Athlone salutes Br Gerard with People of the Year Award

The Radisson SAS Hotel in Athlone, was packed to capacity on Friday last to see Marist Brother Gerard Cahill emerge as the overall Athlone Person of the Year 2009. Synonymous with education in Athlone, Brother Gerard was recognised for his contribution to the Marist College in Athlone in his role as principal of the school over 30 years, but also for his unstinting work throughout his 62-year involvement with the Marist Brothers locally. Accepting the award from Mayor Egbert Moran and Editor of the Westmeath Independent Tadhg Carey, the modest winner told host RTE personality Aonghus McAnally afterwards that he was 'overwhelmed' with the accolade. Br Cahill graciously thanked the staff and students of the Marist College, Athlone, without whom, he said he wouldn"t be there. Earlier, the night"s proceedings were kicked off following a sumptuous meal with a welcome from Sheila Buckley Byrne, Area Manager of the National Learning Network, who described the awards a great opportunity 'to celebrate all that is really great in our community'. Padraig Lydon, a member of Rehab"s Board of Directors thanked the huge local attendance, sponsors and support for the fifth annual Rehab Athlone People of the Year Awards 2009, a fixture in the social calendar of the town at this stage. 'It has two main aims, to recognise groups and individual"s contribution to the community and to raise much needed funds for Rehab Group"s important work,' he remarked, before going to describe the organisation"s programmes with those with physical and sensory disabilities. Westmeath Independent editor Tadhg Carey said the awards were about celebrating all that"s positive about Athlone. 'And despite these dark, gloomy times, there is much to be proud of about this fine town of ours. He added that the eight winners were proof positive of that. 'As long as we have more of their ilk, we in Athlone can be assured our town is in good hands,' he added. Mayor of Athlone Cllr Egbert Moran told the large attendance that once again Athlone Town Council were very pleased to be involved as sponsor of the event. 'All of the award winners are motivated by concern for others and this is reflected in the unselfish time and work that they commit to their causes. They are the unsung heroes of our community who go about doing their good deeds in a quiet and unassuming way, without seeking the limelight for themselves,' he enthused. Afterwards, full of boundless energy, RTE personality Aonghus McAnally had everyone in stitches as he joked about a myriad of subjects, everything from the recession to his family roots in his own imitable style, before he got down to the main business at hand - handing out the eight awards. First to be honoured on the night with his special commissioned Athlone Crystal award was the eventual overall winner Br Gerard Cahill for his enormous contribution to education in Athlone and the Marist Brothers in the town. Next to be feted was county champions Castledaly GAA and chairman Alan Duffy who made his way up to the stage to the strains of the Sunday Game theme tune to accept the specially commissioned Athlone Crystal trophy for their achievement. Asked what made the club keep going after many years as the bridesmaids of Westmeath football, the club chairman said succinctly: 'Success comes from trying again and again'. Another sporting figure was honoured with the third award of the night, a man described as a 'legend of schoolboy football' in Athlone - Pat Cisco Flynn. Chatting on stage he said he couldn"t be prouder and more thankful for the honour, before adding modestly that 'he"s just a fella who believes in sport'. 'A dynamo that energises the community of Tormey Villas' was the fitting introduction for Mona Joyce, Chairperson of St Kieran"s Community Centre, who charmed the attendance with her stories of how it all began, joking that the 'hall first arrived on the back of a lorry' in blocks to be assembled. Twenty years on and many improvements later, she said their next hope was to secure an all-weather pitch for the area.. 35 marathons in seven years for charity certainly earned the dynamic duo of Denis McMonagle and Jimmy Nugent the fifth award of the night. 'We want to get to 100 marathons,' Jimmy smiled as the duo, fresh from their latest running exploits in Boston, as the crowd winced at the thought of their gruelling training regime of six to seven miles running five days a week. Through his work with St Vincent de Paul, the sixth winner Gerry Mulrooney has dedicated a staggering 42 years of his life to helping the needy in Athlone. Asked why he does it, the affable Athlone man said the feeling he gets helping people keeps him going and the little successes along the way. A driving force behind Athlone securing the National Community Games Finals for the very first time, Professor Ciarán Ó Catháin of AIT was the second last award recipient of the night for his work as the spearhead of the third level institute in the Midlands, before Irish culture and dancing enthusiast Éilis Ó Daláigh brought the first part of the awards ceremony to a close when she accepted her accolade for a lifetime promoting Irish dancing as a teacher, and more recently as the first female President of the worldwide Irish Dancing Commission. An air of suspense hung over proceedings for the next few minutes, before the magic envelope was opened and Br Gerard Cahill was revealed as the 2009 Athlone Person of the Year and then the real celebrations began in earnest with the chat and the dancing lasting in to the wee hours. The citation read: 'The Athlone Person of the Year is ... someone who has invested six decades of work in his chosen field, a person whose lifelong mission has borne fruit in generations of young people'. It continued: 'To honour his unique personal contribution to 125 years of the Marist Order in Athlone, the 2009 Athlone Person of the Year is Brother Gerard Cahill.'