Edward (10) cuts ribbon on new Moydrum path

Ten-year-old Edward Moore was centre stage on Saturday as he had the honour of cutting the ribbon to officially open the first phase of a new path in Moydrum.

The youngster, who raised €300 for the project with a lemonade stand at his home, exemplified the community spirit that ensured the pathway from I.O. Systems Limited to Moydrum gates became a reality, a distance of over 650 metres.

The project costing €65,000 was completed via the Community Involvement Scheme which requires the community to raise €15% or around €10,000 in this case.

The pandemic lockdown highlighted to many people the benefits of their locality and Moydrum was no exception in this respect. Moydrum and its environs are full of interesting attractions, including walls built during famine times, high crosses, and the ruins of Moydrum castle which was burnt down over 100 years ago.

Due to the high volume of traffic in the area, the local Blyry/Moydrum Residents association decided to campaign for a footpath that would increase pedestrian safety, encourage fitness, and allow people to meet up in an outdoor environment.

This plan started over a year ago and the culmination of this initiative was reached last Saturday when the residents gathered with local councillor Frankie Keena, who is the Cathaoirleach of Westmeath County Council, to officially open the first phase of this new path.

Ignatius Lynam, the Chairperson of the Moydrum Residents Association opened the event surrounded by a group of local residents and praised the enthusiasm and the hard work that allowed this initiative to be realised. Ignatius also thanked the local businesses who contributed to the fundraising.

Cllr Frankie Keena stated that the area is fortunate to have a marvellous residents association chaired by Ignatius Lynam and a development committee led by Ciaran McKenna who continuously comes up with new ideas to generate funds.

He thanked Westmeath County Council for prioritising the funding and for giving such excellent support for the project under the Community Involvement Scheme initiative.

In particular, he thanked all the residents and businesses who generously donated towards the costs of the path. This scheme is now identified as an exemplary model within the council on the best way of delivering on community involvement schemes, he added.

Cllr Keena also paid special tribute to Edward Moore, aged 10, who raised over €300 last year towards the path from a lemonade stand that he set up outside his home. "It was just great to see Edward doing the honours of cutting the ribbon to officially open the path with local children cheering him on," he commented.

Ciaran McKenna, the development officer of the Moydrum Residents Association also thanked Cllr Frankie Keena for his guidance, commitment, and massive assistance in the successful completion of the scheme.

Fundraising is already underway with the hope of completing phase two of the pathway to the local equestrian centre, around 700 metres in length, in the future.

Ciaran McKenna also thanked the committee members, Shane Lyons, Ronan Moore, Sharon Sheriff, and Michael Nugent for their efforts and emphasised that it was a community effort.

He also promoted the next big fundraiser, the annual Good Friday Easter Egg Hunt, which is kindly sponsored by Little Scholars Preschool. This year the venue is Moydrum Forest thanks to the Gaffey family, and it runs from 2pm to 5pm on Friday, April 15.