This article is from page 30 of the 2007-12-04 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 30 JPG
THE spirit of volunteerism has been recognised by Shannon Town Coun- cil with the presentation of a series of awards to some of the areas most active volunteer groups.
One of the organisations singled out for recognition was the Shannon Community Games, with the music society, the chess club and the Bea- vers and Scouts also being recog- nised.
“We have been involved in the Community Games for years now and all the people who received awards have been involved for a long time, decades some of them,” said Mary Fitzgerald of the Shannon
Community Games.
“The Community Games are a ereat social outlet for the young peo- ple. Anything that keeps them inter- ested and occupied is of great ben- efit. It’s always a case of keeping the children involved.
“If they don’t find success as an individual they can always become part of a team. If sports doesn’t al- ways suit then there is a whole host of other activities that they can get involved with. It’s all about partici- pation.”
Over the year’s Shannon has pro- duced a host of All-Ireland Champi- on and have always been competitive, especially in chess and swimming. The great work of the group could
not however, be maintained without the help of countless volunteers.
“We have a great tradition here in chess and have produced a lot of All Ireland Champions. We have also had a lot of success with swimming down the years. I think that out first All-Ireland Champion swimmer was Douglas Hyde back in the *80’s,” continued Mary.
“So many people help in so many different areas of it. It’s great to see it, especially these days when peo- ple are so busy. It’s wonderful to see people who are willing to give their time and their talent for the next gen- eration.
“The whole ethos is all about par- ticipation rather than winning. You
never ever want to send a young fella home thinking they have failed somehow. There are so many chil- dren these days that don’t take part in things like this for whatever reason. “One thing that you can say about the children who take part, you never see them in any kind of trouble. It’s all about keeping them interested and occupied. That’s what it’s all about.”