Happy Days

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Modesty, I find is a dying trait. I often find that I am surrounded by people that seek to humble brag their way towards recognition. The good they do is often done simply for that recognition. Yet, every once in a while I find a person that is truly a good person. Richie Hetherington is a modest man. If you were to ask him what he does, Richie would probably say he does a bit here and there. The work he does is not easily seen. The work that he does is more akin to a bunch of little gears around a big gear. Richie works as the financial, administrative, and programming backbone of The Junction. 

This all being said Richie is a child of The Troubles, his history is very much connected to them. Richie’s father was a police officer and his mother worked for Derry City Council. During the time of the troubles Richie’s father was injured before he was born. Growing up his parents worked hard to make sure that Richie was not politicize by the event. In 1996 Richie’s family moved to Coleraine due to the increased violence against police officers at the time. Richie’s family while from a protestant area was rather not religious or political. This upbringing led him to be neither while also being culturally protestant.The nuance of his situation is important to understanding Richie now. 

In 2000 The Junction was founded by a group of community builders including Maureen Hetherington, Richie’s mother. During this time he was in school he was active in the junior Royal Air Force program. He would eventually quit after he witnessed the bombing of innocents in Kosovo by the RAF. After this he tried university then worked part time before eventually in 2004 he started working at The Junction. In 2018 he finished his degree in business studies and economics from Open University, which has helped him in his permanent position at The Junction. 

At his work at the Junction he has worked hard with his mother to build better community in Derry. As a person that is not politically or religiously aligned Richie is neither and that is an important part of his story. People like Richie are the future of the peace building community. Putting aside differences serve as basic building blocks for a better future, and Richie and Maureen are some of those building blocks.