I first met Martin Lacey when I joined the NewsFour team in 2001, Martin was editor of the paper at the time. He was a very good friend to myself and many others, he was a great man for encouraging us into further education and updating our IT skills. He used to say to all of us: “I’ll make journalists out of all of ye yet.”

Martin was a free spirit and had wonderful stories about his travels in many countries around the world. He would laugh when he talked about growing up in Donnybrook and the antics he and his brother Dermot would get up to playing by the Dodder. In short, there was never a dull moment when Martin was around, he was a very kind and giving man.

His untimely death was a terrible shock to his family and friends and he will be sorely missed. Martin was also a joint founder of the Ireland-Burma Society and the picture shows him visiting friends in Burma.