Piotr Torng took his secrets – his only property – to the grave

Sir, – “Did I ever see Piotr Torng?” Mark O’Connell asks (“Piotr Torng was held in the Dublin city morgue for six months. No one came forward”, Opinion, November 1st).

For years Piotr visited us almost daily. He would first head for a basin, fill it with warm water to soothe tired, aching and often bleeding feet after walking the streets in all weathers. Then he would put on fresh socks and replace his shoes. He took pride in his appearance but didn’t like too many people around interfering in his space, lost in his own thoughts listening to Lyric FM.

Like all of us, he had his good and bad days. Accommodation was always available for him but at times he chose to sleep out and often bore the scars of a tough night out, but he would never discuss the reason or those involved.

We decided to lay Piotr to rest in our burial plot donated to us by the Glasnevin Trust. Fr Padraig Daly from the John’s Lane Augustinian church, who knew Piotr, joined the few of us as we said farewell to a man who lived life to the beat of his own drum in our capital city, far from the land of his birth, wherever that may have been. He took his secrets – his only property – to the grave with him. May he now rest in peace. – Yours, etc,