AFTER returning home from last week’s national Tidy Towns ceremony with a special award, Limerick Tidy Towns chairperson Helen O’Donnell reflected with pride on the work of those who give their time to making the city a cleaner place.
The Limerick Tidy Towns committee has been in place for three years and, like many other communities across the county, continues to score increasingly highly in the annual competition.
Helen is a proud resident of Limerick city and she is committed to helping to make it “a clean, safe city in which to work, live and enjoy”.
She added: “I was delighted to collect the award. It was our first time up there and hopefully we’ll be back again. The committee nominated me and the award is in my name, but really it’s for all the volunteers who give their time twice a week every week. It’s a great boost for the city and hopefully it will make people more aware of how clean the city is and that they can take pride in their place.”
Helen and a group of volunteers decided to actively get involved in the Tidy Towns scheme three years ago, taking matters into their own hands as they sought to improve the litter situation in the city. Limerick Tidy Towns meet twice a week, on Wednesdays at 6pm at the White House Pub on O’Connell Street and Sundas at 11am on Thomas Street.
The group was particularly busy of late in preparation for the visit of Royal De Luxe and the Grandmother Giant, something that Helen commended for showcasing Limerick in a positive light.
“We had the Giant in town last week and we were out for a few extra nights beforehand. Again it was something that allowed people to take pride in their city. People have enormous pride in this city and the Tidy Towns is another way in which people can show that pride.”
Helen is hopeful that the positive trend across Limerick will continue for years to come and she has called on people around the city and county to get involved, even on a small scale.
“I’d love to see more and more people involved in Tidy Towns. People can be competitive so if they see their neighbours scoring well, they will want to work hard to get good results too. If everyone did their bit, we will continue to have a clean, litter-free county.”
