The Project Children Stories - A Legacy of Peace Lives on in Monaghan Exhibition will be launched later today.
Beginning at the Courthouse at 5pm, The Garda Band, NYPD Pipe Band, Garda Ceremonial Unit and Garda Mounted Unit will all partake in a formal ceremonial parade.
Project Children Stories showcases a compelling archive of photographs, personal testimonies, and video footage, documenting five decades of a grassroots peace-building initiative.
The project helped foster cross-community understanding during the Troubles.
Founded in 1975 by NYPD bomb squad officer Denis Mulcahy and his brother Pat, Project Children brought over 23,000 children from across Northern Ireland—both Catholic and Protestant—to spend summers with host families across the United States.
At the height of the Troubles, this grassroots initiative offered thousands of young people a temporary escape from conflict, and the opportunity to experience peace, understanding, and friendship in a neutral environment.
From the Mulcahy family’s bold first steps in rural New York to the network of American host families, tireless volunteers, and the children whose lives were forever shaped.
Project Children Stories brings their shared journey to life through intimate first-hand accounts and rarely seen archival material.
Participants speak movingly of the impact. Bernadette McDonnell, daughter of hunger striker Joe McDonnell, is one of many whose story is featured.
So too is Colin Caughey, now Director of Public Policy at the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission, who credits the programme with shaping his approach to life thereafter:
“My experience made me see how small actions can have a big impact.”
Senior BBC Weather Presenter, Barra Best, also took part in the programme:
“I will always be grateful for the gift of being a Project Children child. Spending the summer of 1992 with my host family in New Jersey gave me memories I still treasure today. Project Children was more than just a summer away from home; it was a bridge of hope, showing us that friendship and understanding could overcome the divisions we grew up with. That experience shaped me in ways I’ll never forget, and I carry it with pride and gratitude to this day.”
Speaking at the exhibition launch, Liam Bradley, Curator of Monaghan County Museum, said: “The powerful testimonies featured in Project Children Stories truly struck a chord with me. Each narrative reflects the resilience, hope, and quiet strength that can emerge from even the most divided of times. It’s an honour to bring these voices to light—especially here at the Peace Campus, where our mission is rooted in reconciliation and understanding
