Sir, – Having experienced the life-changing advantages of a good-quality third-level education, I was delighted to read your editorial on Chuck Feeney’s legacy (“The Irish Times view on Chuck Feeney: he deserves the gratitude of all Irish people”, October 12th).
In a world where inherited poverty and privilege seem inevitable and the gap continues to get wider, his life has challenged that view. Maybe those of us who believe in such lofty concepts as true equality of opportunity are not mad after all?
Inspiring leaders can affect change in economic and political structures, leading to a more worthwhile future for us all. – Yours, etc,
BRIAN McNULTY,
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Corbally,
Limerick.
Sir, – Chuck Feeney funded, anonymously at first, the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre pilot study that enabled the SAVI (Sexual Abuse and Violence) Study to be completed in 2002. Providing the first comprehensive understanding of the prevalence of sexual violence in this country, its proven methodology fostered many further national population studies on sexual health, contraception and crisis pregnancy and domestic violence, and enabled the recent Central Statistics Office Sexual Violence 2022 survey which will continue to run as a periodic survey. The funds involved to trigger the delivery of this long-lasting and continuing impact would not have been available in any research funding forum in 1999. Thank you, Chuck Feeney, for funding research and enabling insights into challenging aspects of Irish life. – Yours, etc,
Prof HANNAH McGEE,
Deputy Vice Chancellor
for Academic Affairs,
Royal College of Surgeons
in Ireland,
Dublin 2.