Nominations open for Tallaght Person of the Year Awards
By Aideen O'Flaherty
NOMINATIONS for this year’s Tallaght Person of the Year Awards are now open at www.tallaghtpersonawards.ie. You can nominate members of the community to be in with a chance of winning an award in recognition of the good work they do within the Tallaght area.
There are eight categories that recognise the work of people across the community, and these varied categories include the Community Award, the Heart of Gold Award, the Michael Dooley Environment Award, the Special Needs and Carers Award and the Philip Preston Sport Award.
Nominations are also being accepted for the Maurice McConnell Youth Award, the Arts and Culture Award and the Business Award, and the recipients of last year’s Arts and Culture Award and Business Award told The Echo about how the win impacted them and their community.
Michael Thompson, an Old Bawn native who has been heavily involved in the Tallaght Marching Band (formerly the Tallaght Youth Band) since he was a child and is now chairperson of the band, was the winner of last year’s Arts and Culture Award.
Mr Thompson told The Echo: “When I won the Arts category award in the Tallaght Person of the Year I was completely shocked and honoured to win.
“The band has always been a big part of my life since I first got involved as an eight-year-old back in 1991.
“While it was my name announced as the winner that night, it really is a combined effort of all our staff, committee and parents who volunteer their time to support the band.”
Vitally important for Tallaght
Reflecting on the impact the awards have on the wider Tallaght community, Mr Thompson said: “The awards are vitally important for Tallaght – a lot of the time you only hear about the bad things that happen in Tallaght.
“There are so many groups and organisations who make a real difference for the people of Tallaght. It’s important to celebrate the great work that takes place in every corner of Tallaght and I hope it is around for many more years to come.”
Pharmacy O’Regan, which is in the Old Bawn Shopping Centre, were also on the winners list at last year’s awards and scooped up the Business Award, where they were recognised for their free advice and testing services and their advocacy for local charities.
Ciara O’Malley, manager of Pharmacy O’Regan Tallaght, told The Echo: “The staff were over the moon that they had won the award, they couldn’t believe it.
“It was great for staff morale, particularly for staff members who live in the local area.
“It was fantastic, especially considering the fact that we were nominated by our customers.”
Explaining the impact that the award win has had on the business, Ms O’Malley said: “You’ll always gain new business [through winning the award], and it gets the word out that we go the extra mile for our customers.”
Nominations for the awards can be made on the Tallaght Person of the Year Awards website at tallaghtpersonawards.ie, and the awards ceremony will be held in the Red Cow Moran Hotel on Friday, November 16.
Tickets, which cost €40, will be on sale from The Echo box office on Thursdays and Fridays only from October 18.
