A priest told mourners at a vigil to remember homeless man Josef Pavelka last night that now is not a time to be angry but to remember "a real legend of a man we all knew".
More than 100 people crammed into the narrow Thompson’s Lane in Ennis for a candle lit vigil to hear Fr Ger Fitzgerald describe the 52-year-old Czech national as “a wonderful man and a gentle and a loving man”.
Last month, the plight of Mr Pavelka came to national attention when Judge Patrick Durcan described him living in a public toilet in Ennis as a scandal.
Fr Fitzgerald – who became a friend of Mr Pavelka’s over the past number of years – said he “left his mark on our hearts and on our lives”.
Josef's best friend, Polish man, Piotr Baram who also lived in a public toilet in Ennis spoke briefly to the crowd.
Today, Piotr travels to Co Cork where he will check into a treatment centre in a bid to overcome his alcohol addiction.
Yesterday he said: “I’m scared. I want to live to be 90 or 100. I do not want to die aged 52. I am sick of drink. I want to stop the drink. I am only 35 years old.”
