STEPHEN TENNANT HUMPHREYS

Award Year: 2011

Course: Social Science

Activities: Choral Scholars; Men’s Hockey Club

Occupation: Public Relations Consultant

One of the reasons I chose UCD, coming out of school, was because of the reputation of the UCD Choral Scholars. As a cocky 18 year old, I was not at all surprised to be offered the scholarship, but one minute into my first rehearsal I was traumatised by the talent that I had suddenly found myself surrounded by. I was out of my depth. However, when you find yourself in these situations you have to learn to swim and, after the initial jolt of realisation, the hours I spent rehearsing in Memorial Hall, performing across Ireland and the UK, and socialising with my fellow Scholars were some of the happiest of my life. I have been fortunate enough since graduating to have sung at four of my Choral Scholar friends’ weddings, two of whom married each other, and every time we reunite at such occasions or every year at Christmas it’s like no time has passed. It was and continues to be an absolute joy to spend time in the company of these tremendously warm, supportive, and vivacious people. They have excelled in areas as diverse as law, medicine, finance, technology, education, science, veterinary, fashion, engineering, business, entrepreneurship, and, of course, music. I think the values of discipline, hard work, and creativity instilled in them during their time in the choir have stood to them all.

I was also involved in the UCD Men’s Hockey Club. I loved wearing the St Patrick’s Blue and Saffron of UCD. My highs included seeing the First XI achieve the Club’s highest ever league finish; lows included breaking my nose three minutes into the Colours Tournament against Trinity. Not an especially talented player, with a bit of cajoling from my teammates, I threw myself into the administration of the Club. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to spend time with a truly special group of men who were determined to make themselves and UCD MHC the best it could be. They shed blood, sweat, and tears to achieve their ambitions. I hope they are all really proud of their achievements. I’m immensely proud of them.

Winning the President’s Award was a great surprise and honour. My sister, Megan, had won the Award the previous year for her exploits on and off the hockey pitch. (Hockey does get discussed around the dinner table.) She is my number one hero in life, so to be put in the same category was an amazing privilege. Our mother proudly displays our President’s Award medals side by side on the living room dresser.