Sean Devereux (25 November 1964 – 2 January 1993) was a British Salesian missionary and aid worker murdered in Kismayo, Somalia in 1993 while working for UNICEF. He has since become an important role model for the aid-working vocation, particularly among Christians. Sean Devereux died at the age of 28. Sean Devereux was the only son of Dermot Devereux, a British Airways cabin steward from Wexford, Ireland, and his wife Maureen, a nurse from

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

. He grew up in Yateley, Hampshire. He was educated at

Salesian College A Salesian school is an educational institution run by the Roman Catholic Salesian Congregation of Saint John Bosco (or Don Bosco), and one that uses his methods. Salesian schools are dedicated to young people in an educational and formative envir ...

Farnborough Farnborough may refer to: Australia * Farnborough, Queensland, a locality in the Shire of Livingstone United Kingdom * Farnborough, Hampshire, a town in the Rushmoor district of Hampshire, England ** Farnborough (Main) railway station, a railw ...

and the University of Birmingham, obtaining his honours degree in Sports, Science, and Geography, and then training as a teacher at the University of Exeter. He became a popular master of Physical Education at the

in Chertsey,

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

, teaching for two academic years before departing to take up missionary work in Africa. He arrived in

Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...

in February 1989 and began work with the Salesian community at St. Francis School in

Tappita District Tappita District was one of six districts located in Nimba County, Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwes ...

, briefly finding himself imprisoned after pleading for the release of a student drafted into the army as a child-soldier. In his second year, escalating violence during the Liberian Civil War had forced the closing of the school and Devereux joined the

UN refugee agency The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and to assist in their voluntary repatriation, local integrat ...

, where on one occasion he was beaten by soldiers after confronting one of them for attempting to steal food meant for refugees. Ultimately he was ordered out of the country in September 1992 and Devereux duly left for a brief stint in Sierra Leone. He then began working with UNICEF in Somalia, where he was assigned to organise relief for the starving, particularly children, in Kismayo, the stronghold of one of many warlords. After only four months in the country, Devereux was fatally shot in the back of the head by a lone hired gunman while walking near the UNICEF compound on Saturday, 2 January 1993. His assassination came on the eve of the visit to Mogadishu by UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali. 'Sean Devereux Park' in Yateley is named in his honour and a plaque commemorates him. A BBC Everyman Documentary was produced about Sean Devereux. It is called 'Mr Sean' and was created in May 1993. This was followed by a BAFTA-nominated movie about Sean called 'The Dying of the Light'.

References

External links

Sean Devereux Children's Fund

El Fondo Sean Devereux para ayudar a niños y jóvenes pobres en Liberia (The Sean Devereux Fund to help poor children and youth in Liberia)

Breve biografía de Sean Devereux (Short Biography of Sean Devereux)

Biografía de Sean Devereux, LOS FRUTOS DEL SISTEMA PREVENTIVO de Don Pascual Chávez Villanueva (Only spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Devereux, Sean Roman Catholic missionaries in Somalia Roman Catholic missionaries in Liberia English Roman Catholic missionaries UNICEF people 1964 births 1993 deaths People educated at Salesian College, Farnborough Alumni of the University of Birmingham British expatriates in Somalia British expatriates in Liberia Deaths by firearm in Somalia People murdered in Somalia British people murdered abroad British officials of the United Nations

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Further reading

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