Who We Are

Ian & Nóirí­n Rafferty

Ian is founder of Blue Mantle Music. He lives in the West of Ireland with his wife Nóirí­n and their two young daughters. Ian has spent most of his life working as a landscape gardener and stonemason. For the past six years he has led the music ministry at Emmanuel House of Providence, Clonfert in the west of Ireland.

Nóirí­n has worked in music and book publishing for over 16 years, specializing in book editing, music production, project management and marketing. She published 25 Bible stories for children in the Irish language in 2009: www.lorlum.ie
She is also a musician.

Cilla Horan

Cilla Horan works on the school retreat team in Ballintubber Abbey in County Mayo. She sings, plays guitar and piano; all of which were nurtured and encouraged by a family steeped in music. She has been involved in music ministry since her youth, beginning at a local youth mass in her native Ennis in County Clare. Both individually and with different groups she has ministered with local prayer groups and has been involved with music ministries at "Youth 2000" retreats and "Charismatic Renewal" events.

She has also sung for the pilgrimage season in Knock Shrine and was a founding member of "Elation Ministries", a group of young people who minister to others through their music.

Regina Collins

Regina Collins is well known in prayer circles in Galway city. She joined a youth prayer meeting in her mid-twenties and has organised an annual pilgrimage from Galway to Medjugorje for several years now. She is an excellent office administrator and plays a very important role in the Blue Mantle Music Ministry. She is also a somewhat reluctant but fine singer!

Tom Pyne

Tom Pyne is a singer/songwriter from Galway in the west of Ireland.  He has been singing since his school days. He ignored all the good advice to get "a real job" and has no regrets today! His singing has brought him to Germany, Italy, France and America and he sings weekly in his native Galway city. He has had his ups and downs as a diabetic, but is still here and happy and healthy.  He first came into contact with Christian music as a young man on joining a youth prayer meeting in Galway city where he hoped to meet nice women which, of course, he did!

John McCarthy

John McCarthy is the Founder and President of Our Lady's School of Evangelization in Knock, County Mayo. From his retreat work in schools throughout Ireland, he realised that young adults who wanted to take their faith seriously found it difficult. The Lord led him to found this school to provide a place of hope and healing where young people could grow their personal relationship with Jesus and be empowered with the tools of evangelisation.