at CTYI.

buffalo

Hey guys, I just wanted to let you know that a few of the RAs were at a goodbye thingy for Sheila recently, and in Colm's speech, first he compared Sheila leaving CTYI with Bryan leaving Westlife, and then he mentioned all these tributes as a testament to how much Sheila has done for so many people over the years. Just so you know she knows you care - we'll all miss her.

Raphael

Thanks bish. Good to know we made an impact

pinkpimp

Yeah, cheers bish.