Paddy Oldham (b. 1940), former caretaker at RTC/ CIT

Paddy Oldham spent thirty-one years caretaking at RTC/CIT. He is a native of Inchigeela in west Cork and in his early days he spent thirteen years working in Clancy’s Bar in Princes Street, Cork. He was appointed caretaker to the RTC in 1975, and declares that it was a building site when he first began work there. He recalls anecdotally the management and staff members in a light and humorous way. In the early days the provision of security was very difficult, as houses were regularly broken into and other security issues had to be dealt with. Once the RTC was fully functional he would start work at 6.30 a.m. and would proceed to open 400 doors in the college. In 1979 the International Apprentice Competition was staged at the college and the medals awarded were minted within the campus. A time came when the introduction of CCTV cameras became an absolute necessity, and Paddy recalls the great opposition the introduction of these cameras encountered from the staff and the students. Paddy Oldham has very fond memories of great social occasions and late nights of celebration at the RTC.