‘Magnificent six’ presented with Carlow County Council cathaoirleach awards
Award-winner Mary Walsh with family members and Catherine Callaghan TD
THE annual Cathaoirleach Awards were held on 23 April in Carlow Town Hall and saw the cathaoirleach of Carlow County Council cllr Ken Murnane recognise six people for their outstanding commitment to the community.
“It’s important to get people recognised for the great contribution they make to Carlow. It shows people that the work they do does not go unrecognised,” the cathaoirleach said.
The event saw Fiona Byrne, senior executive officer at Carlow Co Council, welcome those in attendance before the cathaoirleach said a few words about why he had chosen the award recipients. Ms Byrne then introduced each of the winners and invited them on stage to receive a plaque from the cathaoirleach.
Singer-songwriter Richie Kavanagh was the first to be given an award. Introducing him, Ms Byrne relayed to the attendance his achievements over the course of four decades as a singer, including receiving an IRMA in 1996 for having the top single of the year and a triple platinum disc for sales of .
Mary Walsh was the second person to be presented with an award. Described as having an exceptional level of commitment to Tullow, she is an integral part of Develop Tullow, Tidy Towns, the St Patrick’s Day Parade and helped to find the local girl guides troop. Mary’s fundraising efforts for Crumlin Hospital and involvement with the ICA were also praised.
Like Mary, the third award recipient, Pat Breen, is involved with many community programmes, including Carlow Tidy Towns and the Elderflower Garden Club. Pat manages four bi-weekly litter picking volunteer groups â the UNUM group, Carlow Volunteer Centre, RehabCare Carlow Resource Centre and Slí Eile Community Hub. He is also the caretaker of the graveyard on the Barrow Track, the Famine graveyard memorial near SETU and he maintains the flowers at Bishop Foley Memorial School.
The fourth recipient was Majella Swan, the founder and director of Carlow College of Music. The college was founded in 1990 when Majella and her friend, the late Maggie Brady, began giving lessons above her father’s supermarket in Carlow town. Since then, the college has seen great success, with many students winning awards nationally and internationally each year and a sizeable number of former students going on to become professional musicians.
After Majella was presented with her award, students from Carlow College of Music gave a short performance.
The fifth and sixth award recipients were Adeline and Claudia Dargan, the directors of the Dargan School of Irish Dance. The sisters’ 25 years of commitment to nurturing the next generations of Irish dancers was mentioned, as was the success which their students had achieved, including winning Leinster, All-Ireland and world championships. The motivating force behind their teaching is their great love for Irish culture and heritage.
After Adeline and Claudia were presented with their awards, students from the Dargan School of Dance performed for the guests at the ceremony.
*See this week's paper for more photos from the event
