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Pride of Place Awards 2020 Pride of Place Awards 2020

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Four Limerick groups in running for Pride of Place Awards 2020

Pride of Place Awards 2020 – Bedford Row Family Project are one of the nominees. Pictured above at the Bedford Row Family Project for the launch of their 20th anniversary celebration are Bernie O’Grady, Social Worker, Eugene Stephens, Psychotherapist, Ger Lynch, Service User, Brian McNulty, Counsellor, Rachel Woodfell, LIT Student Placement and Richard Lynch, ilovelimerick, Tracie Tobin, Chairperson, Helena O’Connell, Service User and Alison Curtin, Project Administrator. Picture: Bruna Vaz Mattos/ilovelimerick

Four Limerick groups in running for Pride of Place Awards 2020

Pride of Place Awards 2020

Rathkeale centre. Picture: Patrick Comerford

Four Limerick communities will be hoping the pride they show in their place and work will be recognised as the All-Ireland Pride of Place Awards 2020 take place on Saturday 21 November. Ireland’s largest community awards go ahead this year online, honouring communities across the island for their work during the Covid-19 crisis.

Dubbed the ‘Oscars of the Community Sector’ the Pride of Place awards is an annual competition organised by Co-operation Ireland and sponsored by IPB Insurance. It promotes and celebrates the best in community development and recognises the selfless efforts of people in making their local area a better places to live, work and socialise.


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Local authorities from across the island nominate groups in their communities who they feel have made a significant contribution to improving their neighbourhood, working collectively. The competition culminates with a Gala Awards Ceremony.

Limerick’s entrants Bedford Row Family Project, Monaleen Park Residents’ Association, Rathkeale Pre-Social Cohesion Project, Vale View Residents’ Association are among the 82 groups to have been nominated in 2020.

A gala ceremony was due to be held this Saturday celebrating all the finalists but this will not now take place. In its place will be an online ceremony hosted by RTE’s Marty Morrissey and streamed live HERE

Mayor of the City and County of Limerick Cllr Michael Collins wished the Limerick entries the best of luck.

“All four groups have to be commended and congratulated for the huge amount of work they do for their communities. They are among the unsung heroes who are doing brilliant work in their communities. There’s a fantastic sense of civic spirit in Limerick, with communities like these showing exactly what can be achieved when they work together.”

“This year more than ever, the work of our communities was even more important as they managed the challenge of Covid-19 and ensured our vulnerable people were looked after. We are proud to have the opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate all the wonderful communities who participated in this year’s awards,” the Mayor said.

Pride of Place Chairperson Tom Dowling said: “The purpose of these awards has never changed. They are about recognising and celebrating the extraordinary, inspirational and tireless work being done by communities all over the Island of Ireland as they strive to make their place a better place in which to live.

“This year has been a very difficult year for many so we are proud to have the opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate all the wonderful communities who participated in this year’s awards.”

Dr Christopher Moran, Chairman Co-operation Ireland added: “Co-operation Ireland has no other programme that embodies the charity’s ethos better than Pride of Place and in 2020 it’s even more important it takes place to recognise the huge efforts of ordinary people during the pandemic.

“The impact Pride of Place has had in towns and villages across the island since it started in 2003 cannot be underestimated, and its continuing success is down to the dedicated volunteers and their love of where they live.”

George Jones Chairman, IPB Insurance said: “IPB Insurance is proud to be associated as title sponsors of the IPB Pride of Place Awards and more importantly what they represent. It is clear that working together and getting things done increases people’s pride in where they live and in turn helps build vibrant communities. As a mutual insurer that insures local authorities and their communities across Ireland, these awards are excellent partnership.”

For more information on the 2020 IPB Pride of Place Awards go HERE 

 

The four Limerick nominees are Rathkeale Pre-Social Cohesion Project, Vale View Residents’ Association in Kilfinane, Bedford Row Family Project and Monaleen Park Residents’ Association.

  • Bedford Row Family Project entered in the Cities Competition under the Community Wellbeing Initiative category
  • Monaleen Park Residents’ Association entered in the Cities Competition under the Urban Neighbourhoods/ Villages category
  • Rathkeale Pre-Social Cohesion Project entered in the Main Competition under the Population 1,000 – 2,000 Category
  • Vale View Residents’ Association entered in the Main Competition under the Housing Estates Category

Bedford Row Family Project supports families affected by imprisonment in Limerick. It focuses on ‘breaking the cycle’ of offending. Most of their work involves enhancing the well-being of children who are growing up in families that are in distress because of addiction, poverty, poor housing, family discord and imprisonment itself, in addition to supporting parents to take up responsibilities while in prison and/ or on release.

The Project is open to learning from all over the world, is proud that they are homegrown and believes that modelling autonomy and tenacity has a transformative effect on those who they are supporting in their everyday work.

Monaleen Park Residents’ Association was established in 1980 and has a strong sense of community. The group has always been committed to engaging people living in the estate and wider metropolitan community in environmentally friendly and well-being projects and there is a great sense of pride in everything they do.

In more recent times Monaleen Park have engaged increasingly in nurturing biodiversity. Since 2015 it is committed to the 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle), water conservation, waste management and combating litter, including ‘Castletroy Bye-Bye, Cable-Ties’, an initiative set-up in 2019, to remove cable ties after elections.

Monaleen residents participate every year in the National Spring Clean & Team Limerick Clean-Up and are previous winners in Limerick’s Going for Gold.

Rathkeale Pre-Social Cohesion Project: Rathkeale is a unique town in West Limerick in that over one-fifth of its population comprises people who self-identify as Travellers. While it faces a number of social and community issues and economic decline, the town still offers an attractive range of activities and facilities, in areas such as volunteering, sport, music and education.

The Pre-Social Cohesion Project works to bring together all communities – Traveller and settled communities in the town. It is unique in that it promotes cross-community leadership and understanding and encourages the development of civic pride. The work of the project is defined and carried out by an ecumenical committee consisting of representatives from both communities and local churches.

Vale View Residents Association is part of Vale View, a small housing estate located in Kilfinane, which is the highest town in County Limerick, nestled within the Ballyhoura Mountain range. The Residents’ Association established almost nine years ago aims to keep the area clean and attractive while taking biodiversity on board. 

With a strong sense of community, the members of the group encourage each other to create and maintain the area. Working in conjunction with Limerick City and County Council, the residents created many environmentally friendly and well-being projects.

 

For more stories on Pride of Place Awards go HERE

Richard is a presenter, producer, songwriter and actor. He was named the Limerick Person of the Year (2011) and won an online award at the Metro Éireann Media and Multicultural Awards (2011) for promoting multi-culturalism online. Richard says that the ilovelimerick.com concept is very much a community driven project that aims to document life in Limerick. So, that in 20 years time people can look back and remember the events that were making the headlines.