Brother of missing Offaly man says: 'I can only imagine what Fiona Pender's family are going through'

THE brother of missing Offaly man Luke Price has said that if the 27-year-old has died, he hopes his remains will be found and the family will be spared the trauma suffered by Fiona Pender's loved ones.

Nathan Price was speaking on the night a heavy metal and rock festival took place in Tullamore to raise awareness about Luke and raise funds for the National Missing Persons Helpline.

Luke Price, whose family are from the Geashill area, had been living near Portlaoise and visiting his partner in Limerick most weekends.

He was last seen in the Dock Road area of Limerick after leaving O'Curry Street in the city on January 14 last and despite several searches and extensive publicity there has still been no trace of him.

Nearly a dozen bands from all over the country performed at the festival on Saturday (May 31) in John Lee's Bar and Venue.

The event was organised by War of Attrition, a Limerick-based band whose lead singer is Nathan Price and many of the groups on the bill are known to him and were admired and followed by his brother Luke.

Speaking before his own band closed the night, Nathan Price said: “It's a really really good turnout. It's unprecedented the amount of support we've got from Tullamore itself, from everyone who's shown up. Every single thing has just been brilliant and it's been running really smoothly.”

He said the aim of the one-day festival was to raise awareness about the Missing Persons Ireland helpline and “to make as much noise as we can about my brother who is missing and keep it going and make sure that people know he's missing”.

The 31-year-old added: “That he's not going to fade away into obscurity. The likes of Fiona Pender, I don't want to live through that, I can only imagine what they're going through but I can relate to them a lot more now than I could before.

“I'd rather find a body than have no closure at all. Personally I don't think we're going to find him alive. I get told to keep up hope but this is not pessimism, it's realism. It's been five months, the chances of finding him alive are slim to none. If we do, brilliant, but realistically speaking, it's unlikely.”

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He spoke of the camaraderie among the music community. “Every band that's here is a band we've worked with in the past, that my brother was either a fan of or enjoyed interacting with as people. Everyone who's here are friends I've had for years, or who I've worked with, or who my brother has gone to see for years. So it's a gathering of friends, community and trying to actually make a difference in some way.

“It's brilliant. Because as far as I'm aware there's no other music community that's like the metal scene. We come together.”

The Tullamore Phoenix Metal Festival could well become a fixture in the music calendar: “We've been asked about it being an annual event and assuming this has gone as well as I hope it has, yes, why not?”

While it is a fundraiser, and Nathan Price's mother Pauline had been gathering donations and sponsorship for a well supported raffle, the organisers were keen to ensure that all the acts were paid.

“I've been playing music since I was 15 and there's nothing more like a slap in the face than not being appreciated for it. When you're a musician a lot of work goes into it and you're practising all the time. People are travelling here, they're spending money to get here, they're spending money to be here so the least we can do is be fair.”

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He said so many people came to Tullamore for the weekend, between musicians and fans, that there has been a good economic spin-off for the town.

He also paid tribute to the bands who supported the venture, citing a Limerick group, Oiche Fuar (pictured below) as an example of the backing given to the inaugural Tullamore Phoenix Metal Festival.

“They've proven themselves to be not just good musicians, but they act with professional courtesy, they're kind and all through all of this they were asking 'What can we do to help you'. Every band we've had has been so professional and that's why everything has been running so smoothly, the professionalism displayed by everyone involved in this has been phenomenal.”

Fiona Pender, aged 25 and seven months pregnant, has not been seen since early morning August 23, 1996.

Gardai believe she was murdered and in the last week searches took place at a bog near Killeigh and a forested area in the Slieve Blooms near Clonaslee but nothing was found which helps in the quest to find her remains.

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