Mary Davis | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Council of State | |
| In office 11 November 2004 – October 2011 | |
| President | Mary McAleese |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Mary Rooney[1] 6 August 1954 County Mayo, Ireland |
| Spouse | Julian Davis |
| Children | 4 |
| Alma mater | Trinity College, Leeds |
| Occupation | Managing Director, Special Olympics Europe/Eurasia |
| Website | www |
Mary Davis (born Mary Rooney, 6 August 1954) is an Irish social entrepreneur and long-term campaigner for the rights and inclusion of children and adults with intellectual disabilities. She currently serves as the Managing Director of Special Olympics Europe/Eurasia (SOEE) with the responsibility of overseeing the growth and development of Special Olympics across 58 countries in Western Europe, Eastern Europe and Central Asia.[2] Davis also serves as Chairperson of Special Olympics Ireland.
She is best well known for serving as CEO of 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games held in Dublin, Ireland. This was the first time the event was staged outside of North America since Eunice Kennedy Shriver founded the movement in 1968 and the largest sporting event in the world that year. Davis was awarded a Person of the Year Award in 2003, for her work for this event as well as for her years of service with Special Olympics Ireland.
In November 2004 Davis was appointed by President Mary McAleese to serve on the Irish Council of State. In 2006 Davis was made Chairperson of the newly created Taskforce on Active Citizenship.[3] She also co-chairs the North South Consultative Conference for the Irish Government.
Davis is a candidate in the 2011 Irish presidential election; having received nominations from six county councils, she is guaranteed to appear on the ballot.[4]
Mary Davis (née Rooney) is a native of Kinaffe, Swinford, County Mayo and attended St Louis Convent School, Kiltimagh. She credits that the seeds of her success were sown in her upbringing in East Mayo saying "there was always a prevailing attitude of looking after your neighbour, of taking care of each other".[5] After finishing secondary school, Davis trained as a Physical Education teacher from Trinity College, Leeds, United Kingdom, a women's teacher training college affiliated to the University of Leeds. From there she won a scholarship to the University of Albertawhere she completed her academic studies. After returning to Ireland, she became PE co-ordinator with St Michael's House in Ballymun, Dublin, an organisation catering for people with intellectual disabilities. It was then that she first volunteered for Special Olympics Ireland.
In 1985 Davis worked as Events Director when the 1985 Special Olympics European Games were hosted in Dublin, Ireland. By 1989, she was appointed National Director of Special Olympics Ireland. She served as member of the SO International Sports Rules Committee (1986–1989), Chairperson, SO European Development Committee (1982–1986) and Chairperson, SO International Advisory Council (1993–1997). She was one of the main driving forces behind Ireland's bid to host the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games and her track record on national and international bodies was a major factor in bringing the Games to Ireland.
Davis served as CEO of the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games Organising Committee. This was the first time in 44 years that the Games were ever held outside of North America. The event involved participation by 165 countries, 32,000 volunteers and 10,000 athletes and coaches.
As managing director of Special Olympics Europe/Eurasia (SOEE), Davis is responsible for overseeing the growth and development of Special Olympics across 58 countries. The primary purpose for SOEE is to empower and enable these national programmes to make sports training & competitions opportunities available for people with intellectual disabilities as well as change attitudes, foster community building, provide healthcare and influence policy. In 2009, Davis secured €6 million in funding from the European Parliament.[6] A further Euro 447,000 was secured for SOEE's Youth Unified Sports programme.
Davis moved into the mainstream of Irish politics when she was appointed to the Irish Council of State by President Mary McAleese for her second term as President of Ireland, starting in 2004. Davis was one of seven personal appointees to the body established by the Constitution of Ireland to advise the President of Ireland in the exercise of her discretionary, reserve powers.
In April 2006 Davis was appointed Chair of the Taskforce on Active Citizenship, due to her track record in "generating such a tremendous response from ordinary citizens to an extraordinary experience that was Special Olympics 2003. This is one example of the type of voluntary effort and community participation which sustains a healthy and vibrant society".[7] More recently she was appointed Chair of the Steering Group on Active Citizenship to oversee the implementation of the recommendations of the Taskforce.
Davis is also a Co-Chair of the North South Consultative Conference on behalf of the Irish Government. The conference seeks to explore social, cultural and economic issues that have a North/South and cross-border dimension. The focus is on identifying potential for improved co-operation for mutual benefit.[8]
Davis is one of the founder of Social Entrepreneurs Ireland. Previously Davis served on a number of boards including the Irish Sports Council, Broadcast Commission of Ireland, Dublin Airport Authority, UCD Foundation, The One Foundation, Boardmatch and chaired the St. Patrick's Festival for a four year period. She was a member of the Advisory Group for the Ireland Funds. She also served on the coordinating committee of the 2003 European Year of People with Disabilities and is an Ambassador for the 2011 European Year of Volunteering. Davis serves on many voluntary committees and is a member of the Irish Times Trust, the National Institute for Intellectual Disability, National Sports Campus Development Authority, and City of Science 2012 and acted as a judge for the O2 Ability Awards and the 'Your Country, Your Call' competition.
Davis announced on 26 May 2011 that she would be seeking nomination for the [[]].[9][10] She had originally stated in August 2010 that she would consider standing for the presidency if approached by a political party.[11][12] She subsequently decided to run as an independent, seeking nominations from four local authorities.[13][14] She began the process by addressing Galway County Council, Louth County Council and Clare County Council in June 2011.[15][16]
On 21 July 2011, she had received the support of six local authorities (Counties Kerry, Limerick, Louth, Mayo Monaghan and Tipperary North[17]) and is thus guaranteed a place on the ballot.
Davis has been awarded honorary Doctorates in Law by the University of Limerick,[18] Dublin City University and the National University of Ireland.[19] Davis also received an Honorary Fellowship of the faculty of Nursing & Midwifery at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. On receiving the honorary degree from DCU, Davis said "I feel the award is an acknowledgement of what people did to make the Games so successful. It was a great honour to be CEO, but around me were all these people who were working with me to make it happen."[20]
Over the years Davis has received many distinctions and achievements including Person of the Year (2003),[21] Woman of the Year (2003), Marketer of the Year (2003), Mayo Person of the Year (2004), Woman of our Time Award - Social and Personal magazine (2003), Best of the Irish Award (2003), Business & Finance Person of the Month (July 2003), Irish Independent Person of the Month (June 2003), Public Relations Institute of Ireland Honour Award (2007),[22] Public Relations Consultants Association 'Public Affairs Award for Ireland's Bid to host World Games' (1998), Lord Mayor of Dublin Millennium Award (1998), Irish Tatler - 100 Most Influential Women in Ireland (1998), and Irish Security Award for 'Caring' (1986).
Davis frequently serves as a guest speaker at conferences and special events around Ireland[23] and is a regular contributor to Irish media outlets on a range of topics.[24][25]
She is married to Julian Davis and they have four children - two daughters and two sons.
Davis ran the New York Marathon in November 2005, raising €80,000 for Special Olympics in the process. Before that, she achieved the ambition of a lifetime when she climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, with her husband Julian. She was invited to represent the Irish Government on a climb of Mont Blanc on 1 July 2008 to celebrate the start of the EU Presidency in France.[26]