Leon Nelligan (Leon Lamby)

Back in the early 90’s, our children moved from house to house to celebrate birthday parties.

Leon is about the same age as my two boys and I first met him at one of these parties.  Leon was about 8.  While the other kids were searching for sweets and treats hidden around the garden, I noticed Leon was playing in the builder’s sand and gravel.  He had a few branches, in leaf, laid out on the ground.  He picked up a handful of dust and tossed it on the leaves.  I watched for a short while and then asked what he was doing.

He was studying how dust settled on leaves.  It looked the same to me every time but to Leon, it was always slightly different.  Dust collected in the dimples and rolled off the bumps of the leaf differently, depending on the speed and direction of the throw.

That’s when I realized this kid is unique.  He pays attention to details that we never notice.

As he grew, he was, and still is, a faithful friend to my lads.  Whenever my boys come home to visit at holiday time, he always appears again around the house.  It’s always a pleasure to see him. 

If Leon has a flaw, it’s his modesty about his ability.  He has no reason to be modest.  In the past few years, more and more of his work appears around Fermoy.  The Heron, Fitzgibbon’s, Pearse Square, Christchurch, Market Square, to name a few. 

People, now, seek him out.

Just before the pandemic, the Fermoy St. Patrick’s Day Parade Committee approached Leon to design the front of the stage for the review stand. 

He came up with a spectacular design incorporating Kent Bridge, Pearse Square and Ash Quay.  It is 32 feet wide and 4 feet tall.  It required a special technique called Vector Drawing, so that when a picture that size in printed, it is not pixelated. 

Wait ‘till you see it on the St. Patrick's Day review stand.

Donal O'Lochlainn, Secretary