Coláiste Mhuirlinne/Merlin College

Merlin College learned yesterday of the death of our student Damian Marecki, a 6th year student, after bravely fighting a long illness. Damian just completed his Leaving Certificate. Our school wishes to offer our deepest condolences to his family and friends at this difficult time. He will be forever missed. May his gentle soul rest in peace.

Announcement from family published by RIP.ie below:

It is with profound sadness that Damian’s family share the news of his death with you. Damian, aged 17 died peacefully on Tuesday evening 11th August 2026 surrounded by his heartbroken family.
He is deeply mourned and will always be fondly remembered by his mother Monika, father Daniel, Monika’s partner Rafal, Damian’s siblings Julian, Mikolaj and Maja, step-siblings Mateusz, Tomek, Marcel and Paula. Deeply missed also by his grandmothers Ludwika and Krystyna, grandfather Andrzej, Godmother Aneta, Godfather Albert, aunties Iza and Barbara, uncles Kordian and Artur, cousins Hannah, Adrian, Nathan, Kajetan, Antoni, Larissa, Eryk, Klaudia, Olek and Kacper, many relatives in Poland, lovely friends, and all the community of Merlin College School.

Z głębokim smutkiem rodzina Damiana przekazuje wiadomość o jego śmierci. Damian, w wieku zaledwie 17 lat, odszedł spokojnie we wtorek wieczorem, 11 sierpnia 2026 roku, otoczony swoją pogrążoną w rozpaczy rodziną.
Damian pozostanie na zawsze w sercach swojej mamy Moniki, taty Daniela, partnera Moniki Rafała, rodzenstwa Juliana,Mikołaja i Mai – oraz przybranego rodzenstwa Mateusza, Tomka, Marcela i Pauli.
Z ogromnym żalem żegnają go również babcie Ludwika i Krystyna, dziadek Andrzej, matka chrzestna Aneta, ojciec chrzestny Albert, ciocie Iza, Barbara, wujkowie Kordian, Artur, kuzyni Hannah, Adrian, Nathan, Kajetan, Antoni, Larissa, Eryk, Klaudia, Olek, Kacper, rodzina w Polsce oraz wielu wspaniałych przyjaciół i cała społeczność Merlin College School.

God Saw You
God saw you getting tired,
When a cure was not to be.
So He wrapped his arms around you,
and whispered, "Come to me".
You didn't deserve what you went through,
So He gave you rest.
God's garden must be beautiful,
He only takes the best
And when we saw you sleeping,
So peaceful and free from pain
We could not wish you back
To suffer that again.

Funeral Arrangements - Saturday, 15th August, 2026

Damian will lie in Repose at the Church of the Holy Family Funeral Parlour, Mervue from 12.15 p.m. to 1.15 p.m.

* Please note the entrance on this occasion is in the car park at the rear of the Church in Mervue. (H91 FH52)
* Following the reposing we will then proceed to the Parish of the Good Shepherd Church, Cumasu Centre, Doughiska Road, H91 DKF7 at 1.30 p.m.

Requiem Mass will be celebrated for Damian on arrival at 2 p.m.

Private Cremation to follow. No flowers please.

Memorial donations, given in remembrance of Damian will be sincerely appreciated by the Irish Cancer Society in respect of Cancer Research.

Best of Luck 🤞

Best of luck to our very own Eoghan Costello, who is representing Connacht at the Ireland Summer Olympic Games this weekend! 🏊‍♂️

Eoghan’s classmates in Willow created a special banner for him, which he proudly brought to the Opening Ceremony in Tallaght Stadium last night. We are all so proud of you and we’ll be cheering you on every step of the way. ✨

Two of our students will be fighting for Ireland this weekend
Eddie Ward Under 15's 44kg (Olympic BC)
Dominick Barrett Under 17's 80kg (Titans BC)

Past student Robbie Olusola 85kg (Celtic Eagles BC) is also fighting with the Four Nations Ireland Elite team

Go Team Ireland!

Believe, Achieve, Succeed 📚

Best of luck to all of our Junior Cycle, Leaving Certificate and Leaving Certificate Applied students as they begin their exams tomorrow.

Believe in yourselves, trust in the preparation you have put in, and remember that every effort counts. ✨

Wishing each and every one of you the very best of luck and success in the days ahead.

All Ireland Success🥈

Incredible achievement for Roman Shevstov, 2nd Year, winning Silver at the Schools All Ireland Track & Field Championships in Shot Put.

Roman threw an impressive new PB of 14.20m - a fantastic performance on the national stage. Congratulations Roman, we are very proud of you! 👏

Football Sign Off ⚽️

We signed off the end of the school year with our annual 1st Year vs 2nd Year football match.

The game was played, as always, in great spirits with a very competitive edge. The 2nd year’s claimed this year’s bragging rights with a narrow victory after a late couple of goals.

Well done to all involved, it was a lovely way to round off another great year of football at Merlin College. Have a lovely summer break and we will see you all back in August for the new season! ⚽️

What a historic moment for Merlin College! 🏏🎉

Their incredible secondary students had the honour of serving as Mascots for the opening game of the Women’s Tri Series T20 between Ireland and the West Indies. Alongside 2 County Galway players, these young stars made history as the first ever group to represent Connacht and to complete the It’s Wicket Schools Programme. We couldn’t be prouder! 🌟💚 - Cricket Ireland

Merlin College would like to thank Cricket Ireland and Sarah Barry for organising a great day out in Dublin to watch this keenly contested international match. Merlin College would also like to wish the Irish women’s team the best of luck at the upcoming Cricket World Cup in England.

Green Schools 🌱🌎

Our last green schools activity for the year! Well done to our students in Willow who planted three apple trees which were donated to the school by the TUI.

TY Enterprise ✨

TY enterprise class finished up their enterprise module by presenting their ideas to the class! Well done everyone 👏

Student Enterprise Awards 🏆

Well done to Yevhenia in 3rd year who recently took part in the Student Enterprise All Ireland finals in Mullingar. Yevhenia placed in the top 80 out of 30,000 applicants. 👏