Celebrating 20 years serving the Monksland community

When Monksland Community Centre was established two decades ago to serve the sprawling South Roscommon hinterland, not even the people behind the innovative project could have envisaged it becoming such a success.

Just before Christmas the vibrant community hub celebrated its 20th anniversary with a special Mass celebrated by Fr John Deignan which was followed by a buffet and a birthday cake to celebrate the milestone occasion.

Representatives of every strand of the local community attended the celebrations, which also included a crochet display and a display of vintage wedding and bridesmaid dresses which attracted much attention and admiration from the large attendance.

As has been the case since the community centre was established, there was huge support from the local business community for a raffle which took place at the 20th anniversary celebrations, with Seery’s Cash and Carry; Des and Mary Carroll and Kennedy’s Monksland among those donating prizes. Supervalu sponsored all the cakes and desserts for the buffet, while Athlone Credit Union made a special presentation to the community centre from their Community Fund.

Monksland Community Centre is run by the community for the community by a core group of dedicated volunteers. This makes it one of the most unique facilities of its kind in the country, and contributes in no small measure to the success story it is today.

The centre was originally converted from a shop unit to a community centre in 2002 by Roscommon County Council and the Board of Directors and volunteers are deeply indebted to the then-Minister for Community, Rural & Gaeltacht Affairs, Eamon O’Cuiv, who was instrumental in the facility accessing €10k in public funding which enabled it to begin operations.

The centre forms part of the Monksland Community Development Project which also includes the adjacent sports ground at Cushla Park. In order for the local community to be in a position to sign a lease on the community centre and Cushla Park they had to formalise from being a local residents association, Monksland and District Residents Association (MDRA) to their current name of Monksland Community Ltd (MCL). Noel Feeley from Roscommon Sports Partnership was unfaltering in his encouragement and assistance during the processing of changing from a residents association to a limited company.

The aim of MCL is to ensure that Monksland has the facilities required in what is now one of the fastest-growing residential areas in the country. Over the lifetime of the local community centre, Monksland has grown from a small rural hinterland to having the second-largest population in county Roscommon, following closely behind Roscommon town itself. The area is now home to roughly 7,000 people.

Although it was originally established to cater for the area of Monksland and district, the volunteers who run the local community centre say that the ‘district’ can extend as far as anyone wishes and, therefore, everyone is welcome to use the facilities.

The community centre is extremely bus on a daily basis and is open seven days a week. The sheer scale of the local groups and organisations that use the centre is breathtaking, among them being: Monksland and Cushla Active Retirement Groups, who meet weekly, Monksland Women’s group, Anna’s Crochet Group and the Conway Dance Academy.

Tusla Family Support Monksland has also been on hand over the years to provide activities, courses and invaluable advice to the local community.

GRETB and LWETB have hosted educational and recreational classes at the Centre throughout the years inclusive of healthcare, childcare, English lessons, food and nutrition, up-cycling and more.

Roscommon Women’s Network have participated, contributed and hosted activities at Monksland Centre over the years.

For a number of years, the Brother’s of Charity/Open Door, Muiriosa and St Hilda’s Services have been using the facilities and attending programmes on offer on a weekly basis.

Athlone Forget Me Not Choir also meet twice monthly which is attended by many – run by Clare McNally and AnneMarie Hynes and Monksland Women's Group provide refreshments for all in attendance.

Roscommon Youth Services Foroige Club meets on Thursday evenings providing supervised social activity for young people aged 10 and upwards, while Athlone Youths Darts Academy- run by Seamus Tynan has been a resounding success at the centre and recently members of the club travelled to Gibraltar to represent Ireland in a major Darts Tournament.

Monksland Mindfulness Session/Sahaja YOGA with Vivek and Ohran gather on Thursday evenings to provide respite from the busyness of daily life.

Ready Steady Play is on Saturday mornings – Children and Adults attend - promoting child development through play and music hosted by Jo and Christian Phelan.

Infinity Friends, a social group catering for youth on the Autistic Spectrum meet on Sunday mornings and hope to extend their activities in the New Year.

For a number of years, Monksland Community Centre has been a multi-faith and culture facilitator. Monthly Mass is followed by tea and a chat and the bigger events in the Christian calendar are also celebrated with extra attention.

Members of the Serbian Orthodox Church attend Mass on a regular basis celebrated by Fr. M. Laden and also host additional celebrations of culture and religion

Elsewhere, The African Women’s Group have attended the centre over the years adding their most positive energy which is always welcome.

The community centre also facilitates other cultural and religious groups in the local area who are celebrating their important calendar dates throughout the year, including Diwali, Eid and Ramadan celebrations. These events always attract many participants, and demonstrate the diverse and multi-cultural community that Monksland has become.

The volunteers and Board of Directors admire people in the local community with initiative and enthusiasm and have supported entrepreneurs by giving very favourable rates for use of the facilities in order to allow them to get started with their plan/business idea/hobby. Many great initiatives which began life in the local community centre have now moved to bigger venues, which is a source of pride for those who run the facility.

Positive interaction between those who run Monksland Community Centre and the local community is highly valued, and they acknowledge the continued support of Roscommon County Council, local elected representatives, agencies, local groups, sporting bodies, local businesses and residents as their assistance and personal input over the years has had such a positive impact on the success of the project.

Cushla Park sports ground, which also comes under the umbrella of Monksland Community CLG, caters for up to 500 people of all ages on a weekly basis and is the home ground of Monksland United FC and St Joseph’s FC.

Monksland Community CLG continues to strive to upgrade facilities in Cushla Park, as finances allow, and they recently installed a new shower system and reclaimed a parcel of land to further enhance the facilities and cater for an increasing weekly footfall.

The enhancement and upkeep of the grounds is on-going and a deep debt of gratitude is owed to the workers from the St. Peter’s Parish Community Employment Project who look after the grounds, and to the daily office administrative staff who are also employed under this scheme.

Monksland Astroturf is also open to the public and caters for a number of clubs, regular users and is available for casual bookings.

The success of the Monksland community project – incorporating the community centre and the Cushla Park sportsgrounds – proves that community spirit is alive and well, and continuing to thrive, in what was once a very small rural part of South Roscommon. Long may it continue.