Fergus Finlay: The community that showed what a difference it can make in a day

Difference Day at Dolphin House last week. The relentless, miserable rain didn't stop anyone from transforming the area. Photo: Denis O'Reilly
I’d say it might be two years ago when I asked Denis O’Reilly if he’d ever heard of Dolphin House. I know it very well, he only knew it vaguely. And when he came up to visit, he was a bit doubtful. Which is not like Denis.
Dolphin House is a large local authority housing estate, built on the banks of the Grand Canal in the south inner city in Dublin. It’s more than 70 years old and crumbling badly. It’s a mix of some houses and mostly apartments. Up to recently it also featured a group of “bedsits” where older people lived.