Speech at the Tenth Anniversary of the Donnycarney Youth and Community Centre
Le Chéile Building, Donnycarney, 22nd February 2014
Tá áthas orm bheith anseo libh inniu agus Ionad Óige agus Pobal Dhomhnach Cearna [Donnycarney Youth and Community Centre] ag ceiliúradh deich mbliana ar an bhfód. Gabhaim buíochas le Tina Walsh as ucht an chuiridh agus gabhaim buíochas libhse uilig as ucht an fíorchaoin fáilte.
[I am delighted to be here today and to join you all as you mark the tenth anniversary of the establishment of the Donnycarney Youth and Community Centre. I thank Tina Walsh for her kind invitation and all of you for that generous welcome.]
The name of this building, opened by my predecessor Mary McAleese in 2004, is Le Chéile – two Irish words I have quoted often, including in my inauguration speech when I became President of Ireland. At that time I emphasised the importance of grasping, as a society, the deep meaning of the proverb ‘ní neart go cur le chéile’ – ‘our strength lies in our common wealth’ – that is, our social solidarity.
As with all true communities, it is very obvious that the common wealth of Donnycarney lies with its people – a wealth that is palpable here today and one that is constantly being channeled into the creation of an inclusive, supportive and participative community.
It is almost ninety years since the first housing scheme was built here in Donnycarney, and over sixty years since Donnycarney became an official parish. During those years several generations, many families, and thousands of individuals have made their homes and lived and grown in this Dublin suburb, learning about the values of inclusive citizenship and the importance of living and communing in a spirit of neighbourly togetherness.
Many of these residents are no longer with us, or have now left Donnycarney and are living their lives in different parts of the country and indeed in many different places across the globe. Others have remained, or have come back to raise their own families here. But I know that many, many people, wherever they are and whatever they may now be doing with their lives, will always remember Donnycarney as the place where they first learnt the meaning of the word “community” and experienced that all important sense of belonging to, and identifying with, a place that they will always regard as ‘home’.
And, of course, many new residents have also moved into Donnycarney in more recent times, finding here a warm, dynamic and welcoming community; a creative community constantly working to bring about positive change and to achieve an inclusive citizenship where every member participates and everyone is treated with respect.
It is that great spirit of community that lay behind the development of this centre, a space which represents the wonderful diversity of Donnycarney and the wide and varied range of interests, talents and skills that exist here, and that continue to be such a valuable resource and asset to this area.
Sports, artistic endeavours, citizens’ advice, youth activities, social events, community meetings and many other pursuits have all found a home in this Community Centre, as it supports the residents of Donnycarney in developing their individual talents, realising their innate potential, and playing and enjoying a valuable and constructive role in their wider community.
I am always inspired when I visit places that nurture social contact between younger and older generations, and between citizens of all backgrounds, cultures and abilities as we work to build a truly inclusive society in which all our citizens are treated with respect and enabled to make their own individual contributions.
When I look at the breadth and range of activities that take place here I am particularly impressed by the manner in which this centre embraces all age groups – reinforcing the importance of developing and promoting more cohesive communities where younger people can benefit from the knowledge, experience and wisdom of older people; while elderly residents remain connected to, and play their part in, a modern and ever changing world.
Too often, in our contemporary world, the old and the young are set apart; occupying different places and spaces and rarely coming together to commune as a group of people who share much in common. In fact, the true story of a community is always to be found in a combination of the many individual narratives, memories and journeys of its residents and the experiences and recollections that are mutual and shared across generations. It is that combination that creates a shared and unbreakable link, and a mutual sense of belonging to the place that will always remain, in your minds, as ‘home’.
In our larger national narrative we have recently been through a baleful chapter whose economic and social impact on contemporary Ireland has been severe as we battled increased unemployment, reduced incomes, mortgage arrears and renewed emigration. Many residents of Donnycarney, like members of all communities, have experienced, and continue to experience, those negative realities in your daily lives.
Difficult times can strengthen a community, as we saw so clearly during the recent extensive flooding and storm damage throughout many parts of the country. But they can also impact negatively on even the best communities. Unemployment can exact a large toll on a neighbourhood and young people, in particular, can be put at risk as they survey futures that can appear to have little to offer and little to aim for.
Is minic dom labhairt ar thábhacht sochaí a fhorbairt ina dtugtar deis do shaoránaigh iniúchadh agus celiúradh a dhéanamh ar a bpoitéinsiúil agus an chuí go dtéann na deiseanna seo i gcion ar an duine agus ar an phobal iomlán le go dtiocfadh siad faoi bhláth. Mar sin, tuigeann pobal atá ag feidhmhú i gceart an tabhacht a bhaineann le lámh a shíneadh amach chuig daoine atá i mbaol, chun comhairle, tacaíocht agus bealach chun cinn a thairiscint dóibh.
[I often speak of the importance of developing a society where all citizens are given the opportunity to explore and celebrate their possibilities and of how these opportunities have the potential to transform individual lives and indeed entire communities. A truly functioning community, therefore, is one which understands the importance of reaching out to people at risk, offering support, advice and a way forward.]
Here at this Centre all residents of Donnycarney who are vulnerable, or experiencing problems in coping with everyday life, know that they have not been abandoned or forgotten by their community. An important element of this centre is the outreach work, the counselling, the holding of drop in clinics, the drug and alcohol awareness programmes and the many other initiatives aimed at ensuring that even those who may be going through a very difficult time are helped to reach their potential, and can benefit from the genuinely inclusive remit of the Donnycarney Youth and Community Centre.
It is this spirit of inclusiveness which has ensured that over the past ten years the Centre has become the beating heart of Donnycarney; a space that enables a sense of active participation and communal enjoyment.
In conclusion, I would like to thank and congratulate everyone who has been involved with the Centre for the past ten years. The theme for this special day “Le Chéile” – Together, reminds us that the Donnycarney Youth and Community Centre was built for the local community by local people and I wish each and every one of you every success in the future.
Go raibh míle maith agaibh go léir.