Walfrid was born of John Kerins and Elizabeth Flynn in Ballymote, a village in south County Sligo in Connacht in the west of Ireland.

His ancestors, the Ó Céirín (later anglicised as "Kerins"), were anciently Gaelic lords of Ciarraige Locha na nÁirne, with a long history in County Mayo.

Here he continued his work, organising football matches for and showing great kindness to the barefoot Catholic children in the districts of Bethnal Green and Bow.

The ceremony was attended by the Archbishop of Glasgow, the Most Reverend Mario Conti who blessed the statue, several thousand fans and former Celtic and Rangers captains and managers Billy McNeil and John Greig.

[citation needed] A further sculpture, a bust of Brother Walfrid, commemorating his links with his home town of Ballymote, was unveiled in the public park there in 2005.