The Authors - Then and Now
Catherine Conlon and Mary Phelan met in 1974 aged 9 in third class in the local Presentation Convent primary school in Carrick-on-Suir, a small town in the Suir valley in South Tipperary, Ireland. They became firm friends. Having grown up together, at the age of 18 in September 1983, Catherine left for Brittany in France and Mary became articled to a local firm of accountants attending college in nearby Waterford city. They are pictured above in their teens (complete with dodgy haircuts) and in their forties (when they met on vacation in San Francisco).
Catherine Conlon
Catherine was born in London in April 1965 to Irish parents, the eldest of four girls. She and her sisters returned to live in Carrick-on-Suir with her paternal grandparents in the early 1970s. At the age of 18 she left Ireland to work as an au pair in Brittany. She never returned to live in Ireland. She lived for many years in Squaw Valley, CA. She now lives in Bend in Oregon, USA and is married to Rod Miller. She works in food service in the local hospital. She likes biking and skiing.
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Mary Phelan
Mary was born in Carrick-on-Suir in October 1965 to Mickey and Peggy Phelan. After the loss of five premature babies in the early 1950s, Mary's older brother, Martin, was born in 1958. Mary trained as a chartered accountant with Gilligan & Company in Carrick. Having qualified as a Chartered Accountant, Mary moved to Dublin almost 25 years ago to work as a tax consultant with Arthur Andersen. She also worked with Sunrock Aircraft Corporation and now is the Head of Finance at the Irish Stock Exchange where she met her partner, Charlie Craig. She likes music and travel.
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