UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN
HONORARY CONFERRING
Friday, 17 June 2011 at 3 p.m.
TEXT OF THE INTRODUCTORY ADDRESS DELIVERED BY PROFESSOR GRACE MULCAHY, Dean of Veterinary Medicine, UCD School of Agriculture, Food Science and Veterinary Medicine, University College Dublin on 17 June 2011, on the occasion of the conferring of the Degree of Doctor of Science, honoris causa on TIMOTHY FRANCIS O’LEARY
President, Members of the Veterinary Council, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen.
On the campus of Iowa State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine there is a sculpture entitled “The Gentle Doctor”. This statue, by Christian Petersen, of a 7-foot tall veterinarian caring for two of his patients, is not only the most frequently visited art work on that University’s campus, but has become known throughout the veterinary world as encompassing the humanitarian and selfless qualities we hold dear in our profession. Frank O’Leary, who we honour today, most certainly exhibits those qualities in abundance.
We have heard quite a lot this year, on this 250th anniversary, about the founding of the world’s first veterinary school by Claude Bourgelat in 1761 in Lyon. It is no coincidence that Bourgelat’s project occurred during the French Enlightenment, and we do well to remember that the talents of this Renaissance man encompassed not only comparative pathobiology but also ethics, leadership, and humanitarian endeavours. The roots of the ethics which embue our profession today are apparent in his vision for the school’s graduates, that they “will prove by their behaviour that they are all equally convinced that riches lie less in the goods one possesses than in the good one can do “.
Bourgelat would surely have considered his vision to have been fulfilled by Frank O’Leary, a veterinarian who, during the course of his career, has truly practiced not only the science, but also the art, of veterinary medicine.
Graduating with an MVB degree from University College Dublin in 1962, Timothy Francis O’Leary soon established a veterinary practice, TF O’Leary and Associates, which has given long-standing and dedicated service to the community of South Kerry. In his professional capacity, Frank has consistently fulfilled a duty of care by taking individual personal circumstances, and temporary or permanent hardship, of clients into account when providing veterinary services. Inspired by his father’s work and seeing at first hand the work of a farm animal veterinarian, Frank’s son, Mike O’Leary, following in his footsteps, became a UCD veterinary graduate in 1988 and entered the profession. Mike, a talented sportsman, having, among other achievements, captained UCD’s successful Sigerson Cup team for two years, died suddenly in 2003 while still in his thirties. His memory, however, lives on, certainly through his family, who are here today, but also through the work of the Mike O’Leary Memorial Trust, set up by Frank. The Trust has provided financial backing and organizational support for a number of causes, two of which are worthy of particular mention. The first is for research into cardiomyopathy and placement of cardiac defibrillators in public venues throughout south Kerry as well as in UCD Veterinary Sciences Centre. The second is for the support of rural development and economic empowerment in the developing world. This form of empowerment is considered by many to be the optimal form of development aid. The Trust has supported annual bursaries for UCD veterinary students to work with VIVA in educating farmers in Africa in the care of indigenous livestock and those donated by organisations such as Bóthar and Heifer International. The knowledge exchanged can lead to sustainable self-help for the communities involved. Thanks to Frank’s initiative, UCD Veterinary students have had the opportunity o share in this philosophy and gain a unique humanitarian educational experience. All of the bursary recipients have been deeply impacted by their experience, and some as a result have now gone on to do further humanitarian and development work.
University College Dublin considers that it is particularly opportune, in 2011, the 250th Anniversary of the start of the founding of the veterinary profession, to honour with the degree of Doctor of Science, Frank O’Leary, as an outstanding UCD graduate, humanitarian and member of the veterinary profession.
Praehonorabilis Praeses, totaque Universitas,
Praesento vobis hunc meum filium, quem scio tam moribus quam doctrina habilem et idoneum esse qui admittatur, honoris causa, ad gradum Doctoratus Scientiae; idque tibi fide mea testor ac spondeo, totique Academiae.